Choosing a conductor who has been best known for opera — when he jumped in for Mr. Slatkin in 2018, it was for concert performances of Puccini’s “Turandot” — and who is not yet well known in the United States is something of a risk for this orchestra. The Detroit Symphony started the last decade with a painful strike and has been working to rebuild itself ever since, alongside its struggling city — in part by stressing accessibility and streaming concerts for free online.

But Mr. Bignamini’s star has been rising of late. This season includes his debuts with orchestras in Toronto, Houston, Dallas and Minnesota, the Canadian Opera Company, and the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. He also tours with the star soprano Anna Netrebko.

Anne Parsons, the president and chief executive officer of the Detroit Symphony, said in a statement that Mr. Bignamini “both embodies and exudes enthusiasm and authenticity, and he has an inspiring vision for building on the musical legacy of the D.S.O., this city, and its community.”

Born in Crema, near Milan, Mr. Bignamini was drawn to the clarinet as a child and studied at the conservatory in Piacenza. His opera career has taken off in recent years, with engagements at the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera and the Dutch National Opera, among others. When he made his debut at the Met in 2017 leading “Madama Butterfly,” Zachary Woolfe wrote in The New York Times that he conducted “with properly Puccinian balances of lushness and forward motion.”