Ben Palmer is Artistic Director of Covent Garden Sinfonia and Chief Conductor of the Orchestra da Camera di Pordenone and Babylon Orchester Berlin. From 2017 to 2024 he was Chief Conductor of the Deutsche Philharmonie Merck, ending his tenure with three performances of Mahler’s Symphony No8.
Ben is a regular visitor to the Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Arctic Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Hallé, London Symphony Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia, RSNO and the five BBC Orchestras. In 2022 he made his debut at the BBC Proms with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. In December he will conduct the BBC SSO in Seoul as part of BBC Proms Korea.
Forthcoming debuts include the Copenhagen Philharmonic, London Philharmonic Orchestra (in the presence of composer Howard Shore), Munich Symphony Orchestra, Oakland Symphony, Odense Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre national d’Île-de-France and San Francisco Symphony. As a guest conductor he has worked with the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, BBC Singers, City of Prague Philharmonic, Hof Symphony Orchestra (Bavaria), Hong Kong Philharmonic, Philharmonia, National Symphony Orchestra (Dublin), NDR Radiophilharmonie (Hanover), Rotterdam Philharmonic and Zurich Chamber Orchestra.
Personally authorised by John Williams to conduct his film scores in concert, and acclaimed by Hans Zimmer as ‘a masterclass in conducting’, Ben is one of the world’s most sought-after specialists in conducting to film, both live to picture (with a repertoire of more than 50 films) and in the recording studio. A trumpeter and composer by training, he studied at the University of Birmingham and the Royal Academy of Music, which elected him an Associate in 2017. He continues to be in great demand as a composer, arranger and orchestrator.
See Ben Palmer conduct Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert, Home Alone in Concert and Top Gun: Maverick in Concert with the RSNO during the 2024:25 Season.
