Erina Yashima

Upcoming for ENO: The Magic Flute

German born conductor Erina Yashima is the First Kapellmeister at the Komische Oper Berlin, taking on the position in September 2022.Yashima had previously been the Assistant Conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra between 2019 and 2022, where she assisted Music Director Yannick Nézet Séguin and conducted the orchestra in various programmes.

As a rising star in the industry, Yashima has performed all over the world with acclaimed ensembles and orchestras. Recent highlights include debuts with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, NDR Radio Philharmonie Hanover, Orchestra della Toscana, Arena di Verona, Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, Albany Symphony, Eugene Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and
Niederrh einische Sinfoniker, as well as returns to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony and Philadelphia Orchestra Yashima also conducted a new production of Così fan tutte in her debut with the Washington National Opera, and has led a production of Rusalka at the Theater Krefeld und Mönchengladbach. Her final debut of the 21/22 season is at the Ravello Festival, conducting the Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini.

The 2022 23 season saw Yashima debut with the Symphonieorchester des Bayeri schen Rundfunks, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, WDR Funkhausorchester, Beethoven Orchester Bonn, Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, and the Charlotte Symphony. At the Komische Oper Berlin Yashima conducted a variety of productions and programmes including Die Zauberflöte Rusalka, Così fan tutte, Hamlet, and the 75 Years KOB Anniversary Gala. Yashima also conducted two productions of Don Giovanni, one at the Teatro del Giglio in Lucca and Teatro Goldoni in Livorno, and the other at the Ravenna Festival, Teatro Galli in Rimini, and Teatro Verdi in Salerno

Yashima made her opera debut at the Salzburg Festival in 2017 with a production of Der Schauspieldirektor for children She conducted Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro in Novara and Ravenna in February 2019, and Rossini’s La Cenerentola both in 2017 in Lucca and again in 2018 in Piacenza with the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra as well as Don Giovanni at the Teatro Verdi di Pisa At the Pfalztheater Kaiserslautern, Yashima served as répétiteur with conducting duties.

Since 2015, Yashima has been studying with Riccardo Muti. A s winner of the Chicago Symphony OrchestraOrchestra’s Sir Georg Solti Conducting Apprenticeship, Yashima assisted Maestro Muti and worked closely with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. During this period, Yashima collaborated with cellist Yo Yo Ma and assisted conductors such as Esa Pekka Salonen, Christoph Eschenbach, and Edward Gardner. Yashima was an active participant of the Italian Opera Academy in Ravenna, working with Riccardo Muti on Verdi’s Falstaff, as well as in Bernard Haitink’s masterclass at the Lucerne Festival and was a finalist at the INTERAKTION workshop with musicians from major German orchestras.

As one of the three finalists of the prestigious Nestlé and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award, Yashima performed with the Camerata Salzburg at the Salzburg Festival 2018. In November of the same year she was as assistant conductor to Zubin Mehta and the Bavarian Radio Orchestra Other orchestras that Yashima has performed with include the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Brandenburg State Orchestra Frankfurt ( Aspen Chamber Symphony, Colorado Music Festival Orchestra, Transylvania State Philharmonic of Cluj Napoca and Rostov State Philharmonic.)

As a pre college piano student of Bernd Goetzke, Yashima began her musical studies at the Institute for the Early Advancement of the Musically Highly Gifted ( in her hometown of Hannover and had her first conducting lessons at the age of 14. ) After studying conducting in Freiburg with Scott Sandmeier, and in Vienna with Mark Stringer, she completed her studies at the Hanns Eisler School of Music, Berlin under the guidance of Christian Ehwald and Hans Dieter Baum.