A top prize-winner of major international music competitions, clarinetist Cristo Barrios has been touring extensively throughout Europe and abroad and performed with some of the most distinguished chamber ensembles of today. His recent chamber music partners have included Rolf Hind, Andrew West, Llyr Williams, the Endellion String Quartet, the Brodsky String Quartet and the Arditti String Quartet (May 2008).
Cristo Barrios celebrated in Portugal the centenary of the composer Oliver Messiaen performing his famous Quartet for the End of Time. The cities he visited were Esposende (Teatro-auditorio), Braga (Salão Medieval da Universidade do Minho) and Lisboa (Palácio Foz), invited by the Medina Ensemble (Nuno Soares, violin; David Cruz, cello and Youri Popov, piano). They also played another masterpiece of the XXth century, The Soldier's Tale (trio version) by Igor Stravinsky. Cristo Barrios also had the chance of giving a master class at the Escuela Profesional de Música de Enpinho.
Cristo Barrios & Arditti String Quartet
Cristo Barrios performed last May the 19th (première) and 20th a clarinet quintet by Blai Soler with the prestigious Arditti String Quartet. The concert took place at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, Gran Canaria and at the main building of CajaCanarias Bank, in Tenerife.The Arditti Quartet enjoys a world-wide reputation for their spirited and technically refined interpretations of contemporary and earlier 20th century music. Several hundred string quartets and other chamber works have been written for the ensemble since its foundation by first violinist Irvine Arditti in 1974. These works have left a permanent mark on 20th century repertoire and have given the Arditti Quartet a firm place in music history. World premieres of quartets by composers such as Birtwistle, Cage, Carter, Dillon, Ferneyhough, Gubaidulina, Harvey, Hosokawa, Kagel, Kurtag, Lachenmann, Ligeti, Nancarrow, Reynolds, Rihm, Scelsi, Stockhausen and Xenakis show the wide range of music in the Arditti Quartet’s repertoire
Cristo Barrios records his third CD
Cristo Barrios premièred last June four pieces by Canarian composers of the new generation. Works by composers Juan Manuel Marrero, Juan Manuel Ruiz, Raquel Cristobal and Gustavo Trujillo were performed for the first time in two concerts that took place at the Ateneo de La Laguna (Tenerife) and at the Casa de Colón (Gran Canaria), on the 26th and 28th of June. The press said about these concerts:"A luxury clarinettist, fully committed to explore with his instrument all the expressive force in the music he plays, which he controls extremely well in all its aspects. Intelligent Cristo Barrios, who played the lead in this historic event. An example of performer to be followed today, with that curiosity about new repertoires, taking them very seriously and offering very solid versions. Exceptionally responsible this Cristo Barrios towards the music he interprets, and absolutely respectful." (La Provincia - July 2007).These performances will lead to the recording of all these works for RALS in July 2008, including a new piece by the pianist and composer Gustavo Díaz Jerez (Tres Piezas for clarinet and piano) and composer Manuel Bonino (Metaimpromptu I). The recording will not only have artistic value but will also be a testimony to the musical creation process of these islands. The pianist will be Evelyn Chang
Career
Work:
Freelance soloist
Competitions and Prizes:
In 2000 Cristo won first prize and the gold medal at the Primer Palau Competition, playing the Rossini Introduction, Theme and Variations in the Palau de la Música Hall, Barcelona. In 2003 he won first prize at the CHAIN Concours Moderne in Riga, which led to concert tours in Europe. Other prizes include competitions such as the Young Musicians International Competition, Badajoz; Guadamora International Chamber Music Competition, Córdoba; Haverhill Sinfonia Soloist Competition, London; the Anglo-Czechoslovak London Music Competition and the Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe Scholarship.
Highlights:
A top prize-winner of major international music competitions, clarinetist Cristo Barrios has been touring extensively throughout Europe and abroad and performed with some of the most distinguished chamber ensembles of today. His recent chamber music partners have included Rolf Hind, Andrew West, Llyr Williams, the Endellion String Quartet and the Brodsky String Quartet and the Arditti String Quartet. Most recent highlights include his appearance at the Palau de la Música, Barcelona, St John’s Smith Square and Wigmore Hall in London and at Carnegie Hall, New York. Many of his performances have been broadcast on radio and television, including the BBC, RNE and S4C. His first CD with chamber works by Joaquim Homs was released on Naxos to exceptional reviews. He recently recorded “The Voice of the Clarinet” (Divine Art Records), an innovative disc of songs transcribed for clarinet and piano. Soon he will release a CD with works for clarinet and piano by Salonen, Bernstein, Bax, Berg, Brotons and Honneger (Metier Records) and “Composers of the XXI Century in the Canary Islands” (RALS).
Reviews:
PRESS 2008
NEWBURY WEEKLY NEWS
(24-01-08)
Critic of his recital in Newbury (UK)
"Demonstrating an impressive range of style and technique, Barrios made this exceptionally demanding music great fun for the audience… a virtuosic and exuberant performance".
PRESS 2007
LA PROVINCIA
(24-12-07)
Critic of his participation in a shared concert at the Columbus House, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
"It was a pleasure to listen again to the music of Manuel Bonino after what he himself considered a long creative gap. The sensational clarinettist Cristo Barrios and his pianist David Martel made an impresive performance of Metaimpromptu I, a piece where Bonino achives an interesting feed back between determinated writing and improvisation. The dialog between both elements and both instruments is open to the imagination, the shorter it is the richer becomes."
OVATION! MANAGEMENT
(1-10-07)
Critic of his recital at the Carnegie Hall, New York
"A surprisingly wonderful concert I wouldn't have wanted to miss. Cristo Barrios is a young man born in Spain with a long, lanky body that has ample lung power and body movements that go where the music takes him. He transforms Ravel, Brahms, Bernstein, Debussy, Cole Porter and others into living delights that seem to be wrapped around him, I have never before so appreciated Franz Schubert's "Gretchen am Spinnrade"; and, Cole Porter's "Begin the Beguine" and "Just one or those things" (arranged by his accompanist, Clinton Cormany) take the cake for a thrilling program."
LA PROVINCIA
(1-07-07)
Critic of his recital at the Columbus House, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
"A luxury clarinettist, fully commited to explore with his instrument all the expresive force in the music he plays, which he controls extremely well in all its aspects. Intelligent Cristo Barrios, who played the lead in this historic event. An exemple of performer to be followed today, with that curiosity about new repertoires, taking them very seriously and offering very solid versions. Excepcionally responsible this Cristo Barrios towards the music he interprets, and absolutely respectful."
MUSICWEB
(06-07)
Review of “The Voice of the Clarinet”
“This is a feast for those addicted to the liquid legato of the clarinet. The hero here is Cristo Barrios and his accomplished partner is Clinton Cormany. Together they put forward a largely delightful collection.”
INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEW MAGAZINE
(05-07)
Review of “The Voice of the Clarinet”
“There is lots of lovely, even cosy, deliquescent melody around. Cristo Barrios makes a nice individual sound and has great breath-control; and I am sure he has absorbed all the texts, which are generously printed in full in the booklet. There is no shortage of beautiful moments, and even surprises.”
El DÍA
(15-04-07)
Clarinettist Cristo Barrios already touching the sky…
THE CLARINET AND SAXOPHONE MAGAZINE
(March 2007)
Debut at the Wigmore Hall
Pushing The Boundaries
On the afternoon of his Wigmore Hall debut Helen Pearse caught up with the Spanish clarinettist, Cristos Barrios, and discovered a musician poised on the brink of international acclaim, with a distinctive take on the clarinet repertoire.
Education
Degree Courses:
1999 - 2001: Royal Academy of Music of London
Postgraduate Performers’ Course (with distinction).
Masterclasses:
2003: Sermoneta International Summer Course
Professor: Richard Stoltzman (International Soloist).
2001: Conservatorio Superior de Música de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Professor: Thomas Friedly (International Solist).
2000: Torroella de Montgrí International Summer Course
Professor: Joan Enric Lluna (International Soloist).
1999: Torroella de Montgrí International Summer Course
Professor: Joan Enric Lluna (International Soloist).
1999: Conservatorio Superior de Música de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Professor: José Luis Estellés (Principal of the Granada Symphony Orchestra).
1997 - 1999: Escuela de Música de Barcelona
Professor: Joan Enric Lluna (International Soloist).
1997: Voice and Period and Modern Instruments International Summer Course
Professor: Eric Hoeprich (Principal of the Orchestra of the 18th Century)
1997: Conservatorio Superior de Música de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Professor: Mark Withers (Pedagogue).
1996: Conservatorio Superior de Música de Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Professor: Michele Carulli (International Soloist).
1996: Torroella de Montgrí International Summer Course
Professor: Joan Enric Lluna (International Soloist).
1996: Stage ’96 European Chamber Music Course
Professors: Moragues Wind Quintet.
1996: Master Classes in Croydon (Great Britain)
Professor: Jack Brymer (ex-Principal of the London Symphony Orchestra).
1995: Cullera International Summer Course
Professor: Bertram Egger (Professor of the Conservatory of Graz).
1994: Cullera International Summer Course
Professor: Bertram Egger (Professor of the Conservatory of Graz).
1993: Riba - Roja de Turia International Summer Course
Professor: Vicente Herrera (Principal of the Valencia Symphony Orchestra).
Discography
Title:
Joaquim Homs. Chamber Music
Year of Release:
2006
Label:
Naxos
Notes:
Title:
The Voice of the Clarinet
Year of Release:
2006
Label:
Divine Art Records
Notes:
Title:
Music for clarinet by Berg, Bernstein, Salonen, Honegger, Brotons and Bax
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Christina Athinodorou
