Trumpeter Esteban Batallán Returns to the Chicago Symphony

After serving just one year at the Philadelphia Orchestra, Batallán will once again be Principal Trumpet in Chicago, and will make his solo debut with the orchestra

The Spanish trumpeter Esteban Batallán has returned to his post as Principal Trumpet of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), following a one-year period where he served as Principal Trumpet of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Batallán's move to Philadelphia in 2024 was much heralded, with the orchestra's Music Director describing it as an "historic appointment" that would have a "generational impact on the sound of the orchestra." However, Batallán was open about his indecision as to whether the move would be a long-term one.

"I hope it’s going to be a great experience and I hope the members of the Philadelphia Orchestra and everybody involved is as excited as I am," he told the Philadelphia Inquirer in August 2024. "Let’s see what the future brings to us. Maybe we create a beautiful partnership and I stay for decades — who knows?"

But it has recently been announced that he will return to the CSO, effective from the beginning of the 2025/26 season. He will also make several appearances at major subscription concerts in the current season, as well as appear with the orchestra on its European tour in April and May.

Batallán will also make his CSO solo debut in June, playing concerti by Telemann and Michael Haydn under the baton of Riccardo Muti.

Previously, he served as principal trumpet of the Hong Kong Philharmonic during the 2018–19 season and of the Granada City Orchestra from 2002 to 2018.

Batallán has also appeared as a concerto soloist with the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Granada City Orchestra, Spanish Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic of Galicia, Gstaad Festival Orchestra, Geneva Camerata, Symphony Orchestra of India, and the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra.