By Laurie Niles: Finnish conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, 65, announced on Thursday that he will step down as music director of the San Francisco Symphony when his contract expires at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season. The announcement came at the same time as the symphony announced its plans for next season - now Salonen's "final season." ![Esa Pekka Salonen]()
Conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen. Photo by Drew Altizer.
"I have decided not to continue as music director of the San Francisco Symphony because I do not share the same goals for the future of the institution as the Board of Governors does," he said in a statement. "I am sincerely looking forward to the many exciting programs we have planned for my final season as music director, and am proud to continue working with the world-class musicians of the San Francisco Symphony."
Salonen took the post as music director of the San Francisco Symphony in 2020 - at the height of the COVID-19 lockdown. He succeeded Michael Tilson Thomas, who had directed the orchestra for 25 years. Following the conclusion of his tenure as music director, Salonen will maintain an ongoing partnership with the San Francisco Symphony through regular guest conducting appearances and collaborations.
"Over his time as Music Director, Esa-Pekka has brought with him a palpable spirit of collaboration and adventure to the San Francisco Symphony that has inspired our musicians, staff, board, and audiences to think more expansively about the possibilities of the orchestral experience," said San Francisco Symphony CEO Matthew Spivey in a statement. "As the San Francisco Symphony weathered the COVID-19 pandemic and re-emerged into live performances, Esa-Pekka took on this role with a sense of possibility, forging a creative path forward with innovative digital projects, distinct concert experiences, and countless fruitful partnerships with artists across a wide spectrum of disciplines. His work with the Orchestra has made a lasting impact on this organization..."
Spivey told the San Francisco Chronicle that the organization's plans for dealing with financial constraints likely influenced Salonen's decision. "Esa-Pekka was announced as music director in 2018, he said. "The San Francisco Symphony is in a very different place now than it was at that point in time. There are significant financial pressures on the organization, and they have become impossible to ignore."
Salonen will conduct 12 programs with the San Francisco Symphony during the 202425 season, which will feature five world premieres of San Francisco Symphony-commissioned works by composers John Adams, Nico Muhly, Xavier Muzik, Gabriella Smith, and Anna Thorvaldsdottir. His final concerts as music director, scheduled for June 1214, 2025, will feature Salonen conducting the San Francisco Symphony and Chorus in Mahlers Symphony No. 2.
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Conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen. Photo by Drew Altizer.
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