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“Though this was Wong’s Proms debut, he also demonstrated impressive control of the Albert Hall’s vast spaces and tricky acoustic. Phrasing, shaping, dynamic contrasts, instrumental colouring, ensemble unity: these were almost beyond perfection.” Geoff Brown, The Times (Mahler Symphony No.2, Aug 2025)  

Internationally acclaimed for his electrifying stage presence and thoughtful exploration of Eastern and Western legacies, Singaporean-born Kahchun Wong is Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of The Hallé, succeeding Sir Mark Elder from the 2024/25 season. In addition to leading one of the UK’s most prestigious orchestras, he also serves as Chief Conductor of the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, while maintaining close artistic partnerships with leading ensembles across Europe and the United States.

Wong’s first season with The Hallé has won widespread acclaim in the English press, marked by recordings of Britten’s Prince of the Pagodas and Bruckner’s Symphony No.9—hailed by Gramophone as a “must-hear for all Brucknerians” (June 2025). Their forthcoming release of Mahler’s Symphony No.2 from Bridgewater Hall follows his BBC Proms debut of the same work, memorably described by The Times as worthy of “six stars.”

Since winning the Mahler Competition in 2016, Wong has appeared with leading orchestras including The Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, BBC Symphony, Czech Philharmonic, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony. In 2025/26, he returns to the London Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra in Beijing, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Osaka Philharmonic and Singapore Symphony, while also making debuts with hr-Sinfonieorchester Frankfurt, San Diego Symphony, Bergen Philharmonic, Melbourne Symphony and the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo (OSESP). The season further includes a major tour of China with The Hallé, culminating in Mahler’s Symphony No.8 at Suntory Hall to celebrate the Japan Philharmonic’s 70th anniversary.

Wong is a leading advocate for contemporary composers and cross-cultural dialogue. He has premiered Tan Dun’s Fire Ritual (New York Philharmonic), Toshio Hosokawa’s Prayer (BBC Symphony) and Reena Esmail’s Concerto for Hindustani Violin (Seattle Symphony). He commissioned Narong Prangcharoen’s Reflection of Shadow during his tenure as Principal Guest Conductor of the Dresden Philharmonic, and in his final concert as Chief Conductor of the Nuremberg Symphony he unveiled his orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, reimagined for five Chinese folk instruments and orchestra, performed before 75,000 at the Klassik Open Air and broadcast internationally on 3SAT and BR-Klassik. His second season with The Hallé features a landmark Max Richter co-commission with Anna Lapwood and the world premiere of Unsuk Chin’s newly revised Le Chant des Enfants des Étoiles.

Wong has collaborated with distinguished soloists including Nelson Freire, Thomas Hampson, Barbara Hannigan, Gerhard Oppitz, Christian Tetzlaff, Gautier Capuçon, Daniel Lozakovich, Mao Fujita, Sergei Nakariakov and Vilde Frang.

In December 2019, Wong became the first Singaporean artist awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, recognising his role in strengthening Singapore–German cultural ties and bringing German music to audiences worldwide. 

Francesca is Artist in Residence at London’s legendary Wigmore Hall for 2026/27. Upcoming debuts include San Francisco Symphony (Castelnuovo-Tedesco), Pittsburgh Symphony (Brahms), Danish National Symphony (Beethoven), Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai and Bilbao Symphony. She will be returning to Houston Symphony and Indianapolis Symphony, the Ulster Orchestra, CBSO, Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, Queensland Symphony and West Australian Symphony.

Recent engagements include North American appearances with Dallas Symphony Orchestra playing Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with Fabio Luisi; St Louis Symphony Orchestra with John Storgårds; Houston Symphony with Andrés Orozco-Estrada playing Brahms Concerto; National Symphony at both the Kennedy Center in Washington and Wolf Trap Festival; Detroit Symphony; Baltimore Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Utah Symphony; San Diego Symphony; Vancouver Symphony and NACO Ottawa.

On the world stage, Francesca has performed with NHK Symphony; Tokyo Symphony; Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony; Taipei Symphony with Gautier Capuçon performing Saint-Saëns and the world premiere of Richard Dubugnon’s double concerto “Le poème silencieux” and Auckland Philharmonia. Recent European highlights have included Orchestre de Champs Elysées with Philippe Herreweghe; Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo; Enescu Philharmonic in Bucharest; Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana; Orquesta de Castilla y León; Luxembourg Philharmonic; Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne; Brucknerhaus Linz; Swedish Radio Symphony; Bergen Philharmonic; London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican Centre playing Mendelssohn Concerto; Philharmonia; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Hallé; City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra; Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as well as Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and the top Italian orchestras.

She regularly collaborates with esteemed conductors, amongst them Fabio Luisi, Philippe Herreweghe, Andres Orozco-Estrada, Daniele Rustioni, John Storgards, Markus Stenz, Gemma New, Asher Fisch, Ludovic Morlot, Markus Poschner, Krzysztof Urbański, Alexander Liebreich, Michele Mariotti, Kahchun Wong, Joshua Weilerstein and Xian Zhang.

A keen chamber musician, Francesca enjoys performing with artists including Francesco Piemontesi, Daniel Müller-Schott, Gautier Capuçon, Timothy Ridout, Jan Lisiecki, Salvatore Accardo, Alessandro Carbonare, Mahan Esfahani, Bruno Giuranna, Shlomo Mintz, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Federico Colli, Mischa Maisky, Antonio Meneses, Martin Owen, Alessandro Taverna, Enrico Dindo, Alessio Bax, Roman Simovic and Francesca Leonardi.

Francesca is signed exclusively to Chandos Records. With a growing discography, her most recent recording of the violin concertos of Busoni and Brahms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conductor Dalia Stasevska was awarded the prestigious Franco Abbiati Prize.

Other key recordings include the complete Mozart violin concertos with Sir Roger Norrington, concertos by Paganini and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari and a complete survey of the violin sonatas by Beethoven and Paganini’s Caprices on Deutsche Grammophon.

Francesca also has a passion for contemporary music and is proud to be a dedicatee of works by Michael Nyman, Carlo Boccadoro, Nicola Campogrande, Francesco Antonioni, Silvia Colasanti, Fabio Vacchi and Giovanni Sollima, amongst others. In 2025 she created the ambitious project “Feathers in time”, which commissions ten of the most important living Italian composers to write solo violin works for her inspired by the poetry of her father, the late Italian poet Giuliano Dego.

She contributes to specialist music magazines including Suonare News and Archi, and has written articles and opinion pieces for The Strad, BBC and Classical Music Magazines, Musical Opinion, and Strings Magazine. Francesca has published her first book with Mondadori — Tra le Note. Classica: 24 chiavi di lettura — in which she explores the relevance, application, and deeper understanding of classical music in the modern day.

Francesca plays on a fine Antonio Stradivari violin on loan from J & A Beare.