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.

Pacho Flores was awarded first prize in the “Maurice André” International Contest, the most renowned trumpet Contest in the world, as well as first prize in the “Philip Jones” International Contest and first prize in the “Cittá di Porcia” International contest. Trained in the marvelous Orchestra System for Youth and Children in Venezuela, he received top recognition for his performances, recitals, and recordings as a soloist. 

Capable of managing classical or popular styles indistinctively, Flores adds to his captivating interpretations a great deal of energy tinged with the most beautiful instrumental colors. Acting as soloist, he has performed with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Kiev, Camerata from St. Petesbourg, Orchestral Ensemble from Paris, Orchestre de la Garde Républicaine, NHK Orchestra from Japan, Symphony Orchestra of Tokio, Philharmonic Orchestra of Osaka, Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra from Venezuela, Symphony Orchestra of Dusseldorf, and the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra amongst many others. He has also given recitals in concert halls such as the Carnegie Hall in New York, Pleyel Hall in Paris, and the Opera City in Tokio.

Serving as one of the founding members of the Simón Bolívar Brass Quintet, he has taken part in numerous tours around Europe, South America, United States, and Japan. Experienced orchestral musician, Flores has held the Leading Trumpet position in the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, Saito Kinen Orchestra from Japan, and the Symphony Orchestra of Miami, under the musical direction of maestros like Claudio Abbado, Sir Simon Rattle, Seiji Ozawa, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Rafael Frübeck of Burgos, Eduardo Marturet, and Gustavo Dudamel including many others.

As founding director of the Latin-American Trumpet Academy in Venezuela, he fosters a promising generation of young talents. Flores is extremely keen on promoting Contemporary Music and does so providing important contributions by means of the performance and interpretation of his instrument. His repertoire includes commissions and premieres of works by composers such as Roger Boutry, Efraín Oscher, Giancarlo Castro, Santiago Báez, Juan Carlos Nuñez, and Sergio Bernal.

Recently he has carried out an important concert tour across Norway and Austria with the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Maestro and Composer Christian Lindberg, interpreting his concert “Akbank Bunka”, a piece for Trumpet and Orchestra, making his debut at the Fiestpielhaus of Salzburg, and at the Musikverein of Viena. His first album “La Trompeta venezolana” was released by the record label Guataca Producciones.

Artist from the Stomvi family, he plays instruments that have been exclusively manufactured for him by this renowned firm and is actively involved in the developments and innovations of his instruments. Pacho Flores is a Deutsche Grammophon exclusive artist with already three recordings, Cantar with Konzerthaus Orchester Berlin and Christian Vásquez; Entropía, Gold Medal of the Global Music Awards; Fractales with Arctic Philharmonic and Christian Lindberg; the double CD-DVD Cantos y Revueltas with Real Filharmonía de Galicia and Manuel Hernández-Silva; and Estirpe with Orquesta Sinfónica de Minería y Carlos Miguel Prieto, nominated and awarded at the Latin GRAMMYS.