Spain's Orquesta de Extremadura Appoints New Chief Conductor and Artistic Director

Spanish conductor Roberto Forés Veses will step into the role

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the regional government of Extremadura, Spain, has announced that Roberto Forés Veses has been appointed as the new Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta de Extremadura (OEX). He succeeds Andrés Salado, who will stand down in August 2025 having been in the role for four seasons.

Forés Veses returns home to take up the position, having first conducted the OEX in 2014. Since that time, he has made frequent guest conducting appearances with the group, most recently in 2023.

Born in Valencia, Forés Veses won the Evgeny Svetlanov Conducting Competition and the Luigi Mancinelli International Opera Conductors' Competition. From 2011 until 2021, he was Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Orchestre National d’Auvergne — one of the finest chamber orchestras in France.

At the beginning of the 2024/25 season, Forés Veses began a new three-year term as Principal Guest Conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra.

He has recently made debut appearances at the Opernhaus Zurich, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, Orquesta de Castilla y Leon, Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla, Orchestre national de Pays de la Loire, Osaka Philharmonic, Nagoya Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano, Israel Chamber Orchestra, and Malaysian Philharmonic.

"The Orquesta de Extremadura has been close to my heart since I first conducted them, and discovered a 'hidden gem' of an orchestra, with a high standard and a community of musicians who cherish the joy of making music, and its important place in the region of Extremadura," Forés Veses said. "I am proud and honored to become Artistic Director and to begin this collaboration with my new musical family!"