Simone Margaret YoungAM (born 2 March 1961) is an Australian conductor and academic teacher. She is currently chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
From 2001 to 2003, Young was chief conductor of Opera Australia in Sydney. Her contract was not renewed after 2003, with one given reason being the excessive expense of her programming ideas.[3]
Young made her first conducting appearance at the Hamburg State Opera in 1996. In May 2003, she was named both chief executive of the Hamburg State Opera and chief conductor of the Philharmoniker Hamburg, posts which she assumed in 2005.[4] In 2006, she became Professor of Music and Theatre at the University of Hamburg. Critics of the magazine Opernwelt selected her in October 2006 as the Dirigentin des Jahres (Conductor of the Year). In December 2011, it was announced that Young would conclude her tenures with both the Hamburg State Opera and the Hamburg Philharmonic after the 2014/2015 season.[5]
In August 2008, Young appeared as part of the judging panel in the reality TV talent show-themed program Maestro on BBC Two.[8] In December 2012, she was voted Limelight magazine's Music Personality of the Year.[9] In 2022, Young was that magazine's critic's choice as Australian Artist of the Year.[10]
In 2013, in commemoration of the bicentenaries for Richard Wagner and for Giuseppe Verdi, Young conducted the entire 'Bayreuth canon' of ten Wagner operas at a festival entitled Wagner-Wahn (Wagner Madness) in Hamburg, along with three rarely performed Verdi operas as a trilogy in September to November – La battaglia di Legnano, I due Foscari, I Lombardi alla prima crociata.[11] In March 2016, Young was appointed a member of the board of the Europäische Musiktheater-Akademie (European Academy of Music Theatre).[12]
Young had first guest-conducted the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) in 1996. In December 2019, the SSO announced the appointment of Young as its next chief conductor, effective in 2022, with an initial contract of 3 years.[13] Young is the first female conductor to be named chief conductor of the SSO.[14] In February 2024, the SSO announced the extension of Young's contract as its chief conductor through the end of 2026.[15]
Young is married to Greg Condon, and has two daughters. She made her first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera while she was five months pregnant and conducted at the Vienna State Opera one month prior to giving birth in 1997.[17]
Media, honours and awards
Young is featured in the documentary film Knowing the Score directed by Australian documentarian Janine Hosking, a biopic that "is first and foremost a captivating story of a dazzling 30-year music career."[18]
Young has received honorary doctorates from the universities of New South Wales, Sydney and Melbourne. She has been appointed an (AM) "for service to the arts as a conductor with major opera companies and orchestras in Australia and internationally".
In 2021 Young was named the Advance Awards Global Icon.[19]
ARIA Music Awards
The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.
The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group Live Performance Australia since 2001.[22] Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Simone Young won one award in that time.[30]
Year
Nominee / work
Award
Result (wins only)
1995
Simone Young
Classical Performance of the Year
Won
Victorian Honour Roll of Women
The Victorian Honour Roll of Women was established in 2001 to recognise the achievements of women from the Australian state of Victoria.
