Ainars Rubikis, Latvia
Born in 1978 in Riga, Ainārs Rubiķis attended his native city’s cathedral choir school and later studied at the Latvian Music Academy. His career has encompassed a very wide range of conducting engagements, from choral to orchestral. He has taken part in master classes with, among others, Mariss Jansons and Zsolt Nagy.
Since 2008 Ainārs Rubiķis has been employed at the Latvian National Opera, where he has conducted 'Die Zauberflöte' and 'Don Giovanni'.
As assistant to Cornelius Meister he prepared performances of Wagner’s 'Siegfried'.
In 2000 he became director of DeCoro, the Latvian University Choir, and in the 2005/2006 season he led the Flemish Radio Choir on a tour of Belgium and France. In 2000 he won 2nd prize at the International Choirmasters’ Competition in Riga and in 2005 not only won 2nd prize at the competition for young choral conductors in Tallin but was also awarded the Tallin Philharmonic Chamber Choir’s special prize.
