Jessica Cottis

Jessica Cottis (born 13 December 1979 in Sale, Victoria, Australia) is an Australian-British conductor. Cottis is the daughter of an Australian diplomat, high-ranking Royal Australian Air Force officer and Defence Attaché Air Commodore (retired) NJ Montgomery. Her older sister is immigration expert Sophie Montgomery-Male; her older brother is the musician and writer James Montgomery. She studied organ, piano and musicology at the Australian National University, and graduated with first-class honours. With support from the Royal Philharmonic Society and Australian Music Foundation, she continued her studies in Paris with Marie-Claire Alain. She was a prize winner in the 2000 Australian Young Performers' Competition. Her European debut as an organist was at London's Westminster Cathedral in 2001. In 2006, Cottis began conducting studies at the Royal Academy of Music, London, after reading law at the University of London. Her teachers included Colin Metters, George Hurst and Sir Colin Davis. She graduated from the RAM in 2009, with distinction. During her time at the RAM, Cottis founded a new opera company, Bloomsbury Opera. She works as Manson Fellow in Composition at RAM and, in 2009, became the first Postgraduate Conducting Fellow of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, where her mentors include Donald Runnicles. In 2008, Cottis became Associate Conductor of the Azalea Ensemble, the London-based contemporary music group. In September 2009, Cottis was appointed assistant conductor with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and served 2 years in the post. In July 2012, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra appointed Cottis its next assistant conductor, with an initial contract of 2 years. Cottis has also commissioned new operas, including Anna Meredith's Tarantula in Petrol Blue and The Mirror by Martin Georgiev. Cottis lives in the West End of Glasgow with her partner, choreographer and director Kally Lloyd-Jones.