Lopez-Cobos, Jesus (1940– )

Spanish conductor. He studied with Franco Perrera and Hans Swarowsky in Europe, and at the Juilliard School. In the 1969 season he conducted at the Prague Spring Festival and led Die Zauberflöte at Venice. He gave Lucia di Lammermoor at San Francisco in 1972 (his US debut), Carmen at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London in 1975 (his house debut), and Adriana Lecouvreur at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York in 1978. He was music director at the Deutsche Oper, Berlin 1981–90 (leading the company in Japan's first Ring cycle, in 1987); principal guest conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra 1982–86; artistic director of the Spanish National Orchestra, 1984–89; music director of the Cincinatti Symphony Orchestra from 1986 and from 1990 of the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, which he led in Così fan tutte at Mezières in 1993.