OLIVIER OCHANINE
General Management
Susanna Stefani Caetani
susanna@onlystage.co.uk
biography
Regularly praised for his charisma on and off podium as well as for his breadth of orchestral repertoire knowledge, Olivier Ochanine is the 1st Prize Winner of the 2015 Antal Dorati International Conducting Competition in Budapest, Hungary, in which he surpassed nearly 120 other conductors from 23 countries. In addition, he is winner of the prestigious The American Prize (2015) in the Professional Orchestra Conducting division. Olivier is also 2nd Prize Winner in the 2015 London Classical Soloists International Conducting Competition.
Currently, Ochanine is the founding Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Sun Symphony Orchestra of Hanoi. Ochanine built the SSO from the ground up into what is widely agreed to be one of the leading orchestras in Southeast Asia. The SSO has quickly become a leader in top quality orchestral performances and has attracted the attention of the world’s leading artists and artist management companies. With the SSO, Ochanine has collaborated with such artists as Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Sumi Jo, Sergei Dogadin and Benjamin Grosvenor. The orchestra has received rave reviews from both domestic and international concertgoers.
Ochanine is also the youngest to have been Music Director of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra in the orchestra's history. His stint with the PPO spanned two three-year terms from 2010 to 2016. Ochanine’s term with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, the nation's leading orchestra, started with the 2010-2011 performance season. Under his leadership, the orchestra performed numerous Philippine premieres. In June 2016, the orchestra performed at the world-renowned Carnegie Hall, a project that Ochanine singlehandedly spearheaded for three years to bring it to a reality. Through his initiative, the orchestra is the first Filipino orchestra ever to have performed in the revered venue in a concert filled to capacity.
A native of Paris, Olivier Ochanine began music studies in France. He continued music studies in the United States, and expanded his focus to orchestral conducting, taking up graduate studies and attending master classes with some of the best conducting mentors, including Mark Gibson, Gustav Meier, Marin Alsop, Larry Livingston, Robert Baldwin, John Barnett, John Farrer, and Achim Holub. He obtained his Masters Degree in Conducting from the University of Southern California (USC). In 2009, he began his Doctoral Studies in Orchestral Conducting at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music under Mark Gibson. He has also played as bassist for the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra.
Olivier was invited to the California Conductors Institute several times. In 2009, Mr. Ochanine was among a handful of conductors nationally to be invited by Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Music Director Marin Alsop to conduct in the Cabrillo Music Festival in Santa Cruz, California and to participate in a conducting workshop.
He has been regular guest conductor for the Sichuan Philharmonic Orchestra (China), and has also led many orchestras that include the Cincinnati College-Conservatory Orchestras, Budapest MAV Symphony Orchestra, Gyor Philharmonic Orchestra, George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, Virtuosi Italiani, Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, Manila Symphony Orchestra and Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra. Aside from the many thrilling concerts with the Sun Symphony Orchestra, upcoming projects include a collaboration with the Evergreen Symphony Orchestra and one as Music Director for the Bandung Philharmonic Orchestra’s Orchestra Festival 2024.
press
"I could say without any doubt that Ochanine is a titan of the podium. He has definitely arrived. His boyish looks betray his ability to wield the baton maturely, not literally in a magical manner but with commanding authority."
Antonio Hila, Philippine Inquirer
"The conductor made the orchestra sound better than ever. He produced exceptionally beautiful nuances in the orchestral playing. This was one of the best performances of the PPO I attended in Manila. Bravo Maestro Ochanine!"
Juan Lanuza, BusinessWorld
"Olivier Ochanine is a world - class music director. Not only is he very personable, but at such a young age, he has been able to make the Philippine Philharmonic sound better than ever... he is a magnanimous director and will bring out the best of any orchestra.."
Viviana Guzman
"...it was obvious the PPO was in good shape. Conductor Olivier Ochanine made sure it would be a memorable evening. To this writer, it was the PPO at one of its best and Ochanine at his most-inspired moments. They deserved that rousing ovation."
Pablo Tariman, Philippine Inquirer
"I enjoyed collaborating with Olivier on the Brahms Concerto immensely. His knowledge of the score, insightful and sensitive conducting , and podium energy led to one of the best performances in recent memory. I am excited to work with this wonderful conductor many times in the future."
Odin Rathnam, former Concertmaster, Harrisburg Symphony
"He was in absolute command throughout! 'The Rite of Spring' was most exhausting to conduct and at its close, the triumphant but obviously weary Ochanine acknowledged the thunderous applause for his astounding, indeed, overwhelming performance on the podium."
Rosalinda Orosa, Philippine Star