Kazushi Ono

Kazushi Ōno (大野 和士, Ōno Kazushi) (Tokyo, 4 March 1960) is a Japanese conductor. He is music director of Brussels Philharmonic and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, and artistic director of the New National Theatre Tokyo.

Ōno studied at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, and with Wolfgang Sawallisch and Giuseppe Patanè at the Bayerischer Staatsoper. In 1987 he won First Prize at the 3rd Toscanini International Conductors' Competition.
Ōno was chief conductor of the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra between 1992 and 1999, where he subsequently also served as artistic advisor between 1999 and 2001. Today he is Conductor Laureate of the orchestra.
In May 2013 the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra announced Ōno's appointment as music director, beginning in April 2015 with a 5-year contract. In 2018 his contract was extended until March 2023. In October 2021, the orchestra extended his contract further until 2026.

In Europe, Ōno was chief conductor of the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra from 1990 to 1996. He was general music director of the Baden Staatsoper, Karlsruhe from 1996 to 2002. From August 2002 to 2008 he was music director of De Munt (Brussels). Ōno conducted the orchestra of De Munt in various contemporary operas, including Philippe Boesmans' Julie and Wintermärchen, and the world premiere of Toshio Hosokawa's Hanjo at the Aix-en-Provence Festival (2004).