James Gaffigan bids farewell as principal conductor of the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana in the ensemble's first international performance in eleven years

• The OCV has participated in the George Enescu Festival in Romania, one of the most prestigious gatherings of major orchestras in the world.
• With two concerts featuring tenor Benjamin Bernheim in Bucharest and Timișoara and an opera performance at the Romanian National Opera

Valencia (1.9.25). James Gaffigan bid farewell to his position as principal conductor of the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana this past weekend at the George Enescu Festival in Romania, in what was the orchestra's first international performance in eleven years.

Founded in 1958, the George Enescu Festival invites the best orchestras on the international circuit each year, and this year's edition includes the resident orchestra of Les Arts, which has shared the stage with groups such as the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, the Staatskapelle of Dresden, the Orchestre National de France, the Royal Philharmonic of London, and the Tonhalle of Zurich.

From August 29 to 31, the American conductor and the resident orchestra of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía have performed a true 'tour de force' with an opera performance and two symphonic concerts alongside the highly sought-after French tenor Benjamin Bernheim, which coincided with the last three days of the New York maestro's contract.

The OCV's debut in Bucharest took place this past Friday the 29th at the Romanian National Opera for a single performance of Ravel's musical comedy 'L'heure espagnole', with a cast made up of some of the singers who successfully performed this work at Les Arts last April: Iván Ayón Rivas, Mikeldi Atxalandabaso, Armando Noguera and Manuel Fuentes.

Following its acclaimed debut as a pit orchestra, the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana has reaffirmed its credentials as a symphonic ensemble with concerts at the Radio Hall in the Romanian capital on Saturday the 30th, and at the Capitol Hall in the city of Timișoara this past Sunday.

For its two most recent concerts, James Gaffigan has chosen an ambitious program to showcase the orchestra's versatility and quality. Featuring one of its favorite composers, Richard Strauss, and the monumental symphonic poem for large orchestra 'Don Juan' as an introduction, the OCV has also demonstrated its proficiency in the operatic repertoire.

With the voice of tenor Benjamin Bernheim, one of the great stars of French opera, the group has tackled the song cycles 'Poème de l'amour et de la mer' by Ernest Chausson and 'Les nuits d'été' by Hector Berlioz, along with the orchestral version of 'Alborada del gracioso de Miroirs' by Ravel.

James Gaffigan will return to Les Arts in April 2026 to conduct Strauss's 'Salome', one of the highlights of the twentieth season, in a production by Damiano Michieletto with soprano Vida Miknevičiūtė and bass-baritone Nicholas Brownlee in the leading roles.