Ligia Amadio

Ligia Amadio is one of the most established and recognized conductors from Latin America today. With an international career that spans throughout the five continents, she has been praised by her vibrant and passionate performances, her commitment to the highest standards, and her natural charisma.

Ligia Amadio is the Artistic and Music Director of the Minas Gerais Symphony Orchestra in Brazil since January 2013. She served as Music and Artistic Director of the Montevideo Philharmonic Orchestra from 2017 to 2021 and was appointed Music and Artistic Director for a year with the Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra where she emphasized the performances of music by living composers. She held the position of Music and Artistic Director of the Rio de Janeiro Symphony Orchestra from 1996 to 2008, Music and Artistic Director of the Cuyo University National Symphony Orchestra in Argentina, and was Music and Artistic Director of the Orquesta Sinfónica Municipal de Campinas in Brazil in 2009.

Highlights of her career include engagements to lead the Phihamoniie Baden-Baden, the Israel Chamber Orchestra, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Netherlands Radio Symphony Orchestra, Icelandic Symphony Orchestra, the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Moldova, the Savaria Symphony Orchestra, the Szczecin Philharmonic Orchestra, Thüringer Symphoniker, the Silesian Opera Orchestra, the Radio and TV Symphony of Slovenia, the Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra, The Congress Symphony Orchestra, the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra the Buenos Aires Philharmonic and Orquesta Estable at the Teatro Colón, the Orkiestrę Symfoniczną, the Karlowic Philharmonic, Filharmonia Czestochowa, the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra among others.

She regularly conducts the Orquesta Estable del Teatro Colón and Filarmónica de Buenos Aires, and leads main orchestras throughout Latin America, including the National Symphony of Mexico, the National Symphony Orchestra Chile, the National Symphony Orchestra of Perú, the Symphony Orchestra of Uruguay (SODRE), the National Symphony Orchestra of Bolivia and most main orchestras in Brazil, including the OSESP, Orchesta Sinfónica Brasileira, Porto Symphony Orchestra, Bahía Symphony Orchestra, among others.

Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Ligia Amadio was the first woman to win in 30 years, the Tokyo International Competition, in 1997 and won first prize at the Santiago de Chile International Conducting Competition in 1998. In 2001 she received The Best Conductor of the Year Award in Brazil from The Critics Association of São Paulo. In 2003 she won the Lyra to Excellence and Roots Award from ONUNCUYO in Argentina. She was again honored with the Carlos Gómez Price as Best Orchestra Conductor

in Brazil in 2012. Ligia Amadio received The Order of Rio Branco, the highest distinction in Brazil´s diplomacy for her services in countries where she conducted. In 2022 she received The University of São Paulo Alumni Award for her Contribution to Art and Culture, in its first edition.

Ligia Amadio was one of the finalists for the 2019 Classical: NEXT Innovation Award, in Rotterdam. She received the National Classic Award, in Buenos Aires, in the Political Category with a Gender Perspective in 2022. This season she presented a conference on "Gender Gap through Art and Culture" at the headquarters of the Inter-American Development Bank, in Washington DC, in the United States.

Ligia Amadio founded the International Women Conductor´s Symposium, which has been a pioneer movement in brining women to the concert state. The symposium took place in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2016, in Montevideo, Uruguay in 2018, and it was held virtually in 2020. This third edition gathered 976 participants from over 36 countries and became an event of great global importance.

She studied Orchestral Conducting and completed a Postgraduate Degree in Arts, at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) after having graduated in Engineering from the University of São Paulo. She then completed a PhD in Music, making a critical edition of the Concerto for piano and orchestra, op.10, by Henrique Oswald, at the São Paulo State University (UNESP).

Further training included studies at the Accademia Chigiana in Italy, the International Bartók Seminar in Hungary, the Wiener Meisterkürse für Musik in Austria, the International Opera Workshop at the Czech Republic, Peter the Great International Workshop in Russia and the Inter-American Course for Young Directors.

Ligia Amadio is represented by Halac & Meluk Artists Management worldwide.