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Japanese-British conductor, Theo Vinden, brings exceptional imagination, artistry, and passion in performances and rehearsals. He is currently head conductor of the Wymondham Symphony Orchestra, which has achieved a formidable increase in audience attendance. He is also head conductor of the senior strings at the North London Conservatory and guest conductor for the Grim’s Dyke Opera company (formerly the d’Oyly Opera company). He is now conductor emeritus of the Keele University Philharmonic orchestra and choir, having held the position of head conductor between 2022-25. He resurrected the choir in 2024. He is also associate conductor of the National Youth String Orchestra of the U.K..
Recently he achieved successes and advanced to the semi-final round of the Ionel Perlea international conducting competition. In addition, in the past two years, he was offered scholarship conducting positions to attend the Cortona festival, and Mostly Modern festival. He was successful in progressing to the final rounds of the Trinity Laban Sir Charles Mackerras conducting fellowship in 2015.
During his time in the U.S., he was conducting Fellow of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, and interim director of orchestra at the University of Texas Permian Basin. The orchestra doubled in size during his tenure. Prior to going to the U.S., he was director of the chamber choir at the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy, Hungary, performing at important ceremonies across Hungary and Romania to commemorate Kodály’s birth and death anniversaries in 2017-18.
He studied conducting and cello at prestigious establishments including the St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia, the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy, Hungary, and the Joint Course between the RNCM and Manchester University, U.K.. He also completed his Doctorate at Texas Tech University in the U.S., supported by scholarships.
Theo, with his rich background in Kodály pedagogy, is passionate about education work. He formerly coached the Intermediate Choir of the North London Conservatoire, the West Texas Children’s Chorus, Pro Corda and the English School’s Symphony Orchestra. He also performed at the Royal Festival Hall with musicians from the Philharmonia Orchestra, in an education project involving London youth music hubs.
As cellist, Theo has appeared as soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra and done freelance work with many professional orchestras in the U.K. and U.S., including Opera North, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra and the Texarkana Symphony Orchestra.
