Radoslaw Kazmierczak<\/p>\n
<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><\/div>\n
After a three-year search, the Phoenix Symphony<\/a> has announced its new music director: <\/a>Paolo Bortolameolli<\/a>, an acclaimed Chilean-Italian conductor who brings global experience and a passion for his art that stems from childhood.<\/p>\n When he was 7 years old, Bortolameolli recalls, his dad took him to see a concert where Beethoven\u2019s Symphony No. 5 was being performed.<\/p>\n It moved him so deeply that he cried. In response, Bortolameolli\u2019s dad took him to meet the still-sweat-soaked conductor and told him the effect the music had on his son, who started crying again.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was the most beautiful moment, because the conductor got to his knees and hugged me, and he told me, \u2018This is exactly why we do what we do,\u2019\u201d he relates. \u201cThat changed my life.\u201d<\/p>\n Bortolameolli will be the Virginia G. Piper Music Director Designate for the 2026-27 season, during which he will conduct five programs (his schedule was already booked well in advance for other engagements). In 2027-28, his title will be Music Director, and he will conduct 12 programs.<\/p>\n The Phoenix Symphony began its hunt for its 12th music director in its nearly 80-year history in early 2023 when Tito Mu\u00f1oz announced he was leaving after the season ended. The search committee eventually narrowed the list to 13 strong candidates.<\/p>\n Each of them spent a week guest-conducting with the symphony. Bortolameolli was here twice: first in October 2024 and then to open the 2025 season.<\/p>\n He says he had an immediate connection with the musicians from the first rehearsal and felt how much the audience loves their orchestra.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the way they react, in the way they clap, they cheer the musicians,\u201d Bortolameolli says.<\/p>\n In addition to having a home here, he will continue to serve as the music director of \u00d3pera Nacional de Chile and the Filarm\u00f3nica de Santiago as well as artistic partner to Orquesta Filarm\u00f3nica de Medell\u00edn.<\/p>\n Bortolameolli has conducted esteemed orchestras worldwide and also maintains relationships with several, from Buenos Aires to Los Angeles to Munich and beyond. He has a Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music and diplomas from the Peabody Institute, Universidad Cat\u00f3lica de Chile, and the Universidad de Chile.<\/p>\n He says he\u2019s excited to bring a broad worldview \u2014 and new composers \u2014 to music lovers here.<\/p>\n \u201cI can bring the world to Phoenix and bring a piece of Phoenix to the world,\u201d Bortolameolli explains, \u201cfrom my experience with the musicians (and) connecting different artists, soloists, composers \u2026 It\u2019s going to become a very fruitful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n Next season, Bortolameolli will open with Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 and Prokofiev Symphony No. 5, and he\u2019ll close the season with Mahler Symphony No. 5. He\u2019ll also lead \u201cA John Williams 95th Birthday Celebration Performance,\u201d honoring the iconic composer of some of the most recognizable scores throughout decades of film history.<\/p>\n Bortolameolli says it\u2019s a challenge to balance what resonates with him, the musicians and the audience, and adds that he\u2019s been having \u201csuper interesting conversations\u201d about future programming with Phoenix Symphony Vice President of Operations and Artistic Planning Christopher Powell.<\/p>\n \u201cProgramming is one of the most fascinating and challenging aspects of being in this position,\u201d Bortolameolli says.<\/p>\n He hints that he is dreaming of connecting the operatic and symphonic worlds at some point.<\/p>\n It was paramount for the Phoenix Symphony to find a visionary not just behind the podium but also in community education and engagement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe performances on the stage, the conversations off the stage, the interactions with community members who care deeply about the symphony and its role in our community led us to this extraordinary new chapter as we prepare to move forward together,\u201d says Phoenix Symphony CEO Peter Kjome.<\/p>\n He adds, \u201cThis is such an important moment for us, and to have Paolo joining us on our journey as part of our service to our community \u2014 the excitement is something words cannot begin to describe.\u201d<\/p>\n Bortolameolli is also dedicated to expanding the lives of young people through music. Personally, his biggest joy is instilling a love of beauty and art in his son, Andrea, 11.<\/p>\n He notes that one of his greatest professional accomplishments was leading Chile\u2019s National Youth Symphony Orchestra in that country\u2019s premiere of Mahler\u2019s Symphony No. 8 in 2023. The massive undertaking featured 600 musicians, choir members and soloists, and took seven months to prepare.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s one of the things that I enjoy the most: talking and working with young people,\u201d he says, calling it \u201ca privilege and a responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition, Bortolameolli says as a music director, he\u2019s dedicated to connecting everyone and making people feel like they\u2019re part of something larger. He describes his goal of creating human bonds and life-changing experiences, like the one that happened to him as a young boy.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not just entertainment,\u201d Bortolameolli states. \u201cThis is not just something to do on a Friday night \u2026 There is this concept of being together, experiencing beauty through the sound, through music that was written years ago or yesterday. We are part of the community.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.phoenixnewtimes.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Paolo Bortolameolli is the Phoenix Symphony’s new music director. Radoslaw Kazmierczak After a three-year search, the Phoenix Symphony has announced its new music director: Paolo Bortolameolli, an acclaimed Chilean-Italian conductor who brings global experience and a passion for his art that stems from childhood. When he was 7 years old, Bortolameolli recalls, his dad took […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2321765,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[310395],"class_list":["post-2321764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-downtown"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Phoenix-Symphony-announces-new-music-director.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2321764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2321764"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2321764\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2321766,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2321764\/revisions\/2321766"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2321765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2321764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2321764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2321764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.phoenixnewtimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/03\/Paolo-with-the-Phoenix-Symphony-2-\u00a9Tavits.jpg?w=1000\")
Bringing a broad worldview<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.phoenixnewtimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/03\/Paolo-Bortolameolli-\u00a9-Jesus-Cornejo.jpg?w=1024\")