JOAN CERVERÓ

JOAN CERVERO

Joan Cerveró (b. 1961, Valencia, Spain) is a conductor, composer, professor, cultural promoter and advocate of contemporary and classical music.

His resume is probably not the most orthodox, since his ability to delve into different fields makes him singular, unique, totally personal. Joan Cerveró not only composes, directs and teaches, but also writes on musical and cultural topics, produces and manages cultural events, curates exhibitions and participates in radio and television divulgation programs, etc., everything, of course, related to music, culture and society. Besides music, he studied Philosophy and Literature at the University of Valencia. But it is still significant that his first professional dedication, already distant in time, was that of a painter of fine arts (landscapes, bucolic scenes and still life paintings…). But despite the fact that art and literature continue to motivate him, now his great passion is to share the beauty and uniqueness of life, and music is his means to achieve this.

Cerveró has joined his classical origins and affinity with the classical repertoire with an infectious enthusiasm in the presentation of original programming, giving a boost to the renewal of traditional repertoires. Its imaginative programming has been welcomed and acclaimed by musicians from the classical, jazz or world music spheres, achieving their accommodation in the midst of these wide worlds: classical music, the avant-garde, minimalism, experimental rock, that is the same, between Messiaen, Mozart, Stockhausen, Reich, Zappa or Björk.

Cerveró grew up in an artistic atmosphere of painters, ceramic artisans and classical and popular musicians in Manises (Valencia). He studied Percussion, Clarinet, Violin, and Piano, at the beginning in the wind band of his city, and later in the conservatories of Valencia, Madrid, Barcelona and at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London. He has a University Degree in Music, an MA (Master) in Aesthetics and Creativity from the University of Valencia UV, and a PhD (Doctor) in Fine Arts from the Polytechnic University of Valencia UPV.

He has a very long-established association with the Grup Instrumental de València with whom is, from 1994, his Music Director. In 2005, in recognition of Grup Instrumental significant contribution to Spanish music was awarded with the National Prize of Music by the Spanish Ministry of Culture, currently, the highest music award given in Spain.

Joan Cervero has conducted many prestigious orchestras and classical artists including Sophie Wieder-Atherton, Irvine Arditti, Hansjörg Schellenberger, Jane Manning, Omar Ebrahim, Iris Vermillion, Isabel van Keulen, etc. but Cervero’s authentic commitment to all genres is reflected also in his collaborations with musicians and artists from very diverse genres, from jazz to flamenco’s world, as: Miguel Poveda, Massud Naderi, Carmen Linares, Pitingo, Arcángel, José Luis Montón, José Manuel Cañizares, Carles Santos and actors and stage directors as Irene Papas, José Luis Gómez, Carles Alfaro, Nuria Espert, Darío Fo o La Fura dels Baus among others.

He was appointed musical director of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Valencia (2000 - 2016). After that Cerveró was appointed Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Ballet of Teatres de la Generalitat/BTGV (2004-2014), conducting classic and contemporary ballets, also for other companies as the Ballet Nacional de España, collaborating with choreographers as Jiri Kylián, Nacho Duato, Goyo Montero, Patrick de Bana, Thierry Malandain, Ohad Naharin or José Carlos Martinez.

As a composer and arranger, his task stands out mainly in scenic music, carrying out several scores for theatre and ballet. For this activity, he has been awarded with several prizes. His catalog of stage music is made up of more than forty works of music for theater and dance. In addition to his vocation in stage music, his instrumental and vocal compositions include more than 30 works for orchestra, chamber music, solos, as well as various scores for film.