About Carlos
“Ágreda looks every inch a conductor. His technique is admirably economical, with the left hand kept out of the way whenever it is not needed for expressive molding of phrases, and displaying also an ample supply of charisma he created the feeling that this could well be a major career in the making.”
—Seen and Heard International
Carlos Ágreda is a Colombian conductor whose rising international career has earned acclaim across important stages in the United States, Europe, and Latin America. Recognized for his expressive musicality and compelling leadership both on and off the podium, Ágreda was named a Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for the 2023/24 season and Associate Conductor of Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra of the USA.
Carlos has led his country's foremost orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia, the Bogotá Philharmonic, the Medellín Philharmonic, and the Colombian Youth Philharmonic, with highlights such as acclaimed performances at Germany’s Rheingau Musik Festival. He has also appeared with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, BBC Philharmonic, Opera Philadelphia, Manchester Camerata, Curtis Opera Theatre, Teatro Municipal de Lima, and Teatro Colón in Bogotá, among others. He has collaborated with leading conductors including Gustavo Dudamel, Juanjo Mena, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Zubin Mehta, Sir Andrew Davis, Simone Young, Michael Tilson Thomas, Cristian Măcelaru, and Leonard Slatkin. Upcoming engagements include debuts with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Concepción (Chile).
A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Ágreda also holds a master’s degree in conducting from the Royal Northern College of Music (UK). At just 22, he advanced to the third round of the Cadaqués International Conducting Competition, and in 2022 received a prize at the International Conducting Competition Rotterdam, conducting the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Orchestra of the 18th Century.
Ágreda’s repertoire spans from 18th- to 20th-century symphonic works to opera, choral music, and a broad range of contemporary, electronic music and improvisation, and the music of the Americas. A committed advocate for new music, he is also an award-winning composer and arranger, and has conducted more than fifty world premieres. He has been featured at leading contemporary music festivals, including the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music.
His unique background and perspectives leads Carlos Ágreda to be very passionate about musical versatility in general and an enthusiast for the celebration of the diversity of symphonic music. It would not be surprising to find Carlos occasionally playing piano with salsa and tango bands, or collaborating with folkloric groups as an arranger in celebration of his passion for bridging musical languages. Allowing his understanding and experience from all these activities to influence each other, Carlos epitomises the 21st century musician.
Carlos Ágreda has been featured in national and international media: Forbes Life Latam, La Voz de América (USA), The Violin Channel, Revista Semana, Caracol Radio and La W Radio Colombia, and recently in “Los Informantes” (Colombian adaptation of “60-minutes”) in Caracol Televisión. In 2021 Carlos was included on the list of Colombia’s “50 Most Creative People” by Forbes Magazine.
His commitment to education had allowed him to lead different collaborations with "El Sistema-inspired" projects such as Play On Philly (Philadelphia, USA), Sinfonía por el Perú, and youth orchestras such as the Filarmónica Joven de Colombia, the Empire State Youth Orchestra (NY, USA), the Stockport Youth Orchestra (UK), Orquesta Filarmónica Juvenil de Bogotá, and more!