Giedrė Šlekytė is an internationally engaged conductor who has worked with orchestras such as Bruckner Orchester Linz, Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and the Lithanian National Symphony Orchestra. She has conducted several of Sweden’s foremost orchetras such as the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra.

She was 1st Kapellmeister at Stadttheater Klagenfurt 2016–2018 where she was lauded for productions of operas such as La Traviata, Don Giovanni and The Abduction from the Seraglio. For the 2019–2020 season, she is engaged to do Poul Ruders’ The Handmaid’s Tale at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen, Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore at Oper Leipzig and Le Nozze di Figaro at the Lithuanian National Opera in Vilnius. In 2015, she was a prize winner of the International Malko Competition for Young Conductors in Copenhagen. She has also been nominated for the Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award and as Newcomer of the Year at the International Opera Awards.

Her first appearance in Berwaldhallen was during 2018’s Baltic Sea Festival where she conducted, among other works, Raminta Šerkšnytė’s oratorio Songs of Sunset and Dawn.

Pianist Martin Sturfält has established himself as a prominent interpreter of both new and old Swedish music. He has made critically acclaimed recordings of Wilhelm Stenhammar’s piano music and, together with the Helsingborg symphonic orchestra and Andrew Manze, the two piano concertos by Adolf Wiklund. As a soloist, Sturfält is a recurrent visitor to both Swedish and international symphony orchestras while also being a dedicated chamber musician.

Sturfält has collaborated with among others, Hebert Blomstedt, Sir Mark Elder, Thomas Dausgaard, and Alexander Vedernikov. He has played with orchestras including the Hallé orchestra, New London Sinfonia and all of the Swedish symphonic orchestras. Sturfält has given solo- and chamber music concerts at Musikaliska and Konserthuset in Stockholm, Wigmore Hall, Barbican and the Royal Festival Hall I London, Concergegouw in Amsterdam and at the Palais des Beux-Arts in Brussels.

Martin Sturfält has won first prize in several international competitions, including the Yamaha-competitions in Sweden 1999 and in England 2002, the John Ogdon Prize in London 2004 and the Terence Judd Award in Manchester 2005.