Renaud Capuçon began his studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris at the age of fourteen, winning numerous awards during his five years there. Following this, Capuçon moved to Berlin to study with Thomas Brandis and Isaac Stern, and was awarded the Prize of the Berlin Academy of Arts. In 1997, Capuçon was invited by Claudio Abbado to become concertmaster of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, which he led for three summers, working with conductors such as Pierre Boulez, Seiji Ozawa, and Abbado himself.

Since this time, Capuçon has established himself as a soloist at the very highest level. He has played concerti with orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic, the Boston Symphony and the Orchestre de Paris. Capuçon also tours extensively as a solo recitalist. He has a great commitment to performing chamber music and has worked with Marta Argerich, Hélène Grimaud, and Maria João Pires, as well as with his brother and regular collaborator cellist Gautier Capuçon. These collaborations have taken him to the festivals of Edinburgh, London, Berlin, Lucerne, Tanglewood and many others.

His most recent recording was of Beethoven Sonatas for violin and piano with Frank Braley. He also recorded the Beethoven and Korngold concertos with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and Yannick Nezet-Seguin. Renaud Capuçon plays the Guarneri del Gesù ›Panette‹ (1737) that belonged to Isaac Stern, bought for him by the Banca Svizzera Italiana (BSI).

In recent years, Duncan Ward has established himself as one of the most exciting and versatile conductors of his generation, whose lively interpretations of the classical repertoire are praised as much as his interpretations of 20th century masterpieces. He has been chief conductor of the Philzuid (South Netherlands Philharmonic) since 2021. He also regularly conducts orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, the Finnish Radio Symphony and other renowned orchestras. His great passion for a very wide-ranging repertoire also leads to collaborations with ensembles for historical instruments such as Les Siècles or Balthasar Neumann as well as with specialists for contemporary music such as the Ensemble Modern or the Ensemble Intercontemporain.

The current season’s symphonic highlights include debuts with the Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Osaka Philharmonic, Orchestre Symphonique du Quebec and the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra. In 2022, the conductor made his North American debut at the Metropolitan Opera with Mozart’s ›Die Zauberflöte‹. Duncan Ward opened the 2024/25 season with a critically acclaimed debut at the English National Opera and a new production of Britten’s ›Turn of the Screw‹. Since his youth, this versatile musician has been involved in many international social projects, including in India and South Africa. He has maintained a close relationship with the Deutsche Kammer­philharmonie Bremen for many years.