Principal Conductor

Jan Willem de Vriend is Chief Conductor of the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Principal Guest Conductor of the Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, and Artistic Partner of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. He appears regularly with orchestras such as the Belgian National Orchestra, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Lyon, Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra.

In the 2024/25 season, Jan Willem de Vriend returns to the Musikkollegium Winterthur, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Stavanger Symphony, Stuttgart Philharmonic, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Trondheim Symphony, and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich. A concert performance of Lo Speziale (directed by Eva Buchmann) takes him to the Ludwigsburg Castle Festival. Three new recordings have also been released: Mozart Piano Concertos Nos. 20 & 12 (Dejan Lazić/Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra – Challenge Records), Schumann Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 (Stavanger Symphony Orchestra – Challenge Records), and Emilie Mayer Symphonies Nos. 4 & 6 (NDR Radiophilharmonie – CPO).

Jan Willem de Vriend previously served as Permanent Conductor of the Residentie Orkest The Hague and Chief Conductor of Phion, Orkest van Gelderland & Overijssel. He was also Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestre National de Lille, Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, South Netherlands Philharmonic, and the Stuttgart Philharmonic.

With the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, De Vriend recorded numerous works by Beethoven, including all symphonies and concertos (with soloists such as Hannes Minnaar and Liza Ferschtman). Classic FM praised the Seventh Symphony for its “sparkling atmosphere that perfectly captures the composer’s joyful side.” Another highlight among his Challenge Records releases was the complete recording of Mendelssohn’s symphonies with the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra and Schubert’s symphonies with the Residentie Orkest.

De Vriend first gained international recognition as Artistic Director of the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam, which he founded in 1982 and led as concertmaster until 2015. Specializing in 17th- and 18th-century repertoire, the ensemble rediscovered many rarely performed works and plays on modern instruments in a historically informed style. Gramophone Magazine praised the musicians as “accomplished, technically refined, and alive to the expressive possibilities of the music.” The ensemble’s spirit of collaboration continues in De Vriend’s exploration of the symphonic repertoire, particularly in the works of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Johann Strauss.

In opera, De Vriend has worked with the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam to perform works by Monteverdi, Haydn, Handel, Telemann, and J. S. Bach (including staged versions of the Hunting and Coffee Cantatas at the Leipzig Bach Festival), all directed by Eva Buchmann. Operas by composers such as Mozart, Verdi, and Cherubini have been part of his seasons with the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, including guest performances in Switzerland with Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Rossini’s La Gazzetta, again staged by Eva Buchmann. He has also conducted opera productions in Amsterdam (Nederlandse Reisopera), Barcelona, Strasbourg, Lucerne, Schwetzingen, and Bergen.

In the Netherlands, Jan Willem de Vriend is widely known through his appearances in television and radio music programs. In 2012, he received an award from Dutch broadcaster NPO Radio 4 for outstanding creative contributions to classical music.