Yoel Gamzou will be the new music director of the Polish National Opera.
Yoel Gamzou will assume the position of Music Director of the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera for a four-year term , beginning with the 2026/27 season . The young conductor succeeds Patrick Fournillier , who has led the orchestra since the 2020/21 season. In his work, Yoel Gamzou expands the boundaries of traditional musical performance with passionate intensity and a unique artistic vision . His personal interpretations, his interest in new music , and his commitment to connecting with new audiences make him a representative of a new generation of conductors .
His first guest appearance at the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera was in January 2026 , when he conducted a symphony concert featuring works by Beethoven , Strauss , and Prokofiev . "Perhaps this is what Warsaw needs today: someone young, vibrant, with an original musical vision that he can realize," wrote a critic from Gazeta Wyborcza after the concert.
Gamzou has also established himself in the Opernwelt . From 2017 to 2022, he was General Music Director at the Theater Bremen . In 2022, he conducted Die tote Stadt at the Vienna State Opera . This led to regular appearances in Vienna as well as at major European opera houses such as the Hamburg State Opera and the Bavarian State Opera , where he is a frequent guest conductor. His upcoming season's opera productions include Fidelio , Der Freischütz , Cavalleria rusticana , and Pagliacci .
“ Opera makes you a better symphonist . You learn your technique in opera, where the orchestra has to be flexible and attuned to the singer at every moment. For me, every melody is a voice. Even in symphonic music, everything, be it the cello or the violin, is just an imitation of the human voice. The more I work in opera, the better I am at giving shape to symphonic music,” the artist said in an interview for Orfeo . “Opera needs new forms and the courage to experiment . No art form can survive if it only repeats the past. It has to open up new paths,” he added.
