The ​“livewire conductor” (The Times) has formed close relationships with some of the most prominent opera composers of our generation, including Michel van der Aa, Daníel Bjarnason, Nico Muhly and Kaija Saariaho. De Ridder also recently performed repertoire works such as Bluebeard’s Castle (Philharmonia Orchestra) and Scenes from Goethe’s Faust by Schumann (Staatstheater Stuttgart), collaborating with directors such as Kasper Holten, Barrie Kosky and Enda Walsh. He made his debut at Oper Köln last season, for performances of Der Meister und Margarita by York Höller.

In 2013, De Ridder founded s t a r g a z e, performing projects ranging from Bach to avant-garde electronics, and contemporary classical music. The group have gained a significant following, and are regularly invited by leading concert halls, including the Barbican Centre London, the Kölner Philharmonie and Philharmonie de Paris, plus Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. Their series ‘(not) Another Beethoven Cycle’ is a re-examination of all of Beethoven’s symphonies, commissioning a host of artists from a diverse range of disciplines to respond to each symphony. The project has so far appeared at Elbphilharmonie, Helsinki Festival, Lucerne Festival and Kölner Philharmonie.

De Ridder’s discography includes an album of orchestral music by Bryce Dessner and Jonny Greenwood and the hugely successful Four Seasons Recomposed by Max Richter, both for Deutsche Grammophon. The Max Richter recording was awarded an ECHO Klassik Classic Without Borders award and has topped the classical charts in over 20 countries. For Transgressive Records, De Ridder also acted as producer on the release of Africa Express Presents: In C Mali. This followed a trip to Bamako, Mali, with Damon Albarn and his Africa Express project. In Mali, de Ridder initiated and led a recording of Riley’s In C with local musicians, joined by travelling Western artists, including Brian Eno and Damon Albarn.

De Ridder was Artistic Director of Musica Nova Helsinki 2017 – 2021, and in 2018 was the recipient of a Royal Philharmonic Society Award for his innovative work as Artistic Curator of London’s Spitalfields Festival.