Conductor

“Rimma enjoyed a distinguished 30-year career as a world-class violinist before making her debut as a conductor”

The internationally-acclaimed violinist Rimma Sushanskaya was the last pupil of David Oistrakh, with whom she studied at Moscow Conservatoire, and under whose tutelage she won many prestigious awards. Upon leaving the Soviet Union, she rapidly established a glowing reputation in the west; the Washington Post described her as “one of the greatest violinists alive today,” and commented on her “extraordinary intensity and brilliant virtuosity.”

Alongside her distinguished career as a violinist, Rimma Sushanskaya has developed an increasingly prominent presence as a conductor, marked in particular by her close and ongoing relationship with the National Symphony Orchestra of Great Britain. Following her highly acclaimed London conducting debut with the orchestra at Cadogan Hall in 2017, she was appointed Principal Associate Conductor – a role that reflects both her artistic leadership and her continued influence on the orchestra’s musical direction.

More broadly, her conducting career has taken her to leading concert halls across Europe and beyond, with appearances in Germany, Russia, Israel, Romania, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Switzerland, China and the United Kingdom. She has performed in prestigious venues including the Gewandhaus, Leipzig; the Philharmonic Hall and Konzerthaus in Berlin; the Philharmonic Hall, Kharkov; and the Tonhalle, Zurich.

Rimma Sushanskaya has conducted a wide range of orchestras, including the Berlin Sinfonetta, Neues Sinfonia Orchestra (Berlin), Leipzig Chamber Orchestra, Kharkov Philharmonic, St Petersburg State Orchestra, State Philharmonic of Satu-Mare, and Orchestra of the Swan (UK). Her repertoire includes major works such as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 2, Mozart’s Requiem, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, and Orff’s Carmina Burana.

Deeply committed to education, and continuing the tradition of her own great teacher, she has long been dedicated to nurturing the next generation of musicians. She has been a sought-after professor at Birmingham Conservatoire, and her Virtuoso Violin Festival in Stratford-upon-Avon attracted outstanding young string players from across the UK and internationally.