Lina González-Granados, conductor

Praised for her "attention to orchestral colors" (OperaWire) and ability to create "lightning changes in tempo, meter, and effect" (Boston Musical Intelligencer), Colombian-American Lina González-Granados has distinguished herself nationally and internationally as a talented young conductor of symphonic and operatic repertoire. Her spirited interpretations of the orchestral repertoire, as well as her dedication to highlighting new and unknown works by Latin-American composers, have earned her international recognition, most recently as the recipient of the 2021 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, the Third Prize and ECHO Special Award (European Concert Hall Organization) of La Maestra Competition and the 2020 and 2021 Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award. She is the Resident Conductor of LA Opera, a position she will hold through June 2025.

Ms. González-Granados was the winner of the Fourth Chicago Symphony Orchestra Sir Georg Solti International Conducting Competition, and became the new Solti Conducting Apprentice under the guidance of Maestro Riccardo Muti, beginning in 2020 and continuing through June 2022. She has held positions as Conducting Fellow of The Philadelphia Orchestra and Seattle Symphony.

Ms. González-Granados’ 2021-22 season highlights included returns to the New York Philharmonic and Rochester Philharmonic, as well as debuts with the National Symphony (USA), Gulbenkian Orchestra, Spanish National Orchestra, Barcelona Symphony, Nürnberger Symphoniker, Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini, Kristiansand Symphony, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Polish National Radio Symphony, Orquesta del Principado de Asturias, Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León and Tenerife Symphony. She also led a production of The Barber of Seville at the Dallas Opera.

Ms. González-Granados’ recent appearances include performances with the New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, Rhode Island Philharmonic, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Colombia and Filarmónica de Medellín. She has had the opportunity to work with world- renowned artists such as Yefim Bronfman, Pinchas Zukerman, Giancarlo Guerrero, Zubin Mehta, Marin Alsop and Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Ms. González-Granados is an active and fervent proponent for the inclusion and development of new works for chamber and large orchestra, especially music from Latin-American composers. She is the Artistic Director of Unitas Ensemble, a chamber orchestra she founded that performs the works of Latinx composers, and provides access to free community performances for underserved communities. Her work with Unitas has earned her numerous community awards, most recently a Spark Boston award from the City of Boston. She has also commissioned multiple World, North American and American premieres, as well as the creation and release of the Unitas Ensemble album Estaciones, recorded alongside the Latin Grammy Award-winning Cuarteto Latinoamericano. 

Born and raised in Cali, Colombia, Ms. González-Granados made her conducting debut in 2008 with the Youth Orchestra of Bellas Artes in Cali. She holds a master’s degree in conducting with Charles Peltz, a graduate diploma in choral conducting from New England Conservatory with Erica Washburn and a doctor of musical arts in orchestral conducting from Boston University. Her principal mentors include Marin Alsop, Bernard Haitink, Bramwell Tovey and Yannick Nézet- Séguin.