Commencing the upcoming 2026/2027 musical season, the Los Angeles Philharmonic has appointed Finnish conductor and composer Esa-Pekka Salonen to the newly established position of the nonprofit’s Judith & Thomas L. Beckmen Creative Director. As inaugural creative director, Salonen will conduct and curate approximately six weeks of concerts—with an emphasis on multi-disciplinary agendas, such as orchestral festivals and continued imaginative programming.

Salonen previously served as the music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic for 17 years, between 1992 until 2009, and played an instrumental role in opening both the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Swedish Radio Symphony. From 2008 to 2021, Salonen was the principal conductor and artistic advisor of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra and, most recently, held the title of music director of the San Francisco Symphony.

While at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and even thereafter as a continued conductor laureate, Salonen was behind some of LA Phil’s most renowned productions, including the presentation of Edgard Varèse’s Amériques, staged productions of Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde and Stravinsky’s Persephone and Orpheus, as well as Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht’s The Seven Deadly Sins, among countless others.

“Esa-Pekka Salonen is a transformational artist whose vision helped shape the LA Phil into what it has become today,” Kim Noltemy, president and chief executive of LA Phil, says on Salonen’s groundbreaking return. “We are thrilled to have Esa-Pekka join the LA Phil in this historic new role, and we look forward to seeing how his innovative spirit will build on his highly celebrated legacy here and around the world.”

In addition to the news of Salonen’s appointment, Los Angeles Philharmonic also announced an artistic partnership with the Philharmonie de Paris—which concurrently named Salonen as Creativity and Innovation Chair, as well as Principal Conductor of Orchestre de Paris. Bridging the two world-class orchestras, with Salonen as middle man, the new partnership will offer collaborative initiatives between the two institutions, including a new Salonen International Conducting Fellowship—intended to foster a rising generation of exceptional conductors—a new series of ballet commissions and several joint festivities.

According to the nonprofit, the LA Phil has grown significantly over the last 25 years and, as it envisages the future, LA Phil wishes to continue pursuing opportunities that will advance its audience and reach, carving out more avenues for creative voices and spotlighting new paths so that orchestral music will live on flourishing.

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