Music Director and Principal Conductor
Marlon Chen's dynamic charisma and artistic versatility have seen him conduct opera, ballet, symphonic works and chamber orchestras to sold-out concert halls across four continents.
In June 2019, Marlon Chen was appointed as Manila Symphony Orchestra’s (MSO) music director and principal conductor. He likewise continues his positions as Principal Guest Conductor of the Orquesta Sinfonica de la Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hildalgo and Resident Conductor of the Aperio Ensemble in Houston, Texas. Previously he was an Associate Conductor of the Baltic Sea Philharmonic, an Assistant Conductor of the MDR Symphony Orchestra in Leipzig and an Assistant Conductor with the Orchestre de Paris. Marlon Chen appears as guest conductor on both sides of the Atlantic with many of the world's finest orchestras including Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, National Orchestra d'ile de France, MAV Orchestra Hungary, English School of Opera Festival Orchestra London, Bulgarian State Opera, Moldova Chamber Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony, the San Antonio Symphony, Bolivian Festival Orchestra, Singapore International Music Festival Orchestra, the Sichuan Symphony, Shenyang Symphony, the Baltic Sea Philharmonic, the MDR Orchestra of Leipzig, and the Philharmonique de Radio France.
Himself a composer and arranger, Marlon Chen has performed his own works with the major orchestras he has conducted, commissioned works from composers and has conducted more than 50 premieres of contemporary compositions. Recent film projects include recording for Netflix on the award winning show Sense8 and Babylon Berlin with director Tom Tykwer.
An American-Taiwanese, Marlon Chen is fluent in English, French, Italian, Spanish and Chinese. Currently, he divides his time between the Philippines and the United States, but his favorite place on the planet is Boracay.