Gustavo Díaz-Jerez facts for kids

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez (born 27 February 1970) is a talented Spanish pianist and composer. He is known for his unique way of creating music using computers and math, and also for his amazing piano performances around the world.

About Gustavo Díaz-Jerez

Early Life and Music Studies

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez was born on February 27, 1970, in Tenerife, Spain. He started learning piano at a young age with J. A. Rodriguez. Later, he continued his piano studies with Solomon Mikowsky at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City.

A World-Class Pianist

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez has performed in many different countries. He has played concerts across Europe, Asia, South America, the UK, and the US. He has worked with famous conductors like Ivan Fischer and played with well-known orchestras, including the Budapest Festival Orchestra. He has also been invited to perform at major international music festivals.

Composing with Computers and Math

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez also studied how to compose music at the Manhattan School of Music. His music style is very special. He uses computers and mathematical ideas to help him create his pieces.

He combines "spectral music," which focuses on the different sounds (or "timbres") instruments can make, with ideas from math. These math ideas include things like cellular automata (patterns that change over time, like in a game) and fractals (patterns that repeat themselves at different sizes).

Even though he uses computers to help him compose, his main goal is to write music that can be played by traditional instruments. This means he carefully changes the computer-generated ideas so that human musicians can perform them. His musical works are published by Composers Edition.

Other Interesting Projects

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez is also a computer programmer. He created a free computer program called FractMus. This program helps explore musical ideas using fractals and other generative processes. He has also written articles about music and technology for magazines like Electronic Musician and MIT's Leonardo Music Journal.

Since 2002, he has been a piano professor at the Centro Superior de Música del País Vasco in Spain. He is also a member of the Real Academia Canaria de Bellas Artes.

He is very interested in virtual reality. He even created the first YouTube channel dedicated to classical music that you can watch in virtual reality!

Musical Works

Orchestral Music

• Ricercare: D. Schostakovitch in Memoriam for viola d'amore and string orchestra
• Ymarxa for orchestra
• Aranfaybo for chamber orchestra
• Havan, a concertino for viola d'amore and chamber orchestra
• Ayssuragan, a symphonic poem for clarinet and orchestra
• Tajogaite, a concerto for piano and orchestra

Chamber Music

• Trio for violin, cello, and piano
• Sidhe, for violin, viola, cello, and piano four-hands
• Sonata for violin and piano
• Sonata for viola and piano (2003)
• Partita for viola d'amore, piano, vibraphone, marimba, and multi percussion
• Ricercare: D. Schostakovitch in Memoriam for viola d'amore and piano
• Dhyana for viola d'amore and piano
• Akhkhazu for alto saxophone and piano
• Plerion for trumpet and piano
• Tiamat for violin, viola, cello, double bass, and piano
• Three Pieces for clarinet and piano
• Tephra for violin, viola, cello, and piano
• Olokun for marimba duo

Solo Instrumental Music

• Gehenna for piano solo
• Phase Space for viola d'amore
• Nous for solo flute
• Metaludios, Book I
• Metaludios, Book II
• Metaludios, Book III
• Metaludios, Book IV
• Metaludios, Book V

Vocal Music

• Zenith, for violin, viola, cello, flute, harp, and voice
• Songs of Garajonay, for voice and piano
• Nudo de luz, for voice sextet

Opera

• La casa imaginaria

Family Life

Gustavo Díaz-Jerez is married to Belinda Sánchez Mozo. They have a son named Pablo Díaz Sánchez.

See also

In Spanish: Gustavo Díaz-Jerez para niños