Chief Conductor and Artistic Director – Valdis Butāns

Valdis Butāns, Chief conductor and artistic director of Orchestra RIGA, has led four saturated and dynamic concert-seasons with the orchestra. Memorable are his conducting programs such as Mercury on the Moon, Celebrating Ella Fitzgerald, Tango-Flamenco-Jazz and a number of new compositions by Latvian composers, including oratorio Time Of Daybreak by Imants Kalniņš, Selga Mence’s oratorio Winds of Ages, Dona nobis pacem by Pēteris Vasks, Caravan by Andris Sējāns.

Valdis Butāns graduated from the Department of Orchestral Conducting at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music with MA degree. In 2005/2006 he improved his orchestral conducting skills at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts (Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien) with Prof. Uroš Lajovic. Valdis Butāns was the assistant of conductor Karel Mark Chichon at the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra 2010-2012 and the German Radio Philharmonic Saarbrucken-Kaiserslautern in season 2012/2013.

Butāns has received a Riga City Council Education, Culture and Sports Department’s annual award in culture – White Sparrow – for successful work and festival Three Stars in 2017.

BACH RESPIGHI RAVEL

Orchestra RIGA
Organist Vita Kalnciema
Conductor Ainārs Rubiķis

BACH RIGA FINLANDIA

Orchestra RIGA
Organist Ilona Birģele
Conductor Valdis Butāns

NOVEL. 21st century music

Orchestra RIGA
Saxophone quartet ATOMOS
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Moderator Liene Jakovļeva

AUTUMN SONG FOR LATVIA

Orchestra RIGA
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Soloist Armands Siliņš-Bergmanis (baritone)
The Riga chamber choir "Ave Sol"
Mixed choir of the Latvian Academy of Culture “Sōla” 

IMPRESSIONS OF LATVIA

Orchestra RIGA
State Academic Choir "Latvija"
Soloists Jūlija Vasiļjeva (soprano), Jānis Apeinis (baritone), Aigars Raumanis (saxophone)
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Concert leader Signe Lagzdiņa

CHRISTMAS RHAPSODY

Orchestra RIGA
Pianist Rihards Plešanovs
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Moderator Raitis Zapackis

SECOND ADVENT CONCERT

Orchestra RIGA
Riga Dome Girls' Choir TIARA
(conductor and artistic director Aira Birziņa)
Soloist Gundars Dziļums (baritone)
Conductor Valdis Butāns

CHRISTMAS IN JAZZ AND SAMBA RHYTHM in Riga

Orchestra RIGA
Pianist Andrejs Osokins
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Moderator Raitis Zapackis

CHRISTMAS IN JAZZ AND SAMBA RHYTHM

Orchestra RIGA
Pianist Andrejs Osokins
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Moderator Raitis Zapackis

LATVIAN LOVE SONGS

Orchestra RIGA
Soloists Aija Vītoliņa
Raimonds Celms
Conductor Valdis Butāns

WINDSTREAM OPENING CONCERT

Orchestra RIGA
Orchestra RIGA bigband
Conductor Steffen Schorn (Germany)
Soloist Kristians Kalva (trumpet)

MOZART REQUIEM

Orchestra RIGA
Riga Chamber Choir "Ave Sol"
the mixed choir of the Riga Cathedral Choir School
Soloists: Jolanta Strikaite-Lapiņa, Ilze Grēvele-Skaraine, Mārtiņš Zvīgulis and Rihards Mačanovskis
Conductor Jurģis Cābulis

GOOD FRIDAY CONCERT

Orchestra RIGA
Riga Saxophone Quartet
Conductor Valdis Butāns

INSPIRED BY PARIS

Orchestra RIGA
Percussionist Adélaïde Ferrière (France)
Conductor Valdis Butāns

SOUNDS OF LATVIA

Orchestra "RIGA"
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Actress Guna Zariņa
Concert moderator Signe Lagzdiņa

SUPERHEROES

Orchestra RIGA
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Stories and singing by Daumants Kalniņš
Soloist Zane Dombrovska (vocal)

SUPERHEROES

Orchestra RIGA
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Stories and singing by Daumants Kalniņš
Soloist Zane Dombrovska (vocal)

THE PRAYER

Orchestra RIGA
Mixed Choir of the Latvian Academy of Culture "Sōla"
Conductors Kaspars Ādamsons, Artūrs Oskars Mitrevics, Jurģis Rāts

BACH. BERLIOZ. BARNES

Orchestra RIGA
Conductor Valdis Butāns
Organist Ilona Birģele

BACH. BRUCKNER. BRITTEN

Orchestra RIGA
Conductor Jānis Liepiņš
Organ solo – Aigars Reinis
English horn solo – Inese Grāvleja

JAZZ MUSIC AT CHRISTMAS

Orchestra RIGA bigband
Conductor Roberts Martini
Soloists: Paula Saija and Daumants Kalniņš

JAZZ MUSIC AT CHRISTMAS

Orchestra RIGA bigband
Conductor Roberts Martini
Soloists: Paula Saija and Daumants Kalniņš