Andris Poga

Andris Poga has been the artistic director and principal conductor of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra since the 2013/2014 season. He served as the artistic director and principal conduction of the Orchestra “Riga” from 2007 to 2010. Already in 2007 he won the Latvian Grand Music Award for best debut for a concert with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra. 

According to musicologist Inese Lūsiņa writing for the Diena newspaper, “Poga’s interpretations are known for their depth, integrity and groundedness. There is no theatrical pretence in his gestures.”

Poga is a skillful and precise interpreter of contemporary scores and has premiered symphonic and vocal-symphonic compositions by Andris Dzenītis, Ēriks Ešenvalds, Linda Leimane, Arturs Maskats, Ruta Paidere, Jānis Petraškevičs, Kristaps Pētersons, Gundega Šmite, Vilnis Šmīdbergs and others.

Poga’s international career took off after winning the Evgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in 2010. He served as an assistant to Paavo Järvi at the Orchestre de Paris from 2011 to 2014, and from 2012 to 2014 he worked as an assistant conductor for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. As of the 2021/2022 season, Poga will become the artistic director and principal conductor of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra.

Poga has conducted the leading orchestras of Germany, France, Italy, Japan and other countries. Following successful first collaborations, he has repeatedly been invited back to perform with the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo, the Wiener Symphoniker, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, the Munich Philharmonic, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Dresden Philharmonic, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich. He has also conducted the Frankfurt Radio Symphony, the SWR Symphony Orchestra in Stuttgart, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, the Saint Petersburg Academic Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Orchestre National de France, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

Poga graduated from Prof. Viesturs Gailis’ symphony orchestra conducting class at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music. He has also studied philosophy at the University of Latvia and conducting under Uroš Lajovic at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.

LMIC 2020