February 7, 2023

Gustavo Dudamel named next Music and Artistic Director of the New York Philharmonic

New York Philharmonic Co-Chairmen Peter W. May and Oscar L. Tang, Linda and Mitch Hart President & CEO Deborah Borda, and Executive Director Gary Ginstling today announced that Gustavo Dudamel will become the Orchestra’s next Music Director, beginning in the 2026–27 season. Dudamel will hold the title of Music and Artistic Director of the New York Philharmonic for a five-year term, after serving as Music Director Designate during the 2025–26 season.

As the New York Philharmonic’s 27th Music Director, Dudamel — who has been Music and Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2009, Music Director of the Opéra National de Paris since 2021, and Music Director of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela since 1999 — will become part of a legacy that includes Gustav Mahler, Arturo Toscanini, and Leonard Bernstein.

NY Phil Board Co-Chairmen Peter May and Oscar Tang said: “We are thrilled to welcome Gustavo Dudamel as the next Music and Artistic Director of the New York Philharmonic. Building on this orchestra’s great legacy, he joins a historic list of distinguished Music Directors. On behalf of the Board of Directors, we are delighted that Gustavo Dudamel has said yes to leading our artistic future.”

Gustavo said: “Today, above all, I am grateful. I am grateful to the musicians and leadership of the New York Philharmonic as we embark upon this new and beautiful journey together; to my beloved family at the Los Angeles Philharmonic and YOLA for helping me to learn and grow through countless challenges and triumphs; and to my Maestro Abreu and the musicians of Venezuela who have been there with me since the beginning. As the great poet Federico García Lorca said: ‘Every step we take on earth brings us to a new world.’ I gaze with joy and excitement at the world that lies before me in New York City, and with pride and love at the world I have shared — and will continue to share — with my dear Angelenos over the next three seasons and beyond. All of us are united in our belief that culture creates a better world, and in our dream that music is a fundamental right. I look forward to the work ahead.” 

On behalf of the Orchestra, New York Philharmonic Principal Trumpet Christopher Martin said: “The musicians of the New York Philharmonic are delighted by the news of Gustavo Dudamel’s commitment to New York. Each time he takes the podium we feel an extraordinary connection with him. This moment aligns with the unparalleled artistic tradition of this nation’s oldest orchestra. We look forward to sharing our deepening musical relationship with audiences both in our revitalized David Geffen Hall and on tour around the world.”

NY Phil President & CEO Deborah Borda said: “This is a dream come true for our musicians, our audience, and certainly for me. The coming together of a great orchestra, a visionary Music and Artistic Director, and our transformed hall promises the richest of futures.”

Gary Ginstling, Executive Director and incoming President & CEO, said: “From my earliest conversations with the New York Philharmonic Board leadership, we agreed that there was one conductor above all others who could meet the moment and help define the next era for the NY Phil. With Gustavo Dudamel, the Philharmonic is poised for what I believe will be one of the most exciting chapters in its storied history."

Gustavo made his New York Philharmonic debut in November 2007, conducting works by Dvořák and Prokofiev as well as the Orchestra’s first performances of Chávez’s Sinfonia India (Symphony No. 2) since Bernstein led the piece in 1961. To date he has conducted the NY Phil in 26 concerts, in repertoire ranging from Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, in 2009, to Gabriela Ortiz’s Clara and Andreia Pinto Correia’s Os pássaros da noite, works by composers he selected for NY Phil commissions complementing the Robert Schumann symphonic cycle he conducted in March 2022.