Biography
Ferran Cruixent is one of the Catalan composers with the most international projection of his generation, based in Barcelona.
Composer in residence at Palau de la Música Catalana during the season 2022-23.
His repertoire includes commissioned works for orchestra, chamber, dance and visual arts, and his symphonic works have been performed by over 45 different orchestras worldwide (Gewandhaus Orchester, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Bayerisches Staatsorchester, HR-Sinfonieorchester, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken-Kaiserslautern, Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, MDR-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Orquestra OBC, Staatskapelle Weimar, Beijing Symphony Orchestra, Shaanxi Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá, etc.) and with conductors such as Leonard Slatkin, Kazushi Ono, Christoph Poppen, Hannu Lintu, Omer Meir Wellber, Karl-Heinz Steffens, Carmen Moral, Antony Hermus, among many others. (See complete performers list).
(Foto: Quim Roser)
He studied Piano and Music Theory at the "Conservatori Superior de Música de Barcelona", completing his studies in 1999. At the same time he also studied violin, acoustics, counterpoint, fugue, and singing.
Following these studies, he studied both Contemporary Composition and Composition for film and TV at the "Hochschule für Musik und Theater München" (Germany), finishing with a Master Class Diploma in Contemporary Composition in 2006.
"Oscillation" (2020) for dance and orchestra is being commissioned by the Orchestra and Theatre Heidelberg in collaboration with the coreographer Iván Pérez, the Dance Theatre Heidelberg and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory - EMBL.
"Human brother" (2019) for soprano and orchestra (2019 World Premiere - Orquestra OBC, Kazushi Ono) is being commissioned by the OBC Orchestra, inspired by Artificial Intelligence in collaboration with the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC).
"Impression" (2018) for dance and orchestra is being commissioned by the Orchestra and Theatre Heidelberg in collaboration with the coreographer Iván Pérez and the Dance Theatre Heidelberg.
"Deus ex machina" (2018) for symphonic orchestra (2018 World Premiere - Orquestra OBC, Kazushi Ono) is being commissioned by the “Fundación SGAE y la AEOS” and is the last episode of the Cyborg Tetralogy.
"Big Data" (2016) for symphonic orchestra (2016 World Premiere - Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin) is being commissioned by the DSO for the opening season concert and is the third episode of the Cyborg Tetralogy.
Big Data has been selected 2017 by the prestigious Prince Pierre de Monaco Composition Prize and 2018 by the Young Musicians Favourite Choice 2018.
"Cyborg" (2010) for symphonic orchestra (2013 USA Premiere - Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin) is being commissioned by the Staatskapelle Weimar (2010, Christoph Poppen), and introduces the concept Cyber Singing, communicating real instruments and technology in a new filosophical way:
"(...) he’s introducing a communications device into the orchestra, showing this way that technology combines with what we do. He calls it ‘cyber singing’. It’s fascinating. (...)" (Leonard Slatkin, conductor.)
The commissioned works "Virtual" for symphonic orchestra (DRP, 2011, Germany), "Solaria" (Haydn orchestra Bolzano, 2015, Italy) and "Binary" (ARD Competition, 2015, Germany) also explore the expressive potential of the "Cyber Singing" musical technique.
"Focs d’artifici" (Fireworks, 2008), concerto for percussion and orchestra, is composed after a successful collaboration with percussions Professor Peter Sadlo, and is being performed for over 40 times in Germany, China, Spain, Austria, Colombia and Mexico. Since 2013 is selected as "repertoire work" at the ARD International Competition (Munich).
His symphonic work “Big Data” has been selected 2017 by the prestigious Prince Pierre de Monaco Composition Prize and 2018 by the Young Musicians Favourite Choice 2018.
2001 Wins the 1st Prize at the “Reinl Composition Competition” with his trio “Escenes” for flute, violoncello and piano.
He’s being invited as composition jury at the 1st international composition competition Voice of China (Beijing, 2013) and composer in residence at the International Chamber Music Festival "Sommersprossen" (2010 and 2013, Rottweil, Germany).
Cruixent is also being selected by the "Joan Miró Foundation" performing his musical and visual project "Urban Surround" during the season 2008/09.
He also usually works in many international films and videogame productions as composer, orchestrator, and pianist, such as "Castlevania, Lords of Shadow" and other international movies. (See filmography)
Since 2008 his musical works are published by Sikorski International Music Publishers, Boosey & Hawkes (Concord, Germany).
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MIXING REAL INSTRUMENTS AND TECHNOLOGY
Introducing the concept Cyber Singing