VoxCarnyx

Bulgarian-born Delyana Lazarova is to be the new principal guest conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra from September 2025. The former assistant to Sir Mark Elder at the Hallé Orchestra will succeed Ilan Volkov, who held that position from 2009 and is now creative partner. She will be joining an artistic team at the SSO led by chief conductor Ryan Wigglesworth.

The SSO appointment is one of two principal guest conductorships Lazarova takes up this year. In December it was announced that she would assume a similar role from mid-2025 with the Utah Symphony Orchestra. To date she has collaborated with such leading orchestras as the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Orchestre National de France, BBC Symphony Orchestra and CBSO, and makes her debut this season with both the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Minnesota Orchestra. 

Lazarova’s growing reputation in recent years followed on the back of several important competition successes, winning the Bruno Walter Conducting Scholarship at California’s Cabrillo Festival in 2017 and 2018, the 2019 NRTA International Conducting Competition in Tirana, and in 2020 the James Conlon Conducting Award at the Aspen Music Festival and Siemens Hallé International Conductors Competition. 

In her SSO debut last March she hugely impressed audiences and critics alike. One review claimed that “Delyana Lazarova’s chemistry with the SSO, loaded with common purpose and a mission to excite and enchant, was exhilarating from the start”.  Of that same performance of Stravinsky’s The Firebird, VoxCarnyx concluded that “Lazarova, one hopes, will be back before long.”

Commenting on her SSO appointment, Lazarova said: “I am deeply honoured and thrilled to join the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra team. From our very first rehearsal, I was impressed by the artistry and exceptional range of expression of the BBC SSO musicians, whose commitment and passion for the music captured my heart from the start. 

“I eagerly look forward to this exciting journey together, as we explore a diverse repertoire – discovering hidden gems, as well as bringing fresh perspectives to some of the most beloved masterpieces. I cannot wait to reconnect with the wonderful members of the orchestra, hear their beautiful playing once again, and create inspiring music together.”

Welcoming Lazarova’s appointment, BBC SSO Dominic Parker said: “With a keen sense of storytelling in her programming and an impressive breadth of repertoire, audiences can look forward to an enriching and enjoyable musical journey with her on the BBC SSO podium.”