The Orquesta Sinfónica de Concepción has appointed Maestro Luis Toro Araya as its new Chief Conductor, from March 2025. Born in 1995, the Chilean conductor began his violin studies at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Chile and at the Modern School of Music with Alberto Dourthé Castrillón. He was a member of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Chile from 2014 to 2017. In 2015, he started his orchestral conducting studies with renowned conductors such as Jorge Rotter, Leonid Grin, Garrett Keast, and Helmuth Reichel Silva. He was Assistant Conductor of the Spanish National Orchestra from 2022 to 2024.
During that season, he also debuted with prestigious orchestras such as the Chilean National Opera, the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra (RTVE), and the Dresdner Philharmonie, among others. The Maestro was a Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic during the 22/23 season.
Toro Araya was a finalist in the 2021 Herbert von Karajan Young Conductors Award and received recognition at the International Conducting Competition in Liège. He also won the Opera Award and the Audience Award at the International Conducting Competition in Rotterdam (ICCR).
The Orquesta Sinfónica de Concepción was founded in 1952 as a Chamber Music Ensemble. In 2022, they celebrated their 70th anniversary, establishing themselves as one of Chile's leading orchestras. It had been over 20 years since a Chilean conductor led the orchestra. Since 2016, it has received support from the National Council for Culture and the Arts, and it has held 64 seasons featuring symphonic, chamber, Christmas, educational, and "Young Talents" programs.
In 2003, it expanded into opera, and in 2004, it received the National Music Award "President of the Republic", awarded for the first time to a symphony orchestra. In 2012, it received the Medal of the Chilean Music Council.
