Kondakçi’s engagement with Mahler runs deep: as a student at New England Conservatory, he reconstructed a performing edition of the original 1889 version of Mahler’s First Symphony, premiered by the NEC Philharmonia under Hugh Wolff and noted by The Boston Globe, WGBH, and the Boston Musical Intelligencer.

Kondakçi has become known for creating concerts that combine thematic programming with thoughtful remarks from the stage. Frequently cited by audience members as among the most memorable parts of the experience, these introductions offer a personal and accessible entry point into works that might otherwise feel distant or intimidating.

Beyond his work with K²O, Kondakçi serves as cover conductor for the Portland Symphony Orchestra. His earlier appointments include Conducting Fellow with the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Boston Landmarks Orchestra. In 2020, he made his U.S. opera conducting debut with Enigma Chamber Opera in a sold-out production of Britten’s The Turn of the Screw, which drew critical praise from The Boston Globe.

Central to Kondakçi’s artistic vision is the belief that orchestras matter beyond the concert hall. Through K²O’s biennial Symphony for Science initiative at Boston’s Symphony Hall, he has helped connect leaders in science, medicine, philanthropy, and the arts while raising significant support for local nonprofits. Most recently, the initiative benefited the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program in partnership with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Born in Tirana, Albania, Kondakçi came to the United States as a political refugee with his family following decades of persecution under the Communist regime. His grandfather, Beqir Omari, was imprisoned for performing Western music; his great-uncle, a physician and virtuoso musician, was executed; and members of his family were sent to internment camps. These experiences continue to shape his belief that music remains one of the most powerful ways people make meaning together. Following his debut with the Albanian National Orchestra in 2014, he was recognized as a cultural representative of the Albanian diaspora and maintains an ongoing relationship with the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet of Albania.

This conviction has also shaped Kondakçi’s work as a builder of new musical institutions. In 2017, he co-founded the Eureka Ensemble, a professional chamber orchestra serving immigrant, refugee, and homeless communities. The following year, he co-founded the Women’s Chorus in partnership with the Women’s Lunch Place in Boston. Now in its seventh year, the chorus has provided hundreds of women experiencing homelessness with a sustained artistic community and a place of belonging. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Kondakçi co-founded Boston Hope Music in partnership with New England Conservatory and Massachusetts General Hospital, bringing live therapeutic performances to patients and frontline healthcare workers.

Kondakçi serves as Assistant Professor of Conducting at Berklee College of Music and as Non-Resident Tutor in Music at Harvard University. He is a frequent speaker on music, leadership, and community engagement, and has been featured at TEDxBoston and the League of American Orchestras.

Kondakçi holds Master of Music and Bachelor of Music degrees from the New England Conservatory, where he serves on the President’s Council. He lives in Boston with his wife, Chloe.