Known for his charisma and expressive interpretations, Mexican conductor and GRAMMY-winner Carlos Miguel Prieto has established himself not just as a major figure in the orchestra world but also as an influential cultural leader, an educator, and a champion of new music.

In a significant career development, he started his tenure as music director of the North Carolina Symphony at the beginning of the 2023–24 season. From 2007 to 2022, Prieto was the music director of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de México, the country’s leading ensemble, and significantly raised the caliber of the orchestra. He was also music director of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra from 2006 to 2023, where he helped lead the cultural renewal of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

In 2008, he was appointed music director of Sinfónica de Minería, which he led to a Latin GRAMMY-nomination for Best Classical Music Album. In 2023, Prieto led Minería in a highly successful tour of the United States, and in 2024 they return to perform in residence at Bravo! Vail Music Festival.

Recent highlights include engagements with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, NDR Elbphilharmonie, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, the Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, the Spanish National Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Strasbourg Philharmonic, and Auckland Philharmonia.

Prieto is in demand as a guest conductor with many of the top North American orchestras, including Cleveland, Dallas, Toronto, Minnesota, Washington, New World, and Houston. He has enjoyed a particularly successful relationship with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the North Carolina Symphony.

In 2023, Prieto made his hugely successful BBC Proms debut at Royal Albert Hall. Since 2002, alongside Gustavo Dudamel, Prieto has conducted the Orchestra of the Americas, which draws young musicians from the entire American continent. A staunch proponent of music education, Prieto served as Principal Conductor of the YOA from its inception until 2011 when he was appointed music director. In 2018 he conducted the orchestra on a tour of European summer festivals, which included performances at the Rheingau and Edinburgh festivals as well as Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. He has also worked regularly with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and the NYO2 in New York.

Prieto is renowned for championing Latin American music as well as his dedication to new music. He has conducted over 100 world premieres of works by Mexican and American composers, many of which were commissioned by him. Prieto places equal importance on championing works by Black and African American composers such as Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, and Courtney Bryan, among others.

Prieto has an extensive discography that includes Deutsche Gramophone, Naxos, and Sony labels. Prieto was recognized by Musical America as the 2019 Conductor of the Year. A graduate of Princeton and Harvard universities, Prieto studied conducting with Jorge Mester, Enrique Diemecke, Charles Bruck, and Michael Jinbo.

Justin Bruns joined the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as assistant concertmaster in 2006 and was appointed associate concertmaster this past fall after winning a national audition for the position. In the summer he serves as concertmaster of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music.

Before moving to Atlanta, Bruns was assistant concertmaster of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and served as concertmaster of the Boulder Bach Festival. He has also played with the Houston and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras, and toured Germany with the American Sinfonietta. He has spent summers at the Aspen Music Festival, Beijing Music Festival, Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Lakes Area Music Festival, Music in the Mountains Festival and Conservatory in Durango, CO, and Bellingham Music Festival. He has been a guest concertmaster with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, IRIS Chamber Orchestra, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, Louisville Orchestra and São Paulo Symphony (OSESP).

Actively involved in teaching and bringing music to young audiences, he maintains a private teaching studio and regularly gives master classes, orchestral excerpt courses and chamber music coachings. Through programs of the ASO, he has taught and mentored students in the Talent Development Program, coaches sections of the Atlanta Youth Symphony Orchestra, and strives to build relationships with schools and other civic organizations through Community Engagement and Outreach. He served as a teaching assistant at Rice University and participated in the founding and organization of its outreach program. He regularly appeared with Chamber Music Ann Arbor’s outreach program and throughout Colorado with Up Close and Musical. He has served as director of chamber music at Kennesaw State University.

As a chamber musician, Bruns has performed throughout the United States and England. He has appeared on the Faculty Tuesdays Series at the University of Colorado, with the String in the Mountains Music Festival and Michigan Chamber Players. He has also performed cycles of the Brahms, Beethoven and late Mozart sonatas. In the Atlanta area, he has performed with Georgian Chamber Players, Sonic Generator, Bent Frequency, KSU Faculty Chamber Music, ASO Chamber Music Concerts and the North Georgia Music Festival. While he was first violinist of Atlanta Chamber Players, he appeared at the San Miguel de Allende Chamber Music Festival and made his chamber music debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall.

Violinist Justin Bruns began his studies at age three and won his first competition two years later. He made his solo debut with an orchestra at age nine. Since then, he has appeared with numerous orchestras throughout the US, South America, and the UK. Bruns graduated summa cum laude from the University of Michigan and was awarded the top prize upon graduation, the Stanley Medal. He received his master’s degree from Rice University. Performance highlights of this year are a series of Vivaldi's Four Seasons with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, performances in Lima, Peru, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Denver, and at the Lake Tahoe Music Festival.

Venezuelan-American violist Adriana Linares is one of today's most talented artists. She has an active career as a chamber musician, conductor, teacher, mentor, and entrepreneur.

Her playing has been called "meltingly beautiful" by Naxos label reviewers, her performances and recordings have received international acclaim in Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Canada and the USA. She was described by Grammy Award-winning violist Roger Tapping as "an artist of extraordinary merit and ability who is not only excellent but also distinctive, characterful and individual."

Ms. Linares is the founding President, and Artistic Director of The Arts & Community Network (ArCoNet), a nonprofit organization founded in 2012 based in North Wales, PA. Under the umbrella of ArCoNet, Ms. Linares has launched innovating music programs including a string academy with 120 students, a youth and chamber orchestra, intensive solo boot camp retreats, the Dalí Quartet International Music Festival, college preparatory courses, community outreach partnerships and collaborative projects. Ms. Linares has mentored hundreds of students with successful careers in the music field, as performers, educators and arts administrators.

Ms. Linares is also the founding violist of the award winning Dalí Quartet, with whom she has embarked on recording, performing and educational projects in the US and abroad. She currently serves on the faculty at West Chester University of PA, as part of the Dalí Quartet residency. She regularly performs as principal and assistant principal viola with the Iris Collective, and the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Linares was recently appointed to be in the board of directors of Chamber Music America.

Recent performing collaborations include performances and recordings with acclaimed pianist Olga Kern, and clarinetist Ricardo Morales. Highlights of solo engagements include her debut at Carnegie Hall with the US première of Venezuelan composer Modesta Bor's Sonata, and the world première of Howard Hanson's Summer Sea Side #2, recorded under the NAXOS label.

Ms. Linares holds a Master’s Degree in Viola Performance from Temple University, where she studied with violist and Curtis Institute of Music President Roberto Diaz. She also holds a bachelor's degree from Indiana University where she studied with distinguished violist Atar Arad. In her spare time she enjoys cooking, traveling, power walks, the outdoors, and spending time with her family and friends.

A concert cellist and educator of international renown, Jesús Castro-Balbi has performed extensively across the U.S., Latin America, Europe, and Asia - including at Carnegie Hall, Sala Nezahualcóyotl, Seoul Arts Center, Shanghai Oriental Art Center, and Suntory Hall - and as a soloist with the Aarhus, Dallas, and Fort Worth symphony orchestras; the Leipzig and the Norwegian radio orchestras; and the China, Louisiana, and Mexico City philharmonic orchestras. A passionate advocate of contemporary music, he has presented 54 premiere performances and the world premiere recording of 19 works, and he is the dedicatee of 29 compositions. He taught at The Juilliard School (Pre-College Division) before developing a sought-after cello program at Texas Christian University. He has given masterclasses and has adjudicated prestigious competitions worldwide, including the Carlos Prieto and the Lutoslawski international competitions. Of Peruvian heritage, Dr. Castro-Balbi graduated from the Conservatoire National Supérieur at Lyon (France), Indiana University Bloomington, the Yale School of Music, and holds a doctor of musical arts degree from The Juilliard School. He is currently a professor of music at Kennesaw State University in metro Atlanta. Please visit www.jcbcello.com.