In January 2009 he took up the new position of Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. A regular visitor to Sydney over many years, he already shares a warm relationship with the Orchestra, and they continue to collaborate on a number of exciting projects including composer festivals, major recording projects and international touring activities.

Ashkenazy continues his longstanding relationships with many orchestras; he is Conductor Laureate of the Philharmonia, NHK Symphony and Iceland Symphony Orchestras. He also holds the position of Music Director of the European Union Youth Orchestra and maintains strong links with major orchestras including the Cleveland Orchestra (their former Principal Guest Conductor), San Francisco Symphony and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (Chief Conductor and Music Director 1988-96).

Ashkenazy still devotes himself to the piano, now mostly in the recording studio where he continues to build his extraordinarily comprehensive recording catalogue with releases such as the 1999 Grammy award-winning Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues, Bach's Wohltemperierte Klavier and his recent disc featuring French piano duos recording with Vovka Ashkenazy.