The Tucson Symphony Orchestra will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2028-29 with José Luis Gomez at the podium.
This week, Gomez signed his third contract extension since becoming the orchestra’s music director in 2016. The four-year contract keeps him here through the 2029-30 season.
“I knew that whatever other events around my career are happening, I wanted to continue my commitment to the Tucson Symphony for this important (milestone) and I want to be a part of it,” said Gomez, who has a robust international career as a guest conductor. “So this is exciting.”
Tucson Symphony Orchestra Music Director José Luis Gomez will be with the symphony through its 100th anniversary after extending his contract through the 2029-30 season.
TSO President and CEO Paul Meecham said, “From the first time I heard José Luis Gomez conduct the Tucson Symphony, I realized how special this relationship is between our maestro, the TSO musicians and audiences. José Luis’s dedication to the orchestra and to the community is unwavering. We are thrilled that he will be at the artistic helm to help the TSO celebrate its centennial during the 2028-29 season.”
Gomez began his tenure in fall 2017, succeeding George Hanson, who led the orchestra for 19 years. Hanson is the orchestra’s longest tenured music director in its 97-year history.
Gomez, the orchestra’s first-ever Spanish-speaking music director, introduced himself his first season with a concert at the Día de los Muertos parade downtown before an audience that symphony officials estimated at 150,000.
The orchestra on Nov. 1 will continue its Día de los Muertos tradition with a special concert featuring Mariachi Aztlan de Pueblo High School and Folklorico Los Guerreros de Pueblo High School at Linda Ronstadt Music Hall, 260 S. Church Ave.
For the past four years, the orchestra has collaborated with the Mexican Consulate of Tucson for the annual Mexican Independence Day concert, one of several community collaborations Gomez initiated including inviting Tucson indie bands Orkesta Mendoza and Calexico to perform with the orchestra and the annual ¡Celebración latina! series showcasing Hispanic and Latin American music.
Meecham said those programs have helped the orchestra incrementally grow its audiences, particularly when it comes to younger people and Hispanics. Gomez on average each season has programmed 25 works by composers of color and women.
Tucson Symphony Orchestra extended Music Director José Luis Gomez's contract through the 2029-30 season.
“I think as the audience has built trust in the fact that we’re ... actually committed to programming for the entire community, I think we’ll continue to see growth in the diversification of the audience, as well,” Meecham said.
Under Gomez, the TSO regularly collaborates with the Tucson International Mariachi Conference and the University of Arizona School of Dance. For the past several years, the orchestra has collaborated with Ballet Tucson to mount the holiday classic “The Nutcracker.” They will have five performances at Linda Ronstadt Music Hall, 260 S Church Ave., between Dec. 19-21.
Since taking the helm, Gomez has appointed 31 new musicians to the orchestra’s 78-person roster, including hires last month in the concertmaster and associate concertmaster positions.
