John Welsman

Born in 1944, Leif Segerstam studied violin, piano, composition and conducting at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, followed by postgraduate studies at the Juilliard School in New York under Morel, Persinger, Overton and Petsichetti. He began his conducting career in the opera houses of Helsinki, Stockholm and West Berlin, and early guest appearances took him to the Metropolitan Opera, New York and the major European opera houses including La Scala and Covent Garden. He was chief conductor of the Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1975-82, and of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1977 to 1987, with which he maintains close contact as principal guest conductor. From 1983-89 he served as general music director of the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz (Germany) and is still their honorary guest conductor.

From 1988 to 1995 Mr. Segerstam was chief conductor of the Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. From the 1995/96 season he was appointed chief conductor and musical director at the Royal Opera in Stockholm and chief conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2001 he was appointed Chief Conductor at the Finnish National Opera.

Leif Segerstam has shown exceptional creativity as a composer throughout his musical career and has over 80 symphonies, 29 string quartets, 11 violin and 4 piano concertos as well as chamber and vocal music.

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