Semyon Bychkov made his Royal Opera debut in 2003 conducting Elektra. He has since returned for Boris Godunov, The Queen of Spades, Lohengrin, Don Carlo, Tannhäuser, La bohème, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Eugene Onegin, Così fan tutte and Rusalka. Elsewhere he conducts orchestras and opera in Bayreuth, Milan, New York and Vienna, and is a frequent guest with orchestras in Amsterdam, Berlin, Cleveland, Leipzig and Munich. He is currently Chief Conductor and Music Director of the Czech Philharmonic and, from 2028–29, Music Director of the Paris Opera. His extensive discography includes Mahler and Dvořák symphonies, The Tchaikovsky Project and Smetana Má vlast with the Czech Philharmonic, Lohengrin (Opera Magazine’s Disc of the Month and BBC Music Magazine’s Disc of the Year) and works by Strauss, Brahms, Verdi and Shostakovich with WDR. Past positions include Music Director of Orchestre de Paris (1989–98), Principal Guest Conductor of St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra (1990–94) and Maggio Musicale, Florence (1992–8) and Chief Conductor of the Dresden Semperoper (1998–2003) and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne (1997–2010).