Nicholas Carter, the newly appointed Music Director of the Staatsoper and Staatsorchester Stuttgart from the 2026/27 season, has emerged as one of the most riveting opera conductors, acclaimed for his arresting presence in the pit. His distinguished artistic versatility has earned him a reputation as a perceptive interpreter of opera, ranging from Mozart, Verdi, Wagner and Strauss to Russian and French repertoire, encompassing as far as music dramas of Britten and contemporary composers such as Brett Dean. Equally sought-after in the concert hall, Carter conducts wide breadth of symphonic repertoire and maintains regular collaborations with leading international orchestras.

He opens the 2025/2026 season with his return to The Metropolitan Opera to conduct Richard Strauss’ Arabella, followed by debuts with Semperoper Dresden in two titles, Mozart’s The Magic Flute and Verdi’s La Traviata, as well as with Bayerische Staatsoper for Donizetti’s L'elisir d'amore. Carter concludes the season with his return to the Glyndebourne Festival for Billy Budd by Benjamin Britten. In previous seasons, he has worked with the Wiener Staatsoper, Oper Zürich, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Hamburgische Staatsoper, Oper Köln, Deutsche Oper am Rhein and Santa Fe Opera.  

Alongside regular collaborations with Australia's leading symphony orchestras, Carter's recent and forthcoming symphonic highlights include debuts with the Oslo Philharmonic, Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Münchner Rundfunkorchester, MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Brucknerorchester Linz, BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Orchestre Métropolitain, Seoul Philharmonic and Hong Kong Philharmonic, to name just a few. 

Carter previously held positions as Kapellmeister at both the Staatsoper Hamburg and Deutsche Oper Berlin and served as the Principal Conductor at the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra from 2016 to 2019, the Chief Conductor at the Stadttheater Klagenfurt and the Kärntner Sinfonieorchester from 2018 to 2021, and most recently Chief Conductor and Co-Operndirektor at Bühnen Bern from 2021 to 2025.

“...his rendition was beyond exceptional, not only for his blistering technique but his phrasing – which bathed this familiar concerto in a new light.”

Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No.1 with Sydney Symphony & Donald Runnicles

Fraser Beath McEwing, J-Wire

A stunningly virtuosic pianist, Alexander is internationally recognised for his electrifying and poetic performances. His performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No.3 at the BBC Proms was described as “revelatory” by The Times and “electrifying” by Limelight. Alexander was Artist-in-Residence at Wigmore Hall for the 23/24 season.

Highlights of the 2025-26 season include debuts with Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Tonkünstler Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Opera North orchestra and i Solisti di Pavia. Alexander will also return to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Auckland Philharmonia. Recent highlights also include Hamburger Symphoniker, Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liege, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Estonian National Symphony, Phil Zuid, Enescu Philharmonic and Taiwan National Symphony. This season also sees returns to Baerum Kulturhaus and the Piano Masters Series in Stoke-on-Trent as a recital artist along with his recital debut at Theater Heerlen.

Alexander collaborates regularly with conductors including Rafael Payare, Alexandre Bloch, Thomas Søndergård, Donald Runnicles, Juraj Valcuha, Kirill Karabits, Edward Gardner & Gustavo Gimeno.

Born in Ukraine in 1984 and holding Australian citizenship, Alexander began his piano studies at the age of seven and gave his first concerto performance when he was nine years old. At the age of 13, Alexander moved to Sydney where he lived until 2006. He won First Prize and Gold Medal at the Horowitz International Piano Competition (1999), First Prize at the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition (2000), and Gold Medal at the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Masters Competition (2005).

As a recitalist Alexander has performed at the Musikverein in Vienna, Tonhalle Zurich, Victoria Hall Geneva, Southbank Centre’s International Piano Series, Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw Master Pianists Series, Suntory Hall, Tokyo Opera City Hall, Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory, Cologne Philharmonie, Tokyo City Concert Hall, San Francisco, Sydney Recital Hall and Melbourne Recital Centre.