Jonathan Nott facts for kids

Jonathan Nott (born on December 25, 1962, in Solihull, England) is a famous English conductor. He leads orchestras, helping musicians play together beautifully.

Early Life and Musical Training

Jonathan Nott grew up as the son of a priest at Worcester Cathedral. He loved music from a young age. He studied music at St John's College, Cambridge. There, he was also a choral scholar, meaning he sang in a choir. He also learned to sing and play the flute in Manchester. This was at the Royal Northern College of Music. Later, he studied conducting in London. He then moved to Germany to start his career. In Germany, he learned through the traditional Kapellmeister system. This system trains conductors by having them work in opera houses.

Starting His Conducting Career

Jonathan Nott first conducted an orchestra in 1988. This was at the Opera Festival in Battignano, Italy. In 1989, he became a Kapellmeister at the Frankfurt Opera. A Kapellmeister is a conductor who works with an opera company. In 1991, he became the main Kapellmeister at the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden. He even became the temporary chief conductor there for a season.

Later, he became the music director at the Lucerne Theatre. He also led the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra as their main conductor. He held this position from 1997 to 2002.

Working with Famous Orchestras

Jonathan Nott has worked with many well-known orchestras. He recorded music by György Ligeti with the Berlin Philharmonic. These recordings were part of a big project to record all of Ligeti's works.

In 2000, Nott became the music director of the Ensemble InterContemporain (EIC). This group is famous for playing modern music. He left this role in 2003 but stayed on as their main guest conductor until 2005.

Leading the Bamberg Symphony

In January 2000, Nott became the main conductor of the Bamberg Symphony orchestra. With this orchestra, he made his first conducting appearance in New York City. He led the Bamberg Symphony for many years. His contract was extended several times, showing how much they valued him. He finished his time with the Bamberg Symphony at the end of the 2015–2016 season. In 2014, he also started working with the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie. He was their main conductor and artistic advisor.

Conducting in Tokyo and Switzerland

Jonathan Nott first conducted the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra in October 2011. They were so impressed that they asked him to be their music director. He accepted the offer. The orchestra officially announced his new role in October 2012. He started this job in the 2014–2015 season. He conducts many concerts with them each year. In 2015, the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra extended his contract until 2026. However, in April 2024, they announced he would finish his role in March 2026.

In October 2014, Nott also guest-conducted the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (OSR) in Switzerland. Because of these successful concerts, the OSR named him their next music and artistic director in January 2015. He started this role in January 2017. In 2021, his contract with the OSR became an open-ended agreement. This means there was no set end date. However, reports in 2023 suggested his contract might be revised to end in 2026.

Jonathan Nott is married to Helen, and they have three children.

See also

In Spanish: Jonathan Nott para niños