Gerry Cornelius To Step Down As Music Director Of English Touring Opera In October 2026

English Touring Opera's Music Director, Gerry Cornelius, will step down from his position in October 2026 after five years in the role during which time he has overseen a period of significant artistic development for the company and played a key role in shaping ETO's musical direction during a period of change, including the company's move to Sheffield.

Cornelius joined ETO in April 2021, beginning his tenure with Rimsky-Korsakov's The Golden Cockerel. He has since conducted wide-ranging repertoire for the company, including La bohème, Ottone, Lucrezia Borgia, Manon Lescaut, Blond Eckbert and The Rape of Lucretia, as well as Pagliacci in the company's first season in its new home city of Sheffield earlier this year. His work at ETO has been widely praised by critics. Bachtrack noted that his recent conducting of Pagliacci “drew a lush and pointed performance from the orchestra”, while The Times highlighted the “tremendous detail” of his conducting in The Rape of Lucretia.

Cornelius will step down from ETO following the opening of the company's Autumn season in Sheffield on 10 October and will return as a guest conductor for Spring 2027's production of Tosca alongside ETO Artistic Director & CEO Robin Norton-Hale.

ETO will begin an open recruitment process imminently, with the aim of having a successor in post by the end of 2026.

Robin Norton-Hale said, “I feel very lucky to have worked with Gerry as Music Director for my first four years at ETO. He has brought immense skill and care to every project, and has been rightly praised for the quality of playing and singing he has drawn from the artists involved. Alongside his public-facing work in the pit, he has contributed in untold ways to shaping the musical life and artistic standards of the company - from supporting the commissioning of new operas for children to putting structures in place that have enabled our outstanding orchestra to reach new levels of excellence. His musicianship, generosity and leadership have been hugely valued by everyone at ETO. Gerry has decided that the time is right for him to take advantage of the many exciting guest conducting opportunities that are available to him around the world, the high calibre of which are a testament to the exceptional quality of his work at ETO. I love working with Gerry as a director/conductor team - Judith Weir's Blond Eckbert and Britten's The Rape of Lucretia were career highlights for me - so I'm delighted that he will return to conduct Tosca next year.”

Gerry Cornelius said, “It is bittersweet to be leaving, but I feel the time is right for a new musician to take the helm at ETO. I have been proud to work on eight brilliant productions alongside outstanding singers, wonderful colleagues, orchestral musicians and directors, and I know that whoever steps into my shoes will have even more exciting opportunities ahead. I look forward to returning as a guest, and I would like to thank Robin, the Board and everyone across the music, technical and administrative teams for giving me some of the best artistic experiences of my career.”

Born of Irish and Sri Lankan parentage and raised in South London, Cornelius trained to be a musician at Durham University, Royal Academy of Music London and finished in the class of Ilya Musin at the St Petersburg Conservatory. In the UK he has appeared as guest conductor with English National Opera, RBO's Linbury Theatre, The Opera Group, Tête à tête, Welsh National Opera, the Hallé, London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Sinfonietta and Birmingham Music Group, while abroad he has conducted the Bolshoi in Moscow, Luxembourg Philharmonic, Opera Orchestra of the Gran Teatre del Liceu Barcelona and at the Festival d'Automne Paris, Festival d'Aix-en-Provence and MusikFabrik Cologne. In the forthcoming season he will appear as a guest conductor with San Francisco Ballet, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Free State Symphony Orchestra South Africa as well as giving masterclasses at the 59th International Vocal Competition in 's-Hertogenbosch.

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