Conductor, composer, and pianist Teddy Abrams has been named the next artistic and executive director of the Ojai Music Festival, starting in September 2026. His first edition will be the 81st Festival in June 2027. He will succeed Ara Guzelimian, who steps down after the 80th Festival in June 2026. That edition will be directed by Esa-Pekka Salonen as music director.
The appointment places Abrams among a notable line of Ojai leaders, including Thomas W. Morris, Ernest Fleischmann, and Lawrence Morton. Guzelimian himself previously led the Festival in the 1990s before returning in 2020, working with directors such as John Adams, Mitsuko Uchida, and Rhiannon Giddens.
Abrams, 38, is best known for his transformative work with the Louisville Orchestra, where he has been music director since 2014. His projects there include the Creators Corps, a residency program for composers, and the In Harmony tour, which brought the orchestra to communities across Kentucky. He won a Grammy Award for The American Project, a Deutsche Grammophon recording featuring his piano concerto for Yuja Wang, and was named Musical America’s 2022 Conductor of the Year.
Ojai’s board praised Abrams for his community-driven approach and energy, qualities that align with the Festival’s reputation for risk-taking and experimentation. In his statement, Abrams pointed to Ojai’s legacy as a platform for innovation, recalling its historic ties to Aaron Copland, Igor Stravinsky, and his mentor Michael Tilson Thomas.
Guzelimian welcomed the choice, saying he admired Abrams’s achievements in Louisville and would work to ensure a smooth transition. By the time he steps down, he will have shaped the Festival’s artistic direction for a total of 12 years.
Founded in 1947, the Ojai Music Festival is regarded as one of the most adventurous events on the international music calendar. Its annual four-day gathering in Southern California has hosted leading figures including Pierre Boulez, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Barbara Hannigan, and George Benjamin.
The upcoming 80th edition, from 11 to 14 June 2026, will be directed by Esa-Pekka Salonen as music director, with appearances by clarinetist Anthony McGill, Attacca Quartet, Colburn Orchestra, and the LA Phil New Music Group.
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