The London Philharmonic Orchestra has announced that Karina Canellakis will be its new Principal Guest Conductor starting this September 2020.

The American conductor is set to lead the ensemble in four concerts including several with music by Beethoven. Canellakis is the Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic and Principal Guest Conductor of the Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, made her company debut in October 2018 and has been a rising star in the world of classical music since winning the Georg Solti Conducting Award in 2016.

She started her career as a violinist and performed with the Berlin Philharmonic as part of the company’s Orchester-Akademie. She also worked regularly with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Bergen Philharmonic. Then she shifted to conducting in 2013 and made her European debut in 2015.

“I am honored and excited to become the new Principal Guest Conductor of the LPO, an Orchestra which both impressed me and captured my heart during our first rehearsals together,” Canellakis said in a press release. “Together we are going to explore all kinds of different repertoire, looking through a fresh lens at the most beloved works of Beethoven and Brahms, plunging into the intense world of Shostakovich, as well as venturing into lesser known territory with works such as Brett Dean’s ‘Komarov’s Fall.’ I cannot wait to see the members of the orchestra again, to hear their virtuosic and soulful playing, and to make thrilling music together.”