Enrique Ugarte

Born in the Basque municipality of Tolosa, Spain, Enrique Ugarte started playing accordion when he was four years old. He composed his first song when he was six and he gave his first public concert in front of 1,500 listeners when he was seven. Enrique Ugarte studied accordion, oboe and composition at the “Conservatorio Superior de Música“ of San Sebastián. Afterwards, he studied composition at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich, graduating from the master class. He also studied conducting with Sergiu Celibidache in Munich and Mainz as well as with Ernst Schelle in France. Today, the maestro works with world-renowned orchestras such as the Basque National Orchestra, the Munich Radio Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin, the NDR Radio Philharmonie and the WDR Radio Orchestra. He regularly performs as a conductor and accordionist in the largest concert halls in Europe, including the philharmonic halls in Berlin, Munich and Cologne as well as the Vienna Konzerthaus. Ugarte has also performed together with artists such as Chick Corea, Giora Feidman and Till Brönner and has appeared a guest in many television and radio programs in Germany, Spain and Russia. Numerous CD recordings document his extensive work. He has orchestrated more than 60 national and international film soundtracks, including The Miracle of Bern and Pope Joan, and participates regularly in various projects as an orchestrator and conductor. From 2003 to 2006 he was musical director of the Schlossfestspiele in Ettlingen. He also conducted the Basque National Orchestra together with Mike Oldfield as part of the premiere of the composer’s work “Music of the Spheres“.