Maxim Rysanov

The Ukrainian-British violist and conductor Maxim Rysanov is one of the world’s most dynamic and charismatic musicians. He has performed both as a conductor and as a soloist with renowned orchestras such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Basel Symphony Orchestra, the Residentie Orkest, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, the Budapest Festival Orchestra and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, and has appeared at international festivals including those of Verbier, Edinburgh and Salzburg, and the BBC Proms. He frequently performs as both a conductor and soloist. He is also principal guest conductor of I Musici de Montréal.

In 2024/25 he made his debut with the Budapest Strings, performed with I Solisti di Pavia, the Vojvodina Symphony Orchestra and the MÁV Symphony Orchestra, played Dobrinka Tabakova’s Suite in Old Style with the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra Olomouc and toured as a soloist throughout China. He also performed with Alexander Sitkovetsky and Dasol Kim, as well as throughout Europe and in New York as part of Evgeny Kissin’s Shostakovich Project 2025.

His chamber music partners include Maxim Vengerov, Janine Jansen, Mischa Maisky, Gidon Kremer, Nicola Benedetti, Vadim Repin, Sol Gabetta, Leif Ove Andsnes, Denis Matsuev, Martin Fröst, Alice Coote, Nikita Boriso-Glebsky and Dóra Kokas.

His passion for contemporary music has led him to give world premieres of works by Valentin Bibik, Richard Dubugnon, Dobrinka Tabakova and Pēteris Vasks and to collaborate with Leonid Desyatnikov, Giya Kancheli, Elena Langer, Artem Vassiliev and Benjamin Yusupov. He made his conducting debut with the world premiere of Gabriel Prokofiev’s Viola Concerto, with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn.

His recordings include Tabakova’s String Paths (ECM), which was nominated for a Grammy, In Schubert’s Company, which was named Gramophone Critics’ Choice of the Year, Vasks’s Viola Concerto (dedicated to him) with the Sinfonietta Riga (BIS) and, most recently in 2024, a Schumann album featuring his own viola arrangements, recorded with Julian Bliss and Dasol Kim (Onyx).

Maxim Rysanov is a prize-winner of the Gramophone Young Artist of the Year Award, the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Award, the Concours de Genève, the Lionel Tertis Competition and the Valentino Bucchi Competition. He is an associate artist of the Yehudi Menuhin School and gives masterclasses internationally.

He plays the Giuseppe Guadagnini viola ‘Il Soldato’ from 1780, on private loan from Premiere Performances Hong Kong.