Gatti studied composition and conducting at the conservatory in his home town of Milan. He was musical director of the Orchestra dellʼAccademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Teatro Comunale in Bologna (1997 – 2007), the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (1996 – 2009) and principal guest conductor at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, as well as chief conductor of the Zurich Opera House. From 2008 until 2016, he has been responsible for the musical direction of the Orchestre National de France, and subsequently chief conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra until 2018. For his work with the Orchestre National de France., the French Republic named him “Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur”. Daniele Gatti first conducted the Berliner Philharmoniker in April 1997 in works by Berlioz, Liszt and Bartók; in his last concerts with the orchestra in September 2017 the programme included symphonies by Hindemith and Brahms.