Pierre-André Valade was born in Corrèze, France in 1959. In 1991 he co-founded the Paris based Ensemble Court-Circuit of which he was Music Director for 16 years until 2008. He currently has an active career as a guest conductor whilst continuing his relationship with Athelas Sinfonietta Copenhagen as a regular guest conductor. He is especially admired for his performances of repertoire from the 20th and 21st centuries, and receives regular invitations from major festivals and orchestras in Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Current and future highlights include his debut with La Scala Orchestra in Milan as well as a collaboration with L’Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France in the 14/15 season. A regular guest conductor with the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, other orchestras include BBC Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Luxembourg Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic, Göteborgs Symfoniker, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Montreal Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, Tokyo Philharmonic, Orchestra della RAI Torino, Ensemble Intercontemporain, London Sinfonietta, and many others. His more recent CDs include works by Hugues Dufourt (winner Diapason d’Or and Choc du Monde de la Musique), and Harrison Birtwistle’s Theseus Game for Deutsche Grammophon, a piece he premiered in Duisburg and conducted at the Southbank Centre, BBC Proms, Huddersfield Festival, Lucerne International Festival and in Berlin.