Hailed as a “young titan” by the Montreal Gazette after conducting the Montreal Symphony in Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle and Schönberg’s Erwartung, Gregory Vajda has fast become one of the most sought-after conductors on the international scene. Reflecting his growing presence and demand in North America, he has been appointed in 2011 the sixth music director of the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra. He has started his tenure as the Principal Conductor of Savaria Symphony in Hungary in the fall of 2022. Following 3 years as Artist in Residence he was named Principal Associated Conductor (Chef Principal Associé) of new music ensemble Ars nova in France for 2024-2026. In January 2026 he was appointed Principal Conductor of the Cluj Philharmony in Rumania. In Hungary Mr. Vajda is the Artistic Director of the new music ensemble UMZE, and Program Director of the Peter Eötvös Contemporary Music Foundation.  After concluding his 3 year tenure as Principal Conductor he was named Principal Guest Conductor of the Hungarian Radio Symphony in 2014. He has served as Artistic Director of the Armel International Opera Festival and Competition between 2014 and 2019. For his achievements as a performing artist he has been awarded the Gundel Art Prize in 2001, the Bartók-Pásztory Award in 2018, and the Artisjus Performing Arts Award in 2020. Mr. Vajda holds a DLA degree in conducting.

 In the 2025-26 season, Vajda will make his debut as a conductor and composer with the Israel Contemporary Players, and will return to the Transylvania State Philharmonic, the Hungarian State Opera, the Pannon and the MÁV Symphony Orchestras, and to the production of Salute to Vienna (in Toronto). As part of the ‘Kurtág 100’ celebration in Hungary he will teach alongside Thomas Adès at the joint masterclass of the Peter Eötvös Foundation and the UMZE Chamber Ensemble. In the summer of 2026, he will conduct the highly successful Orpheus-themed literary based contemporary-music-production with Ensemble Ars Nova at several European venues.

Conducting career highlights:

Atlanta Opera, Baltimore Symphony, Budapest Wagner Days (Lohengrin revival), Ensemble Intercontemporain, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Hamburg State Opera, Klangforum Wien, Lanaudiére Festival in Canada, Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center, Montreal Symphony, Montreal Opera, Opera Palermo, Staatskapelle Dresden, Seattle Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Toronto Symphony.  He conducted the final performance of Bartók’s Four Orchestral Pieces, Cantata profana and Bluebeard’s Castle with the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera Chorus at the Salzburg Festival in 2008.

Mr. Vajda’s recordings are published by labels ECM, BMC (Budapest Music Center) and Hungaroton Classics, and are available on all major online platforms.