Gustavo Dudamel Leads Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela in Verizon Hall Debut, 12/5

Dynamic conductor Gustavo Dudamel returns to the Kimmel Center to lead Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela in their Verizon Hall debut onWednesday, December 5 at 8 p.m.  One of today's most uniquely gifted conductors, Gustavo Dudamel leads the elite group of musicians through Carlos Chávez's Sinfonía india, Julián Orbón's Tres versiones sinfónicas, and Richard Strauss' Eine Alpensinfonie (An Alpine Symphony) Op. 64.

Tickets are currently on sale at kimmelcenter.org, 215-893-1999, or at the Kimmel Center Box Office located on Broad and Spruce streets, Philadelphia, Pa. (open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., later on performance evenings). Tickets are available for $40-$105, plus applicable service charges.

Hailed by the London Times as "South America's lightning conductor," 31-year-old Venezuelan phenomenonGustavo Dudamel entered the international scene after winning the inaugural Bamberger Symphoniker Gustav Mahler Conducting Competition, the world's most prestigious competition for young conductors, in May 2004. He is currently in his fourteenth season as Music Director of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, where he began his conducting studies with José Antonio Abreu, the orchestra's founder. The ensemble is widely recognized for its role in transforming the lives of hundreds of thousands of impoverished youth through music education and solidified Dudamel's commitment to use music as an engine for social change. In May 2007, Dudamel was awarded the Premio de la Latindad by the Union Latina, an honor given for outstanding contributions to Latin cultural life.  Named one of Time's most influential people of 2009, Dudamel also led the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela in an outstanding performance at the 2012 Olympics in London.

In addition to his role with the Venezuelan orchestra, Dudamel concurrently holds some of the most coveted conducting positions in the world.  After making his celebrated United States debut in 2005 with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Dudamel began his inaugural 2009-10 season as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, a position that has already been renewed into the 2018-2019 season when the Los Angeles Philharmonic will celebrate their 100^th season. The inaugural gala at Walt Disney Concert Hall featured the world premiere of John Adam's City Noir, a recorded performance that was released on iTunes on May 11, 2010.  In addition to engagements with the world's most renowned orchestras and musicians, Dudamel serves as Principal Conductor of Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and has received innumerous prestigious awards for his contributions to classical music.