Longborough Festival Opera has appointed conductor Christopher Ward as its new Music Director from the 2027 season. London-born Ward joins Longborough Festival Opera from Theater Aachen and Sinfonieorchester Aachen, where he has served as General Music Director since 2018. He brings more than two decades of experience working at leading German opera houses, alongside a broad international guest conducting career that includes appearances at Staatsoper Hamburg, Komische Oper Berlin, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Staatsoper Prague and Welsh National Opera.
Ward’s appointment follows an extensive international recruitment process and comes at a significant moment for LFO as it approaches the 30th anniversary of its purpose-built theatre and looks ahead to an ambitious and exciting future.
Ward succeeds Anthony Negus, who has been Music Director of Longborough Festival Opera for more than two decades and was part of the recruitment panel. Negus will become Conductor Laureate in 2027, conducting the company’s anniversary production of Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.
Christopher Ward said:
“Longborough Festival Opera, founded through the bold vision of Martin and Lizzie Graham, is a truly special place, with deep and loyal relationships with its audiences and a strong commitment to nurturing future generations through its education and community work. From my first meetings with the team, I was struck by their collective enthusiasm and collaborative spirit, and I am hugely excited to join them and to bring the experience I have gained over two decades working within the German opera house system to the next chapter of the festival.”
The 2026 Festival opens on 30 May with a new production of Handel’s Orlando, and continues until 8 August with Verdi’s Macbeth, Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde.
About Christopher Ward
London-born conductor Christopher Ward is a highly versatile musician, widely praised for his dynamic and compelling presence on the podium. His creative programming, commitment to contemporary music and imaginative education initiatives have earned acclaim from critics and audiences alike.
Christopher studied at Oxford University and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, working early in his career with Oxford’s Philharmonia & Chorus, Bach Choir and New Chamber Opera. He was subsequently appointed Répétiteur Fellow at Scottish Opera and the RSAMD in Glasgow.
In 2004 he joined the International Opera Studio of Zurich Opera before making Germany his artistic home, serving from 2005 as Solorepetitor and Kapellmeister at Staatstheater Kassel. There he conducted numerous new productions and concerts with the Staatsorchester Kassel, alongside periods as chorus master and director of the theatre’s annual youth orchestra project. A formative highlight was assisting Sir Simon Rattle on Wagner’s Das Rheingold with the Berliner Philharmonic at the Aix-en-Provence Festival, later continuing this work in Berlin and Salzburg.
From 2009, Christopher was Kapellmeister and musical assistant to Kent Nagano at the Bavarian State Opera, conducting premieres and concerts and collaborating with the Bayerische Staatsorchester and opera studios in Munich and Milan. He went on to serve as Kapellmeister at Saarländisches Staatstheater, conducting repertoire ranging from Rameau and Weber to Verdi and the German premiere of Haas’ Bluthaus.
As a guest conductor, he has appeared at major European opera houses including Staatsoper Hamburg, Komische Oper, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Oper Graz and Staatsoper Prague. In 2019 he conducted the world premiere of Jörg Widmann’s Babylon at short notice at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, stepping in for Daniel Barenboim.
His recordings for Naxos and Capriccio have received international acclaim and multiple Opus Klassik nominations, including projects with leading German and European orchestras.
Since 2018, Christopher has served as Generalmusikdirektor of Theater and Sinfonieorchester Aachen, where he has strengthened music standards across opera and concert repertoire, developed a period-instrument baroque ensemble from within the orchestra, championed forgotten composers and expanded audiences through innovative programming and outreach.
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