2026 - 2027 Season

October 2026

October 16

Conductor-in-Residence
Washington University Symphony Orchestra

Nina Ferrigno, piano

Music by Verdi, Britten, Grieg, and Bayolo

E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall, 560 Music Center
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

October 24

Guest Conductor & Composer
Florida International University Symphony Orchestra

Jason Calloway, violoncello

Florida Premiere: YOAminicana for Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino

Music by Smetana, Darwin Aquino, and Fredrick Kaufman

Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Concert Hall
Miami, Florida, USA

November 2026

November 1

Guest Composer & Conductor
St. Louis Women’s Chorale

World Premiere: La Ciguapa for SSAA Chorus and Chamber Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino
COCA
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

November 22

Conductor-in-Residence
Washington University Symphony Orchestra

Film, Animation & Video Game Music Concert
E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall, 560 Music Center
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

December 2026

December 2

Music Director
Música Sacra Concert Series

Orquesta Sinfónica InArt

William Cruz, French horn
Paola González, soprano
Enmanuel Victoria, tenor

Music by Verdi, Puccini, Morricone, Saint-Saëns, Mozart, and Dominican composers
National Cathedral

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

January 2027

January 3 & 8

Commissioned Composer
Visionary Soundscapes — Inspired by Pablo Picasso’s Guernica

Lux Nova Duo
Jorge Verástegui Paz, guitar
Lydia Schmidl, accordion

Ensemble 404
Fabián Panisello, conductor

World Premiere: Imaginación Folklórica for Guitar, Piano Accordion, and Chamber Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino

January 3 — Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Kleiner Saal
Hamburg, Germany

January 8 — Sendesaal Bremen
Bremen, Germany

February 2027

February 12–13

Guest Conductor
St. Louis Ballet Orchestra

Yin Xiong, violoncello

Music by Joseph Haydn and Sufjan Stevens, orchestrated by Michael Atkinson
Touhill Performing Arts Center

St. Louis, Missouri, USA

February 28

Conductor-in-Residence & Guest Composer
Washington University Symphony Orchestra

Benedetta Orsi, mezzo-soprano
Thomas Jöstlein, French horn

World Premiere: Canciones de Amor for Mezzo-Soprano, French Horn, and Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino

E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall, 560 Music Center
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

March 2027

March 9

Guest Conductor
Orquesta Filarmónica de Santo Domingo

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral”

Sala Carlos Piantini, Teatro Nacional Eduardo Brito
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

March 14

Commissioned Composer & Guest Lecturer
Cornell University Symphony Orchestra

Gabriela Gómez Estévez, conductor

World Premiere: En Un Instante for Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York, USA

March 20

Guest Composer
Community Music School, Webster University

World Premiere: Explosion for Viola, by Darwin Aquino

Community Music School Concert Hall
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

April 2027

April 1–5

Guest Composer
Cornell University Symphony Orchestra

Gabriela Gómez Estévez, conductor

Latin American Premiere: En Un Instante for Orchestra, by Darwin Aquino

Performances in Santo Domingo and Santiago
Dominican Republic

April 25

Conductor-in-Residence
Washington University Symphony Orchestra

Concert with the WashU Choirs and Concerto Competition Winner

Music by Liova Bueno

E. Desmond Lee Concert Hall, 560 Music Center
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

April - June 2027

Head of Music
Opera Theater of Saint Louis 2027 Festival Season:

A Little Night Music
La Traviata
Cenerentola
Safe Haven
Center Stage

April 26, 2027 – June 28, 2027
Loretto Hilton Performing Arts Center
St. Louis, Missouri, USA

July 2027

July
Commissioned Composer
Ensemblast

Luis Casal, violin
Isaac Casal, violoncello
Ricardo Zúñiga, double bass
Alejandra Sáez, piano

World Premiere & Recording: Fantastic Flux for Violin, Violoncello, Double Bass, and Piano, by Darwin Aquino

Alfredo de Saint Malo Festival
Panama

Professional Projects

October–November 2026

Music Editor — Creative Project with Schott Music

Safe Haven
Opera by Tobias Picker and Aryeh Lev Stollman

Editing of the piano-vocal score in preparation for the opera’s world premiere.

World Premiere: Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, 2027 Festival Season

November–December 2026

Member — New Works Collective
Opera Theatre of Saint Louis

Jury member for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis’s New Works Collective 2028, contributing to the selection of new operatic works for development and presentation.

Selected works will receive their world premieres during the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis 2028 Festival Season.