Lyric Opera of Chicago Extends Contract for Music Director

Italian conductor Enrique Mazzola will remain with the company until 2031, having been appointed to the position in 2021

Lyric Opera of Chicago has opted to renew the Italian conductor Enrique Mazzola through to 2031. He was first appointed to the Music Director role in September 2021.

Since that time, Mazzola has led the company in several acclaimed performances, such as David McVicar’s new production of Verdi’s Macbeth. Other productions include Christopher Alden’s take on Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman (starring Tamara Wilson and Tomasz Konieczny), and the Chicago premiere of Champion, the first opera of six-time Grammy Award-winning composer Terence Blanchard.

Born in Barcelona and raised in Italy, Mazzola is a specialist in bel canto opera, as well as French repertoire and especially early Verdi. Alongside his position in Chicago, he has been Principal Guest Conductor at Deutsche Oper Berlin since 2018.

In May 2022, Enrique was named the first-ever Conductor in Residence at the Bregenz Festival, in recognition of his close relationship with the festival since 2016. Previously, Mazzola also served as the Artistic and Music Director of the Orchestre National d’Île de France.

"I am thrilled that my partnership with Lyric Opera of Chicago will continue and develop in the years to come," Mazzola said. "Chicago has become my home, my ‘opera family’, and I am so excited about the future for the organization with its dedicated and experienced team — we’ve already achieved so much together!"

"We are working hard to broaden our reach as a Company through diverse programming and education projects, working alongside the Chicago communities, and strengthening and building upon the remarkably rich legacy of this historic House. It is my true honor to be an integral part of that."

"While it is bittersweet that this is the final season I announce before my retirement later this year, I am thrilled with the upcoming season of enduring classics and bold contemporary works that my colleagues and I have planned, and I know Lyric audiences will be delighted by our incredible casts and productions," said General Director Anthony Freud.

"I am also certain that with the continuing leadership of Music Director Enrique Mazzola, Lyric audiences and supporters are in very good hands, and that Lyric will continue to be producing consistently world-class seasons, as both a true cultural hub for all of Chicago and one of the world’s great opera companies."