The Los Angeles Philharmonic has found its next musical leader.
The L.A. Phil announced Tuesday, May 26, that British conductor Daniel Harding will become the organization’s next music director beginning with the 2027-28 season, ushering in a new era for one of the world’s leading orchestras as longtime Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel transitions into newly created artistic leadership roles.
Harding will oversee orchestral programming across the organization, including presentations at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Hollywood Bowl and The Ford, while also helping guide Youth Orchestra Los Angeles. Harding is expected to conduct eight weeks of programming during his inaugural season before expanding to 12 weeks in future years.
Maestro Daniel Harding, the new music director of Rome’s Santa Cecilia orchestra, smiles during a press conference on the occasion of his presentation to media in Rome, Monday, March 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Daniel Harding conducts members of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra at the Chicago Symphony Center Tuesday Feb. 12, 2019, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
Gustavo Dudamel conducts the LA Phil’s opening night as it commemorates his final season conducting and leading the orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, October 15, 2025. Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA ) students joined the orchestra for a piece. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Gustavo Dudamel conducts the LA Phil’s opening night as it commemorates his final season conducting and leading the orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, October 15, 2025. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Gustavo Dudamel conducts the LA Phil’s opening night as it commemorates his final season conducting and leading the orchestra at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, October 15, 2025. Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA ) students wearing shirts with a message joined the orchestra for a piece. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Los Angeles Philharmonic Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel conducts the USC band after delivering the keynote address during USC’s 143rd commencement ceremony at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Thursday, May 14, 2026. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)
Los Angeles Philharmonic Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel deliveres the keynote address during USC’s 143rd commencement ceremony at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Thursday, May 14, 2026. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)
This image released by the Los Angeles Philharmonic shows Daniel Harding conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Aug. 19, 2025. (Elizabeth Asher/Los Angeles Philharmonic via AP)
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Maestro Daniel Harding, the new music director of Rome’s Santa Cecilia orchestra, smiles during a press conference on the occasion of his presentation to media in Rome, Monday, March 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
“We are immensely proud to welcome Daniel Harding as the LA Phil’s next Music Director, following an extensive search led by a committee of our musicians, board, and staff,” LA Phil President and Chief Executive Officer Kim Noltemy said in a statement. “He is greatly admired by the orchestra and was the overwhelming choice based on their feedback.”
Noltemy added that Harding’s “intellectual curiosity, passion for bringing in and engaging with new audiences, global perspective, and talent for nurturing emerging voices directly align with the LA Phil’s mission and vision.”
Born in Oxford, England, in 1975, Harding rose to prominence early after working alongside renowned conductors Simon Rattle and Claudio Abbado as a teenager. He gained international attention in 1998 after conducting “Don Giovanni” at the Aix-en-Provence Festival at age 22 and has since built a career leading major orchestras across Europe.
Harding currently serves as music director of Italy’s Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. He previously held leadership roles with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Mahler Chamber Orchestra and served for a decade as principal guest conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. He is also a Grammy winner, a Commander of the British Empire, an Officer of the French Order of Arts and Letters, a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, and an airline pilot for a major European carrier.
The announcement comes during a major transition period for the L.A. Phil. Dudamel, who has led the orchestra since 2009, was announced last week as the organization’s new artistic and cultural laureate and founding director and conductor laureate of the Youth Orchestra. The L.A. Phil also plans to add new creative leadership positions dedicated to Latin music and film.
“Making music with the magnificent LA Phil musicians is a thrill and an inspiration,” Harding said in a statement. “Over recent years, the LA Phil has developed something extraordinary that cannot be manufactured: a kind of institutional charisma.”
Harding added: “Perhaps the hardest task in music is to take something already exceptional and to help it grow further.”
Among Harding’s priorities are expanding music education opportunities throughout Los Angeles County schools and deepening investment in the Youth Orchestra, including plans for an international YOLA tour in 2029 marking architect Frank Gehry’s centennial celebration.