José Luis Turina
Curriculum Vitae (710 words)


Born in Madrid, 1952. After his studies at the conservatories of Barcelona and Madrid, he received a grant from the Spanish Ministry for Foreign Affairs for studying at the Spanish Fine Arts Academy in Rome, where he attended the classes in Composition given by Franco Donatoni at the Santa Cecilia Academy.
En 1981 he won the First Prize in the Internacional Composition Contest First Centennial of the Orchestra of the Valencia Conservatory with the work Meeting Point. In 1986. In 1986 he won the First Prize of the Musical Composition Contest Queen Sofía, from the Ferrer Salat Foundation, with his piece Ocnos (Orchestral music on poems by Luis Cernuda). In 1996 he was awarded with the National Prize in Music. He has been commissioned many times, either by public or by private institutions, as well as by many ensembles and soloists, and his music has been played in the most important national and international festivals.
Teacher of Harmony in the Conservatories of Cuenca an Madrid since 1981, in 1983 he was designated technical advisor of the Ministry for Education and Science, for the reformation of musical teaching in the realm of the new education law of 1990. Since 2001 and until 2020 he was artistic director of the Spanish National Youth Orchestra, and from 2004 to 2015 he was also President of the Spanish Association of Youth Orchestras.
In september 2000 the world premiereof his opera D. Q. (Don Quijote in Barcelona), on a text by Justo Navarro and a scenic production by La Fura dels Baus, took place in the Great Theatre of the Liceo (Barcelona, Spain). In november 2001 the Tokyo String Quartet played with great success the world premiere of his string quartet Clémisos y sustalos, written as a commission by that renowned ensemble. In october 2004, the Brodsky String Quartet played in Cádiz por the first time his strinq quartet The seven last words of Jesus Christ in the cross. In january 2006 the Málaga Philharmonic Orchestra devoted to his music its 12th Contemporary Music Cycle, with 19 compositions being played, and with the release of an extensive biographical study and the recording of a monographic CD including five orchestral pieces.
In april 2008, the Youth Orchestra Simón Bolívar of Venezuela, conducted by Alfredo Rugeles, performed in the Teresa Carreño Theatre at Caracas the Phantasy on a Phantasy by Alonso Mudarra, within the 1st Hispanic-Venezuelan Arts Festival.
In may 2008, the Community of Madrid's Orchestra, conducted by José Ramón Encinar, performed the premiere of Tour de Manivelle (Musica for five shorts by Segundo de Chomón), within the projection-concert that took place in the Zarzuela Theatre at Madrid.
In july 2008 the monographic CD José Luis Turina. A Portrait opened the "Collection of spanish and lationoamerican contemporary composers" of the BBVA Foundation and the label Verso.
In april 2009 he is appointed to collaborate with Maestro José Antonio Abreu for the creation of Iberoamerican Youth Orchestra, which, conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, gave its first concert in Estoril in december 2009, during the 19th Summit of Iberoamerican Chiefs of State and Government.
In october 2012 he is object of a homage for his 60 anniversary, at the Royal Conservatory of Music of Madrid.
In January 2013 the label Verso releases the CD José Luis Turina. Chamber music, second monographic recording devoted to his music in the collection "Contemporary spanish and latinoamerican composers" of the BBVA Foundation, including six chamber pieces performed by Plural Ensemble conducted by Fabián Panisello. In september 2018 the German label Profil releases the CD Turina x Turina, with arrangements for wind quintet of Joaquín Turina's pieces, performed by Azahar Ensemble.
In november 2018 the International Piano Competition Composers of Spain devotes him its 19th edition, in which all the contestants perform some of his piano works in the eliminatory phase.
In 2020 he was commissioned to make an arrangement for reduced orchestra (55 musicians) of the Symphony n. 2 by Gustav Mahler, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Spanish National Choir.
In March 2022, the Plenary of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando appointed him academic of the Music Section, filling the vacancy left by Antón García Abril, taking possession of the medal n. 30 on April 23, 2023.


April 2023