Named ‘2019 Classical 'Face to Watch' (The Times) and described as a 'cool, contained, super-articulate and engaging' conductor (The Scotsman), Jessica Cottis is much in demand, working regularly with leading ensembles such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic, Opéra National de Bordeaux, as well as numerous re-invitations to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and the prestigious BBC Proms.

One of the most outstanding Australian conductors working today, the 20/21 season marks Jessica Cottis’s new role in leading the Canberra Symphony Orchestra’s artistic team, as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director. Recognised for her engaging, wide-ranging and thought-provoking programming, her domain is music of the 19th to the current day.

Jessica Cottis’s formative education was as an organist. Awarded first class honours in organ and musicology at the Australian National University, she continued her studies in Paris with pioneering French organist Marie-Claire Alain, winning awards from the Royal Philharmonic Society and Royal College of Organists. A wrist injury halted her playing career, and in 2009 she completed her postgraduate studies in conducting with Colin Metters and Sir Colin Davis at the Royal Academy of Music. She went on to work as Assistant Conductor to mentors Sir Donald Runnicles, Charles Dutoit, and Vladimir Ashkenazy. She resides in London, experiences music as colour, and in her spare time is an avid lepidopterist.