When Jakub Przybycień studies a score, he always does so from a dual perspective, as an experienced orchestral musician who immediately recognises where the challenges lie, and as a conductor who is always searching for the unique story and sound within each work.

Since the 2023/24 season, Jakub had been the Assistant Conductor to Ludovic Morlot at the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, concluding his tenure at the end of the 2024/25 season. He has been recognised in international conducting competitions and is the designated winner (finalist) of the International Conducting Competition Rotterdam 2025, as well as the finalist of the Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Award 2025. Other competitions include semi-finalist in the Malko Conducting Competition, and finalist in both the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition and the masterclasses of the Critical Orchestra Berlin. He is the recipient of the Neeme Järvi Prize.

Raised in Poland, he achieved early success as a violinist, participating in multiple national and international competitions. He was accepted into the European Union Youth Orchestra, where he worked with conductors such as Bernard Haitink and Manfred Honeck. He studied in Bern with Monika Urbaniak Lisik (2014-2019), earning both his Bachelor's and Master's degrees with distinction. However, from the moment he moved to Switzerland, he saw conducting - and studies with Johannes Schlaefli at the Zurich University of the Arts - as his ultimate goal. Alongside his violin studies, he completed a Bachelor's degree in conducting at the Academy of Music in Wrocław (PL) under Professor Marek Pijarowski. He later obtained his Master’s degree in Music Performance as planned, studying with Johannes Schlaefli and Christoph-Mathias Mueller.

When asked about the most important qualities of a conductor, Jakub lists several: good hands, which allow musical ideas to be conveyed effectively; technical knowledge, encompassing both conducting technique and an understanding of orchestral requirements; and finally, a vision - a clear goal to strive towards. For him, this goal is closely linked to developing a unique personal sound.

Ideally, Jakub believes this sound should always be recognisable while still allowing the stylistic characteristics of each work to shine through. His engagement with historically informed performance has been shaped by his experience with the Baroque violin as well as his conducting work with the Balthasar Neumann Ensembles. Whether he is conducting Tchaikovsky or Ravel, his aim is always to balance his individual interpretation with the essence of the score. To experiment with his ideas, he regularly serves as Chief Conductor of the Zürcher Orchester Sozietät, where he explores the great works of the orchestral repertoire.

​

Jakub’s 2025 conducting highlights include debut performances with the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra, Camerata Salzburg, Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Philharmonie Merck, Arctic Philharmonic, as well as the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, Klangforum Wien, and Sinfonia Rotterdam during the ICCR 2025. He also returns to the European Union Youth Orchestra, this time as a conductor, having previously played in the orchestra for many years as a violinist. Jakub will continue his collaboration with the Balthasar Neumann Ensembles and Zielona Góra Philharmonic Orchestra.