BASILIO ASTÚLEZ

Es profesor en el Conservatorio Municipal de Leioa, fundador del coro infantil Leioa Kantika Korala en 2000 y director del coro juvenil SJB desde ese mismo año. Esta joven escuela coral engloba a más de 250 cantantes de entre 7 y 25 años y ha recibido ya numerosos galardones en certámenes españoles y europeos.

En 1999 funda el grupo de cámara femenino Vocalia Taldea, premiado en más de 20 ocasiones en los principales certámenes corales del circuito internacional.

Al frente de estos grupos ha realizado 10 grabaciones discográficas y un gran número de giras internacionales en Europa, Asia y América y colaborado con importantes solistas, orquestas, directores y agrupaciones.

Ha recibido también importantes reconocimientos personales como director en certámenes como Tours, Arezzo o Gorizia y dirigido en Coro de RTVE, Coro Nacional de Niños de Colombia o Indonesian National Children´s Choir entre otros.

Actualmente imparte docencia y formación para entidades educativas, universidades y diversas federaciones corales del país y es frecuentemente solicitado como jurado en certámenes y para ofrecer cursos y seminarios de canto coral por todo el mundo en un gran número de festivales internacionales. Desde 2018 es también profesor de dirección coral en el Conservatorio Superior del País Vasco Musikene y desde 2019 asume la dirección artística del Coro de Jóvenes del País Vasco (EHGA).

GARY GRADEN
masterclass 14 y 15 mayo 2021

GARY GRADEN

Was born in the USA and studied at Clark University, the Hartt School of Music, the Aspen Summer Music Festival, and with Eric Ericson at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm. Gary Graden is a former member and tenor soloist with the Eric Ericson Chamber Choir, as well as the vocal ensemble Lamentabile Consort.

Gary Graden is presently director of choral music in the Stockholm Cathedral (Storkyrkan) and S:t Jacob´s church. He has also been on the faculty of  Stockholm´s Musikgymnasium where founded and conducted the Stockholm Musikgymnasium´s Chamber Choir. With this choir and the S:t Jacobs Chamber Choir he has won grand prizes and first prizes in several of Europe´s most prestigious competitions, including the European Grand Prize.

He has also participated in a wide array of national and international festivals including the Tolosa Festival in Spain, the IFCM World Symposia in Minneapolis and Kyoto, Sagra Musicale Umbra in Italy, Debrecen Festival in Hungary,  Koorbiennale in Holland, the ACDA National Convention in USA, and is currently artistic director of the international choral festival La Fabbrica del Canto in Legnano.

Graden has commissioned and premiered more than 90 works by such composers as Sven-David Sandström, Anders Hillborg, Nana Forte,
Thomas Jennefelt, Steve Dobrogosz,  Bo Hansson, Agneta Sköld,
Gabriel Jackson, Anders Paulsson,  Javier Busto, Vytautas Miskinis, Urmas Sisask, Georg Riedel, Carl Unander-Scharin, Stephen Leek, Damijan Mocnik, Corrado Margutti, Giovanni Bonato, and Michael Waldenby.

He has conducted several orchestras including the Uppsala Chamber Orchestra. the Stockholm Royal Opera Orchestra, Stockholm Rebaroque,  the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Philidor, France, and Camerata Strumentale Citta di Prato as well as Orchestra da Camera Perugia in Italy. Above and beyond his specialisation in the performance of contemporary music, he has performed such larger works as Handel´s Messiah,  Mozart´s Requiem and Mass in c-minor, Bach´s  passions and Mass in b-minor, as well as the Requiems of Brahms, Duruflé, Fauré and Michael Haydn.

With his trio WÅG (Wager Åstrand Graden)  he is developing and exploring improvisational music for voice and instruments. With his S:t Jacob/Stockholm Cathedral Vocal Ensemble he performs repertoire from all periods for solo and small ensemble.  Graden is in demand as conductor, teacher and adjudicator throughout the world. He has conducted many international choirs including the Swedish Radio Choir,  the choirs of Radio France, the Hungarian Radio Choir, Kodaly Choir Debrecen, Slovenian Philharmonic Choir, Orpheus Vokalensemble-Ochsenhausen, Jauna Muzika-Vilnius, Pro Coro Canada, the Formosa Singers-Taipei, the Singapore Ensemble Singers, the IFCM World Youth Choir (Slovenia), the ACDA Collegiate Honors Choir and Coro Giovanile Italiano among others.

His work as conductor and singer is documented on many radio and some 30 CD recordings (BIS, Carus, Proprius, Caprice, Phono Svecia, Gehrmans, nosag, Camerata Tokyo, a.o.), including recordings of the Bach Motets and St. John Passion, and Handel’s Messiah. Graden is the recipient of the  «Johannes Norrby medal»  for his contribution to Swedish choral music, and was elected Sweden´s “Choral Conductor of the Year” in 2005. In 2009 he was awarded the Guidoneum Award from the Fondazione Guido D´Arezzo in Italy, in 2015 the S:ta Cecilia Prize awarded by the Stockholm diocese of the Swedish Church, and in 2020 the medal Litteris et Artibus awarded by the king of Sweden.

SIMON HALSEY
masterclass 10 julio 2021

Simon Halsey occupies a unique position in classical music. He is the trusted advisor on choral singing to the world’s greatest conductors, orchestras and choruses, and also an ambassador for choral singing to amateurs of every age, ability and background. Making singing a central part of the world-class institutions with which he is associated, he has been instrumental in changing the level of symphonic singing across Europe.

He holds positions across the UK and Europe as Choral Director of London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Chorus Director of City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Artistic Director of Orfeó Català Choirs and Artistic Adviser of Palau de la Música, Barcelona, Artistic Director of Berliner Philharmoniker Youth Choral Programme, Director of BBC Proms Youth Choir; Artistic Advisor of Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival Choir, Conductor Laureate of Rundfunkchor Berlin and Professor and Director of Choral Activities at University of Birmingham.Halsey’s numerous awards include three Grammys for his recordings with the Rundfunkchor Berlin.

He was made Commander of the British Empire in 2015, was awarded The Queen’s Medal for Music in 2014, and received the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2011 in recognition of his outstanding contribution to choral music in Germany. Born in London, Simon Halsey sang in the choirs of New College, Oxford, and of King’s College, Cambridge and studied conducting at the Royal College of Music in London. Simon Halsey is represented