Ernesto García de León
He was born in Jáltipan, Veracruz, Mexico, in 1952. He studied guitar at the National School of Music ENM of the National Autonomous University of Mexico UNAM and took the final guitar exams with Distinction at The Royal School of Music in London, England.
He has taken superior guitar courses with the following Maestros: Alberto Salas, Oscar Ghiglia, José Luis Rodrigo, Leo Brouwer, Abel Carlevaro, John Williams, Michael Lorimer and Manuel Barrueco. Composition courses with Maestros: Juan Antonio Rosado, María Antonieta Lozano, Leo Brouwer and Joji Yuasa. A special course of Indian classical music (talas and ragas) with Zakir Hussain.
Along with other Latin American musicians, García de Leon is the founder of the Casa de las Américas Musicology Prize in Havana, Cuba (1979). He has participated as a performer and/or composer in various festivals, such as: Guitar Days in East Berlin; II Ressegna di Nuova Música in Macerata, Italy; Hispanic-Mexican Festival of Contemporary Music in Madrid, Spain and Mexico; International Forum of New Music in Mexico; "La Guitarra Hoy" Festival in Mexico; "The guitar in Mexico" by Radio UNAM; First Cuban-Mexican Guitar Encounter, in Mexico; The Center for Inter-American Relations, in New York, USA; also in the United States of America (USA): The Ann Arbor Summer Festival; The Saint Louis Classical Guitar Society; The Raleigh Chamber Music Guide; The Marylhurst Summer Guitar Festival; The Saint Olaf Artist Series and The Tidedwater Classic Guitar Society. In the Third Competition and International Guitar Festival of Havana, in Cuba; Contemporary Music Festival in Granada, Spain and in the XV and XVIII Cervantino International Festival in Guanajuato, Mexico. The Mexican Duo Limón-Márquez performed their work "Preludio y Son No.2" for two guitars in "Mexico una Obra de Arte" within the Festival "México, Treinta Siglos de Esplendor" in the cities of New York, San Antonio and Los Angels. North American guitarist William Kanengiser performed Sonata No.1 "Las Campanas" at the II Hispano-American Guitar Festival in Tijuana, Mexico, and in May 1998 he recorded it for the North American brand GSP. His music has been presented at the IV Franco Donatoni Festival of Contemporary Music and at the Winter Music Festival by the Falcó-Márquez Duo, at Centro Nacional de las Artes (CNA), Mexico City. In April 2000 he appeared as a special guest at The Dallas Ft. Worth Classical Guitar Exposition, 2000 edition, offering concerts and master classes of his music at various universities in the state of Texas, in the USA.
García de León has been Deputy Director of Escuela Superior de Musica at Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes of CNA, where he currently teaches guitar and chamber music. He has been a teacher at the National School of Music of the UNAM and the Conservatory of Music of the State of Mexico.
He has participated as a composer, performer, teacher and jury in the "International Guitar Festival of Taxco", Guerrero, Mexico in 1991, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2010.
Among its most outstanding performers of his music are: Michael Lorimer, William Kanengiser, Carlo Pezzimenti, Pedro Haley, David Tanenbaum, Marco Antonio Anguiano, Juan Carlos Laguna, Antonio López, Alfredo Rovelo, Azako Arai, Jaime Márquez, Roberto Limón, Fernando Mariña, Víctor Pellegrini , Juan Trigos, Gonzalo Salazar, Mexico City Guitar Quartet, Lidia Guerberof, Fernando Lipkau, Roberto Medrano, Lidia Tamayo, Águeda González, José Luís Navarro, Alejandro Méndez, Ryoanji Duo, Paul Bollenback, Pablo Gómez, Pablo Garibay, Frank Wallace, Jorge Caballero, Vladimir Ibarra 3NSAMBL3/3NS4MBL3, THE JACARANDA GUITAR ENSEMBLE, Jorge Caballero, César Lara, Guillermo González Phillips, Omán Kaminsky, Dúo Lúx chordarum, among others.
García de León has written more than 80 works and has more than 30 CD's where music of his authorship appears, highlighting the CD's: "Solitude" by Carlo Pezzimenti; "The Spirits of the Jungle" by the García de León-Mariña Duo; "Del Crepúsculo" interpreted by the composer; "Marañon" by Vladimir Ibarra; "Mestizo Dialogue" by César Lara and "Tropical Fantasy" by 3NS4MBL3.
His Music is published in New York, USA, by MICHAEL LORIMER EDITION (Collected Works, Volume 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8). www.MichaelLorimer.com
On May 22, 2002 he received homage at the 2nd Guitar Festival of the School of Fine Arts of Tultepec of the State of Mexico.
The "9th Taxco International Guitar Competition and Festival" held in Taxco, Guerrero, Mexico, from July 9 to 15, 2006, was a tribute to Ernesto García de León, for his outstanding career in composition, teaching and spreading of guitar music.
In July 2008 he received recognition at "The Texas Woman's University" in the USA, within the "Latino Dance & Music Festival" where three programs of his own music were performed and the world premiere of his work "Fantasia Tropical" for flute, clarinet, four guitars and percussion, which was received by the audience and the critics with great success.
In November 2008 he was honored at the ENM of the UNAM within the "Festival Pa'lo Escrito". García de León offered the closing concert with music of his own.
In December 2008 he was offered a Great Tribute in different cities of his native state, Veracruz, Mexico. The Veracruzana University and the government of that state awarded him a recognition as one of the most outstanding artistic personalities of Veracruz. The musical program with works of his authorship was in charge of the young Veracruz guitarist Orvil Paz.
In April 2009 García de León was the special guest at the "Festival 21new works for guitar" of "The Boston Classical Guitar Society" as Composer in Residence, offering a concert and a conference on his music, having as interpreters the outstanding guitarists: Pablo Garibay (Mexico), Frank Wallace (USA) and Michael Lorimer (USA).
In July 2009, the North American guitarist Michael Lorimer performs a recital and a conference on the García de León music at the "Guitar in the Americas" Festival in the Mannes College the New School for Music on the stages: Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Metropolitan Museum of Art, among others, in New York City.
In September 2010, the "V International Guitar Festival "Ramón Noble" held in Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico was tribute to Ernesto García de León for his outstanding national and international career in the world of guitar.
In October 2011 the "II International Guitar Festival Guitamixtli" held in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico was also a tribute to Ernesto García de León for his outstanding national and international career in the world of guitar; he did the opening concert.
In March 2012 the Mexican guitarist Vladimir Ibarra recorded on his CD what was written so far of the work "Marañón" the integral for eight-string guitar composed by Ernesto García de León, presentations of this CD were made in different parts of the republic, culminating in the Aula Magna "José Vasconcelos" of the CNA in Mexico City.
In July 2012 he performed at the Esperanza Iris City Theater, in Mexico City, at the event "Cuerdas que Cantan" The best guitarists in concert.
In August 2012 García de León performs, together with 3NSAMBL3, two "Rumbas" of his own for four guitars at the "Second Guitar Festival of Radio UNAM", in the Carlos Chávez Hall of the UNAM University Cultural Center, in Mexico City. This concert gives birth to 3NS4MBL3.
In May 2013, guitarists Agustín Nazzetta (Argentina) and Gustavo Camacho Gómez (Mexico), won 1st place in the "Zavarez-Corelli Chamber Music Contest of the Mozarteum of Salzburg" in Austria, performing "Preludio y Son No.2 " for two guitars by Ernesto García de León.
His music has been presented in graduation exams, both in concerts and in thesis at: the Superior School of Music (INBA) and the National School of Music (UNAM), as well as in doctoral theses at Universities in the USA.
In December 2013, THE JACARANDA GUITAR ENSEMBLE performs a full program with music by García de León at the MODERN ART MUSEUM of Ft. Worth, Texas, USA.
Since 1984 he has been a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), in New York City.