Norwegian Opera & Ballet appoints Edward Gardner as music director

Norwegian Opera & Ballet has appointed Edward Gardner to the role of music director. Gardner took on the temporary position of artistic advisor on Tuesday (1 February) before beginning his tenure as music director on 1 August 2024.

Gardner is currently chief conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic, a position he will step down from at the end of the 2023/24 season. He is also principal conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and has not announced plans to step down from this role.

Randi Stene, the Norwegian Opera & Ballet’s opera director, said: ‘Ed performed Wagner and Richard Strauss with us last season and proved his unique musical capacity, his operatic sensibility, his professionalism and his winning interpersonal expertise.’

Born in Gloucester in 1974, Gardner was a chorister at Gloucester Cathedral before becoming a choral scholar in King's College Choir at Cambridge University. He also studied at the Royal Academy of Music, graduating in 2000.

After winning the RPS Young Artist award in 2005, Gardner was appointed music director of English National Opera in 2006, formally taking up the role in 2007 and remaining in position for 8 years. Gardner has also been a regular guest conductor for companies worldwide including New York’s Metropolitan Opera, Covent Garden’s Royal Opera House, La Scala and Opéra National de Paris.

Gardner received an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for his services to British music in 2012 in the Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Gardner said: ‘I had a fantastic collaboration with the talented musicians [at the Norwegian Opera & Ballet] over the past year, and I look forward to creating performances of the highest quality for Norwegian and international audiences in one of the world's best opera houses.’

You can find out more about the Norwegian Opera & Ballet here.