• Luis David Aguilar

    Luis is an innovative and dynamic conductor from “El Sistema” Venezuela. Currently, he holds the position of Interim Conductor of the Leaders Youth Symphony Orchestra at Miami Music Project and is a regular guest conductor of the Venezuelans United by Music (VUM) Orchestra.

    In recent years, Aguilar held the positions of assistant conductor of the Miami Symphony Orchestra and the Florida International University Symphony Orchestra, and conducted the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, the National Youth Orchestra of the RNOCIJP (Panama), the Teresa Carreño Symphony Orchestra, the Simón Bolívar Choir, the Teresa Carreño Ballet, the VUM Orchestra, and the inaugural concert of the novel Miami Ocean Orchestra.

    Luis’s first conducting mentor was El Sistema’s founder, Maestro José Antonio Abreu. Afterward, Aguilar continued the journey with professors Teresa Hernández and Dick van Gasteren. Then, he earned a Master's Degree in Orchestral Conducting from Florida International University under the guidance of Dr. Javier Mendoza.

    Luis was a selected finalist in the 2021 Los Angeles Conducting Workshop and Competition with Maestro Neil Thomson and Dr. Scott Weiss and is the recipient of the 2020 Graduate Performance Award from Florida International University. Additionally, he participated in the 28th World Music Competition (2021) and was selected to participate in the 2021 Antal Dorati International Conducting Competition in Hungary, and the 2022 Nino Rota International Conducting Competition in Italy. Moreover, he is a member of two honor societies, the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi and the Golden Key International Honour Society.

    Aguilar held the position of Principal Viola of the celebrated Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela (SBSOV) from 2006 to 2012. This position allowed him to perform in multiple concerts and recordings with conductors and soloists such as Gustavo Dudamel, Claudio Abbado, Simon Rattle, Daniel Barenboim, Martha Argerich, Juan Diego Florez, Luciano Pavarotti, Yuja Wang, Itzhak Perlman, and Pinchas Zukerman, at some of the most iconic venues around the globe such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, the Carnegie Hall in New York, the Symphony Center in Chicago, the Berliner Philharmonie in Berlin, the Musikverein in Vienna, and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.

    As a member of the SBSOV, Luis was awarded a Latin Grammy for “Bidimensional” (Producciones Guaqueros, 2017) and was nominated for “Fiesta” (Deutsche Grammophon, 2008); performed as principal viola in two albums: “The Rite of Spring” with conductor Gustavo Dudamel (Deutsche Grammophon, 2010), and “Claudio Abbado – Easter 2010 at Lucerne Festival” with conductor Claudio Abbado (Accentus Music, 2011); and participated in side-by-side concerts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Goteborg Symphony.

    Aguilar continuously supports El Sistema-inspired initiatives around the world. Just to name a few, at this time he is actively involved with Miami Music Project (Miami), has been a guest clinician and conductor to three ensembles at Sistema Ravinia (Ravinia Festival, Chicago), the conductor of the Young Mozarts String Orchestra, the Concert Chamber Ensemble, and the Symphony Quartet at Greater Miami Youth Symphony (Miami), and has led masterclasses at Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA, Los Angeles), Big Noise (Scotland), Batuta (Colombia), Música para Crecer (CAF Latin America), NEOJIBA (Brazil), and Superar (Austria).