Michael Seal has worked with many of the UK’s finest orchestras, and his in-depth knowledge of orchestras from an insider’s position (he was a violinist with the CBSO early in his career) gives him a unique perspective and allows him to quickly build rapport and trust with the orchestras he works with. His energy and enthusiasm are infectious, and he has built a reputation for delivering outstanding results with great charm — often on a typically British tight rehearsal schedule.

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Since 2005, he has conducted the CBSO over 300 times as either Assistant or Associate Conductor, including his conducting debut at the BBC Proms in 2023 with the Proms’ first-ever Bollywood concert.

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Michael is frequently invited as guest conductor with all five BBC orchestras, as well as the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and Ulster Orchestra.

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Internationally, he has conducted the Brussels Philharmonic, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Joensuu City Orchestra, KBS Symphony Orchestra, Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Odense Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Académica del Instituto Superior de Arte del Teatro Colón, Orquesta Filarmónica de Buenos Aires, Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, both RTÉ Concert and National Symphony Orchestras and the WDR Funkhausorchester Köln.

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Michael has a special bond with the CBSO Youth Orchestra, conducting them on numerous occasions and being involved with them since their foundation. He is also Artistic Advisor and Conductor of the CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy, a chamber orchestra formed in 2007.

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His love of opera has led to critically acclaimed performances of Puccini’s Il Trittico at Birmingham Conservatoire. He has also assisted both Sakari Oramo and Andris Nelsons in opera performances of Peter Grimes, Carmen, Der Rosenkavalier, Lohengrin, Tristan und Isolde, and The Flying Dutchman. Michael is also a champion of lesser-known British composers such as Bantock, Bax, and York Bowen, as well as film music.

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During the global pandemic of 2020-21, Michael launched his podcast a mic on the podium, a weekly interview with another prominent conductor. The podcast has been highly successful, gaining rave reviews and — thanks to its unique format — it has been added to the National Sound Archive at the British Library. In 2025, his recording of Adrian Sutton's Violin Concerto with Fenella Humphreys and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra was awarded the BBC Music Magazine Premiere Award.

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This season sees him return to Brussels Philharmonic, Kuopio Symphony, London Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and WDR Funkhaus orchestras. He will make his debut in 2025/26 with Orquestra do Algarve, Bath Philharmonia, Orchestre national Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Beethoven Orchester Bonn. Following a successful debut with the Münchner Rundfunkorchester in June 2025, he was immediately invited to conduct them again in June 2027. He will also make his debut with the Belgian National Orchestra in January 2027. January 2027.