Keri-Lynn Wilson is the founder and Music Director of the highly regarded Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, formed in response to the Russian invasion and which has toured major cities and festivals in Europe and the United States over the past three summers. As a staunch supporter of Ukrainian liberty, Ms. Wilson performed the Verdi Requiem at the Lviv Opera House in February 2023 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the invasion and she has returned to Ukraine on numerous occasions since then to lead performances in solidarity.
Ms. Wilson created a new performance version of the “Ode to Joy” in Ukrainian for the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra’s Beethoven Ninth Freedom Tour last summer. In this version, “Joy” is changed to “Slava,” the Ukrainian word for “Glory,” the rallying cry for Ukrainian victory. The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra’s recording of the Beethoven Ninth Symphony was released by Deutsche Grammophon to commemorate the second anniversary of the invasion.
Most recently, Ms. Wilson was appointed Music Director of the Kyiv Camerata, Ukraine’s leading chamber orchestra. Ms. Wilson will be leading the Kyiv Camerata in concerts both inside and outside of Ukraine in the 2024/25 season.
Ms. Wilson’s career as a conductor of opera and symphonic music includes many of the world’s leading opera houses and symphony orchestras. Among the opera companies she has conducted in recent seasons are the Royal Opera House, Paris Opera, Berlin Staatsoper , Deutsche Oper and the Metropolitan Opera. Orchestras she has conducted recently include the New York Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, and the Bruckner Orchestra of Linz.
On August 24th, Ukrainian Independence Day, Ms. Wilson was awarded the Order of Princess Olga by President Zelensky for her contributions to Ukrainian culture.
(photo: Karpati & Zarewicz
