Gustavo Dudamel is driven by the belief that music has the power to transform lives, to inspire, and to change the world. Through his dynamic presence and his tireless advocacy for arts education, he has introduced classical music to new audiences around the globe.
He currently serves as music and artistic director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, and in addition makes regular guest appearances with international orchestras such as the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics. He has conducted more than thirty opera productions at international houses such as La Scala, Milan, the Metropolitan Opera and the Berlin and Vienna State Operas; from 2021 to 2023 he was music director of the Paris Opéra. In 2026/27 he will take over the leadership of the New York Philharmonic.
Highlights of the 2025/26 season have included the world premiere of Ellen Reid’s Earth Between Oceans and Wagner’s Die Walküre with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony and Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo with the New York Philharmonic. In summer 2025 he had a residency in London with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, with concerts at the Southbank Centre and with Coldplay at Wembley Stadium.
As a conductor he has worked tirelessly to bring music to ever wider audiences and has become a pop-culture phenomenon. He has conducted for film productions such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Spielberg’s adaptation of West Side Story, performed at global mainstream events such as the Super Bowl, the Academy Awards and the re-opening of the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, and worked with superstars such as Christina Aguilera, Ricky Martin, LL Cool J and Billie Eilish. In October 2024 he became the first classical musician to feature on the cover of Billboard magazine.
Inspired by his transformative experience as a youth in Venezuela’s immersive musical training programme El Sistema, he founded the Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) in 2007 and the Dudamel Foundation in 2012.
His discography of approximately 70 albums has won multiple Grammy awards. Most recently he released the CD recording Odyssey with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in 2025.
Gustavo Dudamel’s awards include the title of Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, an honorary doctorate from the University of Gothenburg and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
