BIOGRAPHY
César Ramos is an award-winning Cuban conductor based in Europe. He is the recipient of the Rudis Martinus van Dijk Conductor’s Prize 2025, the Orchestra Award 2025 from the Bodensee Philharmonie Konstanz, and a semi-finalist of the 4th Antal Dorati Conducting Competition. He is Conductor of Orkest Pulcinella in the Netherlands and Assistant Conductor of the Real Filharmonía de Galicia for the 2026–2027 season.
He has appeared with orchestras including the Ulster Orchestra, het Residentie Orkest, Noord Nederlands Orkest, and Het Balletorkest in collaboration with Nederlands Dans Theater, and has worked as assistant conductor with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest, and the Belgian National Orchestra, among others.
Working with youth orchestras is central to his commitment to the future of classical music. He served as Assistant Conductor of the National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands for its 2025 winter and summer tours, and of the Ulster Youth Orchestra. He is also regularly invited to work with students at the Amsterdam Conservatory and the Royal Conservatory The Hague.
He completed the National Master in Orchestral Conducting (NMO) in the Netherlands wit Jac van Steen, Ed Spanjaard, and Antony Hermus, and has participated in masterclasses with Lorenzo Viotti, Johannes Schlaefli, Tianyi Lu, and Otto Tausk. He recently participated in the Tonhalle Conducting Academy 2026/27 with Paavo Jarvi and the Tonhalle Orchester Zurich.
César’s musical journey began with 11 years of cello studies in Cuba before transitioning to conducting under the guidance of Guido López-Gavilán and Nathalie Marin at the University of the Arts (ISA) in Havana. During his studies, he was appointed principal conductor of both the University Philharmonic Orchestra, and assistant conductor of the Cuban American Youth Orchestra under James Ross. His conducting debut took place in 2018 at the Gran Teatro de La Habana, where he conducted Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring with the National Opera and Ballet Orchestra.