Julio García-Vico conducts as if the score had entered the body.

Critics have repeatedly pointed to the physical intelligence of his work: a conducting gesture that communicates ideas, especially through the left hand; energy and passion in the pit; and a hyper-expressive style capable of generating performances of precision, brilliance and theatrical force. In opera, where gesture must become architecture, García-Vico has been praised for his command of detail, his attention to singers and chorus, and his ability to make drama move without losing musical control.

His recent Norma at Òpera Catalunya confirmed that profile with unusual force. Reviewers described him as “quite a revelation”, singling out his brisk and precise tempi, his firm coordination of pit and stage, and his ability to achieve powerful orchestral volume without covering the voices. Platea Magazine wrote that his energetic yet nuanced direction drew spectacular results from the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès, revealing “a conductor of undeniable potential” and noting that it is rare to see someone so young conduct Norma with such authority and personality, both instrumentally and vocally.

Winner of the 2021 Donatella Flick LSO Conducting Competition, García-Vico served as Assistant Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, working closely with Sir Simon Rattle, Gianandrea Noseda, François-Xavier Roth, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Barbara Hannigan and Antonio Pappano. 

His operatic instinct had already been recognised at the Deutsche Dirigentenpreis 2019, where he won First Prize, the Opera Prize and the Audience Prize, with the jury describing him as “an extraordinary talent.” Opernmagazin called his work in Così fan tutte the absolute highlight of the evening — “A Star is born” — praising his balance of vocal lines, precision in the orchestral writing and instinct for the magic of opera. His work as Music Director of the Opera Studio at the Krefeld and Mönchengladbach theatres further shaped an artistic profile built in direct contact with singers, stage and repertoire.

As a guest conductor, García-Vico has appeared with orchestras including the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Munich Symphony Orchestra, Mozarteum Orchestra, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Oporto Symphony, Stuttgart Philharmonic, Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, Belgrade Philharmonic, Filarmonica di Bologna, Orchestra della Toscana, Spanish National Orchestra, RTVE Orchestra, Barcelona Symphony, Liceu Orchestra, Teatro Real Orchestra, Tenerife Symphony, Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla, Filarmónica de Málaga, Gävle Symphony, Bilkent Symphony, and Antalya Symphony.

The 2026/27 season brings important debuts with the Brussels Philharmonic, North Macedonia Philharmonic, Sofia Philharmonic, Timișoara Philharmonic and Orquesta de Valencia, alongside returns to the Ireland National Symphony, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Orquesta de Córdoba and Antalya State Symphony.
He will also debut with the Opera National de Montpellier, leading Le Nozze di Figaro.

Fluent in seven languages, including Spanish, English, German, Italian, Korean and Japanese, García-Vico brings to his work a rare combination of musical instinct, theatrical intelligence and human communication — a conductor of energy, precision and dramatic truth, for whom technique exists only to make the score speak.