Scotland's national orchestra has announced a new chief executive.

The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) has appointed Dr. Krishna Thiagarajan as its new chief executive.

Dr. Thiagarajan joins the RSNO from the New York City-based Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, where he served as Executive Director since January 2013.

Dr Thiagarajan was "responsible for increasing audiences including sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall, commissioning new work, touring the Orchestra to Japan, Colombia and throughout Europe, ensuring financial stabilisation and overseeing the orchestra's first self-produced recording," the RSNO said in a statement.

Previously Dr. Thiagarajan served as President of Symphony in C, one of three professional training orchestras in the United States, as well as Senior Director of Artistic Operations for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO), based in Rochester, New York state's third largest city.

He succeeds Michael Elliott in the position.

Dr Brian Lang, chair of the RSNO board of directors said: "It is my pleasure to announce that, from August, Krishna will join the RSNO as its Chief Executive.

"His background and expertise will be enormously valuable to one of Scotland's major cultural assets.

"Krishna's experience, both as an administrator and a musician, makes him absolutely the right choice for us, as we prepare to celebrate our 125th anniversary and look forward to transferring to the Orchestra's new premises.

"We have set ourselves some ambitious targets and Krishna is the ideal individual to lead the team in delivering on these promises."

Born in Karlsruhe, Germany, Dr. Thiagarajan trained as a pianist and performed throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.

He graduated from Indiana University with a bachelor's and master's degrees in music, where he studied with Leonard Hokanson and taught as an associate instructor of piano.

Dr Krishna Thiagarajan said: "I am delighted to accept the post of Chief Executive of an organisation of such musical stature and heritage.

"The RSNO is well known to me, principally through its prodigious recording legacy which is recognised world-wide.

"I very much look forward to expanding on the achievements of former Chief Executive Michael Elliott and Music Director Peter Oundjian. The RSNO is strongly positioned to continue its role as an ambassador at the heart of Scotland's cultural life."

Fiona Hyslop, Scotland's culture secretary, said: "I am thrilled to welcome Dr Thiagarajan, an esteemed international musician, academic and business mind, to lead one of Scotland's most treasured cultural organisations.

"I look forward to hearing about his plans for building on the 125th anniversary of the RSNO and their move to new premises later this year."

Dr Thiagarajan received his doctorate from the University of Maryland, College Park where he studied with pianists Santiago Rodriguez and André Watts.

In 1997, he founded and directed Kammermusikkurs in Dortmund, Germany, a chamber music festival with internationally acclaimed faculty and students.