Welcome to the Ulster Orchestra!
Music Director Laureate Daniele Rustioni
Honorary Principal Guest Conductor Jac van Steen
Conductor Laureate Rafael Payare
Artist Laureate Sir James Galway
Leader Ioana Petcu-Colan
Founded in 1966, the Ulster Orchestra has been at the forefront of musical life in Northern Ireland and the Orchestra’s full-time musicians form the region’s only professional symphony orchestra.
From 2022-24, Daniele Rustioni held the role of Music Director, after three Seasons as Chief Conductor, a role which commenced at the start of the Orchestra’s 2019/20 Season. Rustioni joins a distinguished line of past principal conductors including Bryden Thomson, Vernon Handley, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Dimitry Sitkovetsky, Thierry Fischer, Kenneth Montgomery, JoAnn Faletta and Rafael Payare.
With a mission to enrich the lives of people living in Northern Ireland, those visiting, and those who encounter it through international touring and regular radio and TV broadcasts with both BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Radio 3, the Orchestra strives for excellence in all it undertakes, be it regular concert performances, learning and community engagement programmes, or creative collaborations across the arts.
The Ulster Orchestra gives around 40 evening and lunchtime concerts each season in the Ulster Hall and Belfast Waterfront. The Orchestra performs for the BBC Radio 3 invitational concert series at the Ulster Hall and in front of tens of thousands for the annual events Lush! Classical in the SSE Arena, Belfast and The Classical in Botanic Gardens.
An important aspect of the Ulster Orchestra’s work across Northern Ireland is its annual touring programme of concerts, which brings live orchestral music to the heart of communities across the region. Our Ulster Orchestra On Your Doorstep concert series sees the orchestra play in as diverse a range of venues as possible across Northern Ireland, sending everything from small ensembles and chamber music concerts, right up to the full symphony orchestra, far and wide across the region.
The Orchestra performs with a number of regular partners, including Northern Ireland Opera, Belfast International Arts Festival and Belfast Philharmonic Choir.
The Ulster Orchestra’s Learning and Community Engagement programme aims to connect the Orchestra with communities and individuals across Northern Ireland and to provide accessible and innovative opportunities for people to engage as audiences and participants. Since 2016, all the Orchestra’s musicians have been working on education and outreach activity, including Relaxed Performances for people with additional needs, residencies in schools and universities, concerts directly in people’s communities, mentoring and coaching for players at all stages of their musical journey and the Crescendo project, the Orchestra’s community-led residency project for children from disadvantaged areas in North and West Belfast.