Biography

Michael Collins is one of the most complete musicians of his generation. With a continuing, distinguished career as a soloist, he has in recent years also become highly regarded as a conductor and in 2010 took the position of Principal Conductor of the City of London Sinfonia.

Highlights this season include a return to the Philharmonia Orchestra as conductor for a regional tour; a Royal Festival Hall concert with violinist Alina Pogostkina; performances worldwide with orchestras including Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Zurich Chamber Orchestra, and the Rheinische Philharmonie; and tours in South Africa, Melbourne (with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra), Tokyo (with the City of London Sinfonia), Mexico (with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional), and Hamamatsu.

Michael Collins has been committed to expanding the repertoire of the clarinet for many years. He has given numerous world and local premières, and he received the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Instrumentalist of the Year Award in 2007 in recognition of his pivotal role in premièring repertoire by some of today’s most highly regarded composers.

In great demand as a chamber musician, Michael’s ensemble, London Winds, will celebrate its thirtieth anniversary in 2018 and the group maintains a busy diary with high calibre engagements such as the BBC Proms, Aldeburgh Festival, Edinburgh Festival, City of London Festival, Cheltenham International Festival and Bath Mozartfest.

Michael Collins records exclusively for Chandos and has covered a wide range of repertoire in his prolific recording career, which also includes releases on Deutsche Grammophon, Decca, EMI and Sony. In the Queen’s Birthday Honours of 2015, Michael Collins was awarded an MBE for his services to music. He plays exclusively on Yamaha clarinets.

www.michael-collins.co.uk