That make-or-break feeling? I love it': can Andre de Ridder put ENO back on its feet?

"Andre de Ridder is either brave or stupid. He has accepted the role as the music director of English National Opera its chief conductor and keeper of its musical flame. He will take up the role formally in 2027. The post has been empty for several anguished years, sparked by Arts Council England's 2022 announcement that the company would lose all its funding unless it moved out of London."

"Amid a fightback that, to cut a long story short, resulted in the company retaining a foothold in the London Coliseum, but partially moving to Manchester, De Ridder's predecessor, Martyn Brabbins, abruptly quit in 2023, saying that the company was heading into managed decline. Brabbins's predecessor, Mark Wigglesworth, had also resigned suddenly in 2016, saying ENO was evolving into something I do not recognise. It was beginning to sound like an opera plot. Bluebeard's Castle, maybe."

"For some, it would be daunting to come into a company whose world-class orchestra and chorus have had their full-time contracts slashed to seven months of the year; from which the chief executive has just resigned; where morale (insiders tell me) is rock bottom. But the Berlin-raised 54-year-old sees only the opportunities. From his perspective, the shake-ups are in the past."

Andre de Ridder, 54, accepted the role as music director and chief conductor of English National Opera and will take up the post formally in 2027. Arts Council England threatened to withdraw funding in 2022 unless the company moved out of London, prompting a partial relocation to Manchester while retaining a foothold at the London Coliseum. Previous chief conductors Martyn Brabbins and Mark Wigglesworth resigned amid concerns about the company's direction. The orchestra and chorus have had full-time contracts reduced to seven months; the chief executive has resigned and morale is described as rock bottom. De Ridder embraces the perceived opportunities and sees a pioneering spirit in the London–Manchester model.

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