It’s still early in February, but classical music has already seen two major conducting appointments this month. On February 1, Israeli conductor Lahav Shani signed a contract to become the new music director of the Munich Philharmonic from the 2026-27 season, replacing Putin cheerleader Valery Gergiev. On Tuesday, the New York Philharmonic announced that Gustavo Dudamel, currently the music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, would be its new leader starting the same season, following Jaap van Zweden. Both Shani and Dudamel are good musicians and will be assets to their new orchestras. Both are also safe choices whose impact on the repertoire will probably be limited. Although Susanna Mälkki and Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla were reportedly considered for the positions at various points, both orchestras ended up choosing men.
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