About
Michael Coleby is a London-based conductor with a particular focus on contemporary music and collaboration with living composers. He has worked with a wide range of orchestras across the UK and Europe, including the BBC Concert Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Deutsche Sinfonie-Orchester Berlin, Brandenburger Symphoniker, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim, Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz, Orquestra Castilla y León, Lohja City Orchestra, LEAD Festival Orchestra, Orchestre national de Metz, University of Nottingham Symphony Orchestra and the Janus Ensemble, which he founded in 2015.
Michael has served as assistant conductor with major ensembles and collaborated with internationally renowned conductors and composers, including Esa-Pekka Salonen and Vladimir Jurowski. His repertoire spans core symphonic works, contemporary commissions, and opera, and he is recognised for his detailed, expressive approach to both traditional and experimental repertoire.
Through his work with the Janus Ensemble, Michael has led numerous concerts, commissions, and recordings, championing new music and education projects. He is an alumnus of NEXT, the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group’s professional development programme, where he worked with composers such as Brian Ferneyhough, Rebecca Saunders and Dai Fujikura.
Michael began conducting while studying Music at the University of Bristol and has trained in masterclasses with conductors including Martyn Brabbins, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Atso Almila, Hanu Lintu, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Julien Leroy, Emilio Pomàrico, and Johannes Schlaefli, Sian Edwards, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, and Sir Roger Norrington. He was previously a cellist in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.