(Credit: Gisela Schenker)

Conductor David Afkham will extend his contract with the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España.

The decision was made by the General Director of the Instituto Nacional de las Artes Escénicas y de la Música. Afkham will now be the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor through 2026. Afkham’s original contract was originally set to end on August 31, 2024, but with this renewal, the conductor hopes to make more recordings as well create an audiovisual platform.

The conductor has led the orchestra as Chief Conductor since 2019 and was Principal Conductor of the orchestra starting in 2014. He

At the time of his hiring as Principal Conductor, trumpet player Manolo Blanco told El País that Afkham “ emanates music; he doesn’t waste time with any nonsense… His technique is exquisite and his musical training great. He is a tremendous perfectionist who goes over every last detail; he consults with the musicians; he teaches but he is also learning at the same time, he’s like a sponge. It’s like having hired Bernstein or Karajan at the age of 30. Except I doubt even they were so knowledgeable at his age.”

has also conducted at the Theater an der Wien, Staatsoper Stuttgaart, the Teatro Real, and Dresden Philharmonic.