Conductor: David Lardi

David Lardi was born in Manchester, and studied in London at Trinity College of Music and King's College. He studied orchestral conducting with Bernard Keeffe, choral conducting with Charles Proctor and Laszlo Heltay, and operatic conducting with Marcus Dods, and he was awarded the Ricordi Conducting Prize and the City Livery Prize. Continuing his studies at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana, Siena, Italy under Franco Ferrara, he was awarded the Diploma di Merito. More recently he has three times won a Performing Rights Society Award for Enterprise for his adventurous concert programmes.

He currently holds the conductorships of Finchley Chamber Choir and Finchley Chamber Orchestra (soon to become Finchley Symphony Orchestra), having last year retired after over 40 years as conductor of North London Symphony Orchestra. He has worked with many different orchestras and choirs as well as with some of today's leading soloists. He has conducted concerts in England, Italy, France and Germany in scope ranging from chamber ensembles at such venues as the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Wigmore Hall to a choir of 1,000 voices and orchestra of 120 at the reopening concert of the Great Hall, Alexandra Palace.

David Lardi has a performed repertoire of over 1,000 works, from early music with authentic instruments to commissions and first performances. He was a Professor at Trinity College of Music for over 20 years and has given more than 3,000 lecture-recitals. He has also recorded for Italian and German radio and the BBC, and his television appearances include both ITV and BBC and also Warner DVD.

In 2006, David was interviewed by Petroc Trelawney on Radio 3, and the last movement from his interpretation of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 with Finchley Chamber Orchestra was broadcast as part of the “Listen Up!” project.