Gustavo Dudamel closed his 17-year run as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic on Sunday, Aug. 23, with a star-studded benefit concert at the Hollywood Bowl that raised money for earthquake relief in his native Venezuela.

"A Concert for Venezuela" drew Chris Martin of Coldplay, Beck, Carlos Vives, Natalia Lafourcade and GIVĒON to the stage alongside the LA Phil, with Venezuelan actor Édgar Ramírez hosting. Proceeds supported Dudamel's Earthquake Recovery to Support Venezuelan Communities Fund, established in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme and the CAF Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, after earthquakes in late June killed more than 1,700 people in northern Venezuela.

At one point during the evening, nearly every audience member was on their feet, singing along to "Viva La Vida" with Martin, the orchestra and members of Youth Orchestra Los Angeles as pastel lights flooded the Bowl.

One highlight: Martin serenaded Dudamel with a song written specifically for him called "San Gustavo" ("Saint Gustavo"), ordering the conductor to sit in a chair while he sang "Santa María, te agradezco por mi hermano" ("Santa Maria, I thank you for my brother") before the full orchestra joined in.

Chris Martin was a late addition, announced the day of the concert.

The evening opened with both the U.S. and Venezuelan national anthems, then moved through Venezuelan harpist Eduardo Betancourt and cuatro player Jorge Glem, whose solos one reviewer described as breathtaking. Venezuelan singers Nella and Adria Duque performed the patriotic song "Venezuela" under the colors of the Venezuelan flag, bringing some audience members to tears.

"What a wonderful night," Dudamel told the crowd near the concert's end. "You know, I have spent the last 17 years of my life in this city. A city that welcomed me with very, very open arms, and that I have come to call my home. Seventeen years later, I can say I am an Angeleno."

The benefit capped a four-night farewell weekend at the Bowl that began Thursday, Aug. 20. Dudamel was signed by the LA Phil in 2007 at age 26 and co-founded YOLA (Youth Orchestra Los Angeles), which provides free instruments and music training to more than 1,700 young people across five Los Angeles County sites. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2019.

Noah Mukherjee, a college student studying music, told ABC7 outside the Bowl that Dudamel shaped his path. "When I look back at my early childhood, I just remember coming to see Gustavo perform," Mukherjee said. "He's kind of one of the reasons I got into classical music, so seeing him go is going to hurt."

British conductor Daniel Harding will succeed Dudamel as the LA Phil's next music director. Dudamel begins his new role leading the New York Philharmonic in the 2026–27 season.