Wissam Boustany

Boustany has performed in the Wigmore Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room, Barbican, St John’s Smith Square, St James Piccadilly, Lincoln Center, Musikverein, Concertgebouw, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Kilden Performing Arts Centre, Beiteddine Festival, Al-Bustan Festival and others. As a soloist he has collaborated with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philhamonic, London Soloists Chamber Orchestra, State Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Utrecht Chamber Orchestra, St Paul’s Sinfonia, Polish Chamber Orchestra, Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, Cairo Opera Orchestra, Orquestra 5 de mayo and Chamber Orchestra of Europe and the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra.

Boustany was Professor of Flute at Trinity Laban, London (1999-2009), where he was made an Honorary Member in 2011. He also taught at the Royal Northern College of Music (2010-2015).

Upon graduating Wissam moved to London, where he started his freelance career. He was Principal Flute of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under the conductor Claudio Abbado at the age of 23 and was also associated with several orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra, London Mozart Players, London Chamber Soloists Chamber Orchestra. During the mid-1980s, Boustany presented his London debut concerts at the Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Barbican Centre. In 1986 he stood down from all orchestral playing in order to pursue a solo and teaching career.

Boustany was born in Beirut, Lebanon, the son of a pipeline engineer, Fayez Boustany. His mother, Nadia Saba, is of Palestinian descent. Raised in Lebanon, Wissam studied flute with Dr Hussam Yacoub (Iraqi flute player) and his step-father Emile Nouné (Lebanese violinist). In 1977, at the age of 17, Boustany left Lebanon and the civil war behind to study with Trevor Wye at Chetham's School of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) in Manchester, England, graduating from the RNCM in 1982.

Wissam Boustany (born October 1, 1960) is a Lebanese/British concert flutist. Boustany has toured and collaborated with a number of symphony and chamber orchestras. Conductors Boustany has worked with include Claudio Abbado, Ivan Fischer, Bramwell Tovey, John Elliot Gardiner, Roger Norrington, George Solti, Peter Szilvay, Lubnan Baalbaki, James Judd, Jordi Mora, Volodymyr Sirenko, Levon Parikian, Nicholas Cleobury, Martyn Brabbins, Michel Brandt, Varujan Kodjan, Clark Rundell, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Evelyne Aiello, Ludwig Carrasco, Nader Abbassi, Andrew Morley and Toby Purser. He is a recipient of The Crystal Award, awarded to him in 1998 at the World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland.