José Serebrier facts for kids

José Serebrier (born in 1938) is a famous Uruguayan conductor and composer. He is known for being one of the most recorded conductors of his time.

Early Life and Musical Start

José Serebrier was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, on December 3, 1938. His parents came from Russia and Poland. He showed musical talent from a young age.

When he was just eleven years old, José first led an orchestra. This was his school orchestra, and they traveled all over the country. In just four years, he conducted over one hundred performances!

He finished school at the Municipal School of Music in Montevideo when he was fifteen. There, he learned to play the violin, studied music theory (called solfege), and learned about Latin American folk music. He also studied how to compose music and conduct with teachers like Guido Santórsola.

At fifteen, José wrote an overture called "Legend of Faust" for a national competition. He won! But he was too young to conduct his own winning piece. A famous conductor named Eleazar de Carvalho led the first performance. Later that year, Carvalho became José's conducting teacher.

José received a special scholarship to study music in the United States. He learned from important composers like Aaron Copland and Pierre Monteux. When he was only 17, his first symphony was played by the legendary conductor Leopold Stokowski. This was a big moment for such a young composer!

Becoming a Top Conductor

José Serebrier made his New York conducting debut at Carnegie Hall in 1965. This was with the American Symphony Orchestra.

He became famous for conducting Charles Ives' Fourth Symphony. This piece was so hard that it needed three conductors to perform it at its first show in 1965. José Serebrier was one of those three. A few years later, he was able to conduct the entire symphony all by himself! Critics praised his recording of this difficult work.

José has held many important conducting jobs. He was the main guest conductor for the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra in Australia. Leopold Stokowski even named him the Associate Conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra.

In 1969, José Serebrier married American singer Carole Farley. They have worked together on many recordings.

José Serebrier's Music

José Serebrier is also a talented composer. His Third Symphony and "Fantasia for strings" are some of his most popular works. His music is often described as energetic, colorful, and melodic.

One of his unique pieces is "Passacaglia and Perpetuum Mobile for accordion and chamber orchestra." This shows how creative he is with different instruments. His music is published by major music companies around the world. All of his compositions have been recorded. In 2012, he wrote a "Flute Concerto with Tango" for a flutist named Sharon Bezaly.

José Serebrier travels the world, conducting many different orchestras. He has toured with the Russian National Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and The Orchestra of the Americas, among others.

Awards and Achievements

José Serebrier has received many honors for his work. He has been nominated for Grammy Awards 37 times and has won 8 Grammies!

In 1976, he won the Ditson Conductor's Award for his dedication to American music. He also won a Latin Grammy Award in 2004 for his own work, the "Carmen Symphony."

Selected Compositions

José Serebrier has written many different types of music throughout his career. Here are a few examples:

• 1952: Elegy for strings
• 1956: Symphony No. 1, a symphony in one movement
• 1958: Fantasia for strings
• 1962: Colores Mágicos (Magic Colors), a concerto for harp and orchestra
• 1963: Symphony for Percussion (for five players)
• 1966: Passacaglia and Perpetuum Mobile, for accordion and chamber orchestra
• 1998: Violin Concerto "Winter"
• 2003: Symphony No. 3 for string orchestra and soprano, also known as "Symphonie mystique"
• 2009: Flute Concerto with Tango, for flute and string orchestra

See also

In Spanish: José Serebrier para niños