The Musikkollegium Winterthur appoints Roberto González-Monjas as its new Chief Conductor starting from the 2021/22 season. 32-year-old Spanish violinist and conductor González-Monjas has been the First concertmaster of the Musikkollegium Winterthur for the last seven years, where he performed often as a soloist and as a conductor with great success.
The 32-year-old Spanish conductor and violinist Roberto González-Monjas was
appointed new Chief Conductor of the Musikkollegium Winterthur last Saturday. His
tenure will commence in the season 2021/2022, with an initial duration of four years,
succeeding current Chief Conductor Thomas Zehetmair. González-Monjas has been
first concertmaster at the Musikkollegium Winterthur since 2013/14; in this capacity
he didn’t only direct the orchestra from the violin, but also started conducting it for
larger repertoire. Highlights from the past years include the Beethoven and Mozart
Challenges – two complete recital cycles together with pianist Kit Armstrong – as well
as an outstanding recording of the Serenades by Mozart and Schoeck on CD, where
he plays the solo violin part and conducts the Musikkollegium Winterthur. Roberto
González-Monjas has not only convinced the orchestra with his remarkable musicality
and vivacity, but has also captivated an enormous amount of audience. “His energy
and passion are contagious, and so he has managed to conquer the hearts of the
Winterthur audience”, explains Samuel Roth, Director of the Musikkollegium
Winterthur. “We are very happy to have Roberto as our new Chief Conductor. He is
an incredibly talented and spirited musician who knows how to bring out the best in
our orchestra. He has a great career ahead of him,” said Samuel Roth.
Roberto González-Monjas is internationally highly sought-after and is already considered
a “shooting star” among young conductors. He is also Artistic Director of Iberacademy in
Medellín (Colombia), as well as Violin Professor at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama
in London. Since the 2019/20 season he is Chief Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the
Dalasinfoniettan in Sweden and Artist in Residence at the Orquesta de Castilla y Leon in
Spain. He regularly performs with artists such as Kit Armstrong, Yuja Wang, Janine Jansen,
Andreas Ottensamer and Lisa Batiashvili and counts John Corigliano, Ana Chumachenco,
Gábor Takács-Nagy, Reinhard Goebel, Sir András Schiff and Ferenc Rados as important
mentors. Until 2019 he also served as concertmaster of the Orchestra dell’Accademia
Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome.
In a statement about his new position as Chief Conductor Roberto González-Monjas
writes: “I am beyond excited that my journey alongside the Musikkollegium Winterthur
will enter a new dimension starting in September 2021. I am in awe of this orchestra’s
venerable history, its unique identity made up of both tradition and innovation, its
permanent support of contemporary creation and its pursue of excellence and education.
As its new Chief Conductor I will endeavor to honor our orchestra’s remarkable past while
striving for a future filled with strong artistic vision, exciting collaborations, moving concert
experiences and, above all, sheer joy of music making together.“