Eleni Papakyriakou comes from Thessaloniki, Greece. She completed her studies in orchestral conducting at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (Mag. Art.) in 2015.
As founder and principal conductor of Sinfonietta Passau (2023), Eleni Papakyriakou established her own symphony orchestra, which can already look back on five extremely successful concert series. For this, she was awarded the Tokyo Foundation's SYLFF Leadership Initiatives Award in 2024.
She is also principal conductor and artistic director of the Passau University Orchestra (2016–2019 and again since 2022) and worked for seven years at the Landestheater Niederbayern, where she conducted performances.
After successful guest conducting engagements at the Louis Spohr Music Academy in Kassel, Eleni Papakyriakou was appointed director of the academy orchestra in 2025. She was also hired as a lecturer for “instrumental ensemble conducting.”
Her participation in the international competition “La Maestra Paris” led to a performance with the Orchestre Pasdeloup at the Philharmonie de Paris (Grand Hall Pierre Boulez) in 2021. As a guest conductor, she has also worked with the Thessaloniki State Orchestra and the Academic Orchestra Association of Vienna.
While still a student, Eleni Papakyriakou was engaged as musical director at the Vienna International Opera Academy and made her debut with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra in the Grand Broadcasting Hall of Austrian Radio. She has actively participated in masterclasses with Fabio Luisi, Bertrand de Billy, and Nicolás Pasquet. She has premiered contemporary works with the ProArte Orchestra and has been a scholarship recipient on several occasions.
Eleni Papakyriakou previously studied orchestral conducting, composition, and musicology in Greece (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) and holds diplomas in piano, harmony, counterpoint, fugue, and Byzantine music. Her interest in musicology led her to conduct research on works by J. Brahms, F. Schubert, and A. Bruckner.
