Kirill Petrenko to take over Berlin Philharmonic in 2019
By Associated Press
Oct 13, 2015 8:24 AM CDT
FILE - In this March 6, 2014 file photo musical director Kirill Petrenko, left, and theatre manager Nikolaus Bachler of the Bavarian state opera speak during a press conference in Munich, southern Germany. Kirill Petrenko has agreed to stay on as musical director at the Bavarian State Opera beyond 2018,...   (Associated Press)

BERLIN (AP) — Kirill Petrenko will take over as chief conductor at the Berlin Philharmonic in 2019, and will do the new job alongside his existing role as the Bavarian State Opera's musical director for the first year.

The Philharmonic in June chose the Russian-born Petrenko to succeed chief conductor Simon Rattle, who is leaving in 2018. The orchestra had previously left open when he would start.

On Tuesday, it said Petrenko will take over at the beginning of the 2019-2020 season but will give a limited number of concerts in his first year because of his duties at the Bavarian State Opera.

Bavaria's state culture ministry said earlier Tuesday that Petrenko had agreed to stay on beyond 2018, when his existing contract expired. He will remain the Munich opera house's musical director until August 2020, and will be a guest conductor in the 2020-21 season.

Berlin Philharmonic general manager Martin Hoffmann said the Munich and Berlin orchestras had reached "an amicable agreement on all scheduling issues.

In Berlin, Petrenko is to appear as a guest conductor starting in 2016. The Philharmonic said he will conduct several concert programs both in Berlin and on tour in the 2018-2019 season, prior to formally taking over the orchestra.

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This story has been corrected to reflect that Petrenko will be both musical director in Munich and the Berlin Philharmonic chief conductor for one year rather than two.