GUSTAVO DUDAMEL will become music director of the Paris Opera while continuing his commitment to the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

The Paris Opera and the Venezuelan director announced the appointment Friday.

“Opera has long played a seminal role in my life — from sitting in my youth for untold hours at the feet of my Maestro José Antonio Abreu and my idols in Milan, Berlin and Vienna, to making this beautiful artform a staple in our programming in Los Angeles — and I couldn’t be more overjoyed to have found, in Paris, my spiritual home for opera,” Dudamel wrote.

Alexander Neef, general manager of the Paris Opera, described Dudamel as one of the world’s most talented and prestigious conductors.

“In the course of our numerous exchanges, I realized the extent to which he was the one who could share and transmit his love of opera to the widest possible audience,” Neef said in a statement.

The appointment begins Aug. 1 and will last for six seasons.

Dudamel has been artistic and music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2009.

(SD-Agencies)