The son of composer Ivan Karabits, Kirill first led the Bournemouth Symphony in October 2006, performing Beethoven, Liszt and Tchaikovksy to critical and audience acclaim. His recent debuts include MDR Leipzig, Luzerner Sinfonie Orchester, Orchester Musikkollegium Winterthur, Luxembourg Philharmonic, and the Bordeaux, Lyon, Granada and Sydney Symphonies. Karabits also debuted with Op_ra National du Rhin in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin last year. His upcoming debuts include those at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera this summer in Onegin with the London Philharmonic, and with the Geneva Opera in Janacek's The Adventures of Mr. Broucek (Orchestre de la Suisse Romande).

Karabits is the first Ukrainian conductor to head a British orchestra. He joins a surge of young and dynamic Eastern European conductors rising in the U.K. ranks, including Vladimir Jurowski, Vasily Petrenko and Andris Nelsons, who have each taken top positions with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, respectively.