Last Saturday, classical conductor Giancarlo Guerrero received an unexpected call from his manager: Bad Bunny wanted him to participate in the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show. Guerrero, who is the artistic director and principal conductor of the Grant Park Music Festival, quickly traveled to San Francisco by Tuesday to begin rehearsals with a small string orchestra that would be featured for about a minute during Bad Bunny’s performance.
With approximately 70,000 fans in attendance at the stadium and an expected television audience exceeding 125 million viewers, Guerrero made an appearance that was noticed by classical music enthusiasts watching the broadcast.
“I got a call from my manager that he got a call from Bad Bunny’s manager … and [Bad Bunny] was aware of my career, he knew who I was, so he specifically asked for me,” Guerrero told Block Club Monday. “So his manager contacted my people, and … the rest is history.”
Guerrero said his initial reaction was disbelief but quickly accepted once he realized the scale of the event. He explained that his family are big fans of Bad Bunny: “I didn’t hesitate, especially because both my daughters and my wife are huge fans of his,” he said. “If I didn’t do this, they would not forgive me, … They were very proud and very happy that I was taking part in this.”
Known for conducting across various musical genres throughout his career, Guerrero found one of the biggest challenges to be logistical—especially keeping details secret until showtime. “A lot of it was just basically learning how to be in the right place at the right time with the right instrument and with the right camera,” he said. “With over 750 performers and 300 staff members, there was a lot of people to keep track of. … The fact that they were able to keep this so secret with more than 1,000 people involved was actually quite miraculous.
“That was very different from my usual, just going from my dressing room to the podium.”
During preparations for the show, Guerrero also met Bad Bunny personally. “He reassured me that he wanted an actual string orchestra, he wanted a conductor, that he likes classical music himself and that he wanted to showcase that,” Guerrero said. “That shows you the breadth of his talent — that he’s somebody that is not just involved in what he does, but he has curiosity beyond that. So I think for me, that made me an even bigger fan than I already was.”
Guerrero is originally from Nicaragua and grew up in Costa Rica where he joined a local youth symphony. He is a six-time Grammy Award winner and serves as music director for both Sarasota Orchestra and Nashville Symphony. His previous positions include roles with Cleveland Orchestra’s Miami Residency as well as orchestras in Lisbon (Gulbenkian Symphony), Eugene (Eugene Symphony), Minnesota (Minnesota Orchestra), among others.
After guest conducting at Grant Park Music Festival several summers ago—and forming connections with its musicians—Guerrero accepted his current position when offered.
He shared how Bad Bunny’s blend of Hispanic musical styles resonates with him due to family influences: His father enjoyed mariachi while his mother preferred Julio Iglesias.
Reflecting on performing at such a major event like Super Bowl halftime alongside so many participants working together toward one goal left an impression on him: “This is something I will never forget,” Guerrero said of the Super Bowl. “I mean, the electricity of watching 70,000 people dancing along with the music was absolutely contagious and exciting. And I’ve never felt such a degree of not only happiness and joy but pride in what we were doing. To see so many people involved in something so complex but with one purpose—which is to bring a great show [and] great music—was truly inspiring.”
