About this Artist

Graduated with special honors as an orchestral and opera conductor from the Vienna Conservatory in Austria, JUAN FELIPE MOLANO has led for over 20 years a vibrant teaching and performing career conducting top orchestras throughout Europe, the United States, Asia, and South and Central America, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Slovak Radio Symphony, Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela/Take a Stand Festival, Youth Orchestra of Americas, Monterey Symphony Orchestra, the Nuevo León University Symphony, the Jove Orquestra de la Generalitat Valenciana, the Bogota Philharmonic, the National Symphony of Colombia, the Via dei Concerti Orchestra, the Medellin Philharmonic, Wolfgang Sinfonietta Singapore, among many others.

He was appointed in 2014 as the conductor for Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) after an international search and auditions by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and in 2016 as Conductor of the Claremont Young Musicians Orchestra.

In 2017 Molano received two important awards, the Colombian Foreign Affairs Ministry and the TV station RCN gave him an award in Washington DC as one of the more prominent and outstanding Colombians in the United States, and the same year the Medellin City Council in Colombia granted him the Juan del Corral Order to recognize his vast artistic career.

He served five years as Music and Artistic Director of the Yucatan Symphony Orchestra, conducting an eclectic symphonic repertoire from early music to contemporary works and a list of opera productions including Rigoletto, Madame Butterfly, L’Elisir d’Amore, and Bastien und Bastienne, since which time the YSO has been considered one of the top Mexican orchestras.

He has collaborated with artists such as Plácido Domingo, Gustavo Dudamel, Ilya Gringolts, Min Lee, Cuarteto Latinoamericano, Chris Martin, Eric Aubier, Joseph De Pasquale, Ryu Goto, and many others. Among his professors and mentors Molano has worked with Georg Mark, Reinhard Schwarz, Kurt Mazur, Arnaldo Garcia, and others.

During five years Molano held the position of National Director of Orchestras at the Batuta Colombia System of Youth Orchestras (El Sistema – Colombia), leading their top orchestras throughout Colombia as well as in different international tours. He has been also the conductor of the National Take a Stand Festival Orchestras 2016, the Colombian Youth Philharmonic, Wolfgang Sinfonietta in Singapore,  El Sistema Salinas, El Sistema San Rafael in California and during three years Resident Conductor of the American Youth Symphony.

He has participated in several international conferences, workshops, and seminars as a speaker, including a TEDx talk in 2018, the International Teaching Artist Conference (Norway), the 2016 International Community Orchestras Forum (Korea), the National Conference for Youth Orchestras (Argentina), the Take a Stand International Symposium 2012/2014/2015/2017 (Los Angeles, California), YOA Leaders International Seminar (online streaming), the Batuta Teachers training program (Colombia), and many others.

Molano, who has a deep passion for education, has taught as Professor at different universities in Mexico, the U.S. and Colombia, and is committed to inspiring orchestras and enriching audiences from the podium. Molano lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two daughters. Upcoming season highlights include concerts as a guest conductor in the U.S., Singapore and Colombia, as well as conferences and workshops in Spain, Colombia and the US.