Gennady Chernov was born in Saint-Petersburg. In 1997 he graduated from the Saint-Petersburg State Conservatory as a choral conductor.
In 2005-2015 he was the artistic director and conductor of Pskov Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra. Since 2001 he has been the conductor of the Vaasan Ooppera (Finland). In 2004-05 season he was the principal conductor the Symphony Orchestra of the Adygea Republic. In 2000-2004 he was the conductor of Murmansk Symphony Orchestra.
Since 2014 he has been the artistic director of the Nord-West Russian Symphony Orchestra.