American conductor Christopher James Ray has been praised by Opera News for his “clarity and sensitivity” and by the Boston Music Intelligencer for his “excellent conducting.” In the 2025–26 season, he makes a major operatic debut at Des Moines Metro Opera conducting Carlisle Floyd’s Of Mice and Men, one of several high-profile projects tied to the Carlisle Floyd Centennial. The season also brings Ray’s Carnegie Hall debut, as well as appearances with the Vermont Symphony and Meridian Symphony Orchestras, and recital performances around the country.

A strong advocate for American opera and 20th-century repertoire, Ray was a longtime assistant to Floyd and is recognized as a leading interpreter of his music. He appears with mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer on C. Floyd: Letter to the World, a recording of the composer’s songs on GPR Records.

Ray has held positions with the Bayreuth Festival, where he worked on productions including Götterdämmerung, Tristan und Isolde, and Parsifal, and at Opera San José, where he served three seasons as resident conductor, leading performances of Hansel and Gretel, Carmen, West Side Story, and more. He also served as an assistant conductor at the San Francisco Symphony, where he made his conducting debut on their acclaimed Soundbox series and worked with conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen, Michael Tilson-Thomas, Philippe Jordan, and Gustavo Dudamel among others.

Ray’s work in filmed opera includes Jake Heggie’s Three Decembers for Opera San José—later simulcast by Houston Grand Opera and Fort Worth Opera—and a subsequent performance with Berkshire Opera Festival, where Seen and Heard International wrote, “Christopher James Ray made Heggie's score pop with energy and throb with emotion.” Additional recent filmed productions include Schumann’s Dichterliebe and Tom Cipullo’s The Husbands.

A native of Mississippi, Ray made his professional debut with Mississippi Opera and is now a resident of New Orleans, LA.

 "Ray’s enthusiasm ran high throughout, and this he transmitted to his band, which treated the audience to an unflagging performance… it’s safe to say the maestro knows the storytelling power inherent in motifs."- Operawire