Conductor

Jiannan Cheng’s conducting career spans both opera and symphonic repertoire, having worked with prestigious orchestras such as the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne, Stuttgart Philharmonic, Sofia Philharmonic, Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini, Georgian Chamber Orchestra Ingolstadt, and Munich Chamber Orchestra. In 2024, Cheng won 1st Prize at the Hugo Alfvén International Conducting Competition in Sweden and 2nd Prize at the Orchestra’s Conductor Conducting Competition in Romania. She was also a Finalist at the Arthur Nikisch Conducting Competition and won 2nd Prize in the 4x4 Competition for Composers and Conductors in 2016. 

Currently, Cheng serves as Music Director of both Orchestra Concordia and the Rowan University Symphony Orchestra. Since 2023, she has also served as a Cover Conductor for the Philadelphia Orchestra, with prior appointments as the Conducting Fellow for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Miami Symphony Orchestra. In the 2024-25 season, Cheng will join the Dallas Opera for a two-week residency as part of the prestigious Hart Institute for Women Conductors.

Cheng completed her undergraduate studies at the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing. She holds a Master’s degree from the University of Washington in Seattle and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Additionally, she has been mentored by world-renowned conductors such as Riccardo Muti, Kurt Masur, Johannes Schlaefli, and Nicolás Pasquet.