Esa-Pekka Salonen

Esa-Pekka Salonen is renowned as both a composer and conductor. He was recently named Creative Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, effective 2026–27, and Creativity and Innovation Chair of the Philharmonie de Paris and Principal Conductor of the Orchestre de Paris, effective 2027–28. He is the Conductor Laureate of the Philharmonia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, all of which he has led as Music Director or Principal Conductor, and formerly served as Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony. He is the founder of the Colburn School’s Negaunee Conducting Program, which he directs as a member of the faculty. Salonen co-founded, and until 2018 served as the Artistic Director of, the annual Baltic Sea Festival.

In recent seasons, Salonen has co-founded the statewide California Festival with Gustavo Dudamel and Rafael Payare; led a synesthetic production of Scriabin’s Prometheus: the Poem of Fire in collaboration with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Cartier’s head perfumer Mathilde Laurent, recently made the subject of a documentary produced by Cartier in partnership with Mezzo TV; and held residencies at the Berlin Philharmonic, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, and Salzburg Easter Festival. He also led the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra in a Salzburg Easter Festival residency featuring a Simon McBurney production of Modest Mussorgsky’s unfinished opera Khovanshchina, with never-before heard music compiled by Gerard McBurney from a recently rediscovered manuscript.

Salonen begins the 2025–26 season on tour with the Orchestre de Paris, centered on the premiere of his new Horn Concerto, composed for Stefan Dohr. After a world premiere at the Lucerne Festival and performances in Berlin and Hamburg, he brings the piece to the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Filarmonica della Scala, and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Other conducting highlights this season include a pair of Pierre Boulez centennial programs at the New York Philharmonic, featuring Notations with Pierre-Laurent Aimard and Rituel with choreography by Benjamin Millepied; residencies with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Bergen International Festival; and dates with the LA Phil, Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestre de Paris. He concludes the season at the Ojai Music Festival, which he curates as the 2026 Music Director.

Salonen is as well-known for his intuitive and cerebral compositions as he is for his work as a conductor. He conducts several of his compositions this season, including Tiu and Dona Nobis Pacem with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and his Sinfonia concertante for organ and orchestra with Olivier Latry and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. His music is also programmed, with other conductors, at orchestras and ensembles around the world.

Esa-Pekka Salonen has an extensive and varied recording career, both as a conductor and composer. Recent releases include the GRAMMY® Award-winning (Best Opera Recording) world premiere recording of Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater on Deutsche Grammophon, recordings of Bartók’s three piano concertos with Pierre-Laurent Aimard on Pentatone, as well as spatial audio recordings of Ligeti’s Clocks and Clouds, Lux Aeterna, and Ramifications on Apple Music Classical. His concertos for piano (composed for Yefim Bronfman), violin (for Leila Josefowicz, featured in an ad campaign for the Apple iPad), and cello (for Yo-Yo Ma) all appear on recordings conducted by Salonen himself.

Esa-Pekka Salonen was educated at Helsinki’s Sibelius Academy, where he founded the new music appreciation group Korvat Auki and ensemble Toimii with classmates Magnus Lindberg and Kaija Saariaho. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors including Sweden’s Litteris et Artibus medal; the Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland, the Helsinki Medal, and Commander, First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland; Poland’s Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture; and the Rank of Commandeur of France’s Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He was elected an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2010 and appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in 2020. In 2023, he led the Nobel Prize Concert, and in 2024 received the Polar Music Prize. To date, he has received seven honorary doctorates in four different countries.

September 2025