CONDUCTOR

Conductor, composer and pedagogue, Josep Vila i Casanas was born in Sabadell, Spain, in1966. His specialism is the a cappella repertoire, as well as choral and orchestral literature down the ages.

 

He conducts the Lieder Camera Chamber Choir from Sabadell and collaborates often as guest conductor with the Frances Valls Chamber Choir from Barcelona. He has served as the resident conductor of the Orfeo Catala choral society (1998-2016), the Cor de Cambra of the Palau de la Musica Catalana (2011-2016), the Radiotelevision Espanola Choir (2007- 2010) and the Lieder Camera Choir (1990-2006). He has made recordings for the Ficta, Columna Musica, La Ma de Guido, Ars Harmonica, Solfa Recordings, Anacrusi, TVC Disc and RTVE record labels.

 

He has worked as a guest conductor with choirs and orchestras such as the Spanish National Choir, the Swedish Radio Choir, the Orfeon Donostiarra choral society, the Choir of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, the Venezuelan Simon Bolivar National Youth Choir, the Radiotelevision Espanola Orchestra, the Catalan Baroque Orchestra, the Andorran National Classical Orchestra, the 1750 Academy, the El Valles Symphonic Orchestra and the Malaga Symphonic Orchestra.

 

In his role as a choral conductor, he has worked alongside leading orchestral conductors on the international music scene, among them Daniel Barenboim, Daniele Gatti, Simon Rattle, Gustavo Dudamel, Marc Minkowski, Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Rene Jacobs, Lorin Maazel, Helmuth Rilling and Franz Brüggen.

 

As a composer, his main area of interest is music for voice and instruments, and he has written an extensive body of works for children’s and youth choirs, for mixed a cappella choirs and for choir and orchestra. Sanctus-Benedictus (1992) and Salve Regina (2001) are his works most frequently performed around the world.

 

Other recent works by him include Te Deum (2010), for mezzo-soprano, choir and orchestra; Missa Sanctus-Benedictus (2015), for two a cappella choirs; and the oratorio Veni Creator Spiritus, for four soloists, choir and orchestra, first performed at the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona in 2016.

 

Since 2005, he has taught choir conducting at the Catalonia Music Highschool. He also teaches workshops, seminars and masterclasses on a regular basis in a number of cities in Europe and Latin America.

 

More information about Josep Vila i Casañas can be found at josepvila.net