Iwan Davies

Welsh conductor Iwan Davies is Artistic Director of Aberystwyth Musicfest, one of Wales's leading music festivals, where he curates an exciting and diverse programme of artists from around the world. 

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At the Salzburger Landestheater he conducted La Gazzetta (Rossini), The Trial (Glass), Wiener Blut (Strauss), and My Fair Lady with the Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg. For the Buxton International Festival, where he is Head of Music, he has conducted La Tragédie de Carmen (Bizet/Peter Brook), Viva la Diva (Donizetti), The Land of Might-Have-Been (Ivor Novello) and Cendrillon (Viardot). With English Touring Opera, he conducted La bohème and The Golden Cockerel, and for Music Theatre Wales, Conor Mitchell's Bwystfilod Aflan/Unclean Beasts.

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A champion of Welsh music, he has commissioned and performed new works from Nathan James Dearden, Mared Emlyn, Gareth Olubunmi Hughes, Sarah-Lianne Lewis, Hana Lili, Jefferson Lobo, Claire Victoria Roberts, David Roche and Pwyll ap Siôn. He conducted Gareth Glyn's first opera, Wythnos yng Nghymru Fydd, and his opera film for Channel 4 and S4/C with the orchestra of Welsh National Opera. He is the co-author of the operas Cyfrinach y Brenin (Mared Emlyn) and Peth bach 'di Cawr (Gareth Glyn). For OPRA Cymru, he conducted the Welsh-language premieres of Fidelio and Così fan tutte, the latter of which he also translated. He is Director of Music at Aberystwyth University, where he led the CERDDWN scheme for composers, and has collaborated regularly with Sinfonia Cymru.

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Iwan trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the National Opera Studio in London, where he participated in a variety of performances in collaboration with Opera North, Scottish Opera and Welsh National Opera. He coaches at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. 

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