UK conductor Jan Latham-Koenig sentenced in child sex-offense case

Conductor Jan Latham-Koenig rehearses Gustav Mahler’s 8th symphony, aka “The Thousand,” with Strasbourg Philharmony Orchestra, the chorus of Bamberg Symphonic Orchestra, the Great Chorus of National Conservatory of the Strasbourg region, the Chorus of Saint-Guillaume in Strasbourg, and the Boys Choir School of Colmar, 14 May 2002, on the stage of the Rhénus hall in Strasbourg, eastern France, prior to their unique show. Latham-Koenig was handed a suspended prison sentence on Tuesday, May 28, 2024, after pleading guilty to child sex offenses. THOMAS WIRTH / AFP

LONDON — British conductor Jan Latham-Koenig was handed a suspended prison sentence on Tuesday, May 28, after pleading guilty to child sex offenses.

The classical music conductor had admitted to messaging someone he believed to be a 14-year-old boy.

Judge Alexander Milne told the 70-year-old he had been “humiliated in the public eye”, sentencing him to 14 months in prison, a sentence that was suspended for two years.

He described Latham-Koenig’s actions as “deeply worrying behavior” during the sentencing at London’s Southwark Crown Court.

Latham-Koenig was the first British-born conductor to become artistic director of a Russian opera company, and was honored by Queen Elizabeth II in 2020 with an award for services to music and UK-Russia cultural relations.

In a long career, he has conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and all the BBC ensembles.

READ: Russian star conductor on the dock

He was charged with three child sex-offense charges after being arrested in January this year.

Latham-Koenig used a dating app to “strike up conversations with a person whom he believed was Jacob, a 14-year-old boy,” the court heard.

In fact, the person was an undercover police officer.

Their conversations became sexual and Latham-Koenig gave him a train ticket to Victoria station in London so they could meet. Instead, the conductor was arrested at the station.

During his time at the Novaya Opera in Moscow, Latham-Koenig staged the city’s premiere of Richard Wagner’s “Tristan and Isolde,” one of the cornerstones of Western classical music.

The Novaya Opera was founded by former Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov to be an opera for the people, less expensive and more accessible than the better-known Bolshoi.

Its founding director Yevgeny Kolobov was universally admired but the house floundered after his death in 2003, rediscovering its momentum under Latham-Koenig’s leadership.

We would love to hear more from you! Help us improve your reading experience by answering this survey.