Celso Antunes (born November 12, 1959) is a Brazilian conductor located in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Biography

Antunes studied singing and conducting at the

University of São Paulo The University of São Paulo ( pt, Universidade de São Paulo, USP) is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian public university and the country's most prestigious educational institution, the bes ...

, achieved recognition as assistant conductor of the São Paulo Youth Symphony Orchestra and obtained a DAAD

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...

to complete his studies on at the

Musikhochschule Köln A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...

in Germany, where he graduated in 1990. Shortly afterward, in 1991, Antunes founded his own new music group, the Tippett Ensemble, which continues to give concerts throughout

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, always featuring mainly contemporary music. Following his debut with the Neues Rheinisches Kammerorchester at the

Kölner Philharmonie The Kölner Philharmonie is a symphonic concert hall located in Cologne, Germany. It is part of the building assemble of the Museum Ludwig and was opened in 1986. The Kölner Philharmonie is located close to the Cologne Cathedral and the Cologn ...

, he was appointed its Chief Conductor, a post he held from 1994 until 1998. During roughly the same period (1994–1997) he was also Chief Conductor of the Antwerp-based ensemble Champ d'Action. His engagements have included appearances at the Flanders Festival, the

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

MusikTriennale, the Kurt-Weill-Festival in Dessau and the Living Music Festival in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

. Antunes has appeared with such artists as the Cappella Istropolitana Bratislava, the WDR Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Gürzenich Orchestra, the

Irish Chamber Orchestra The Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) is an Irish classical music ensemble, administratively based at the University of Limerick. János Fürst founded the ICO in 1963. The ICO consisted only of strings as its regular ensemble for many years, adding w ...

, the

Latvian National Symphony Orchestra The Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO; lv, Latvijas Nacionālais simfoniskais orķestris) is a Latvian orchestra based in Riga. Its primary performance venue is the Great Guild Hall in Riga. In addition to regular symphonic concert ...

in Riga, the Radio Sinfonieorchester NDR Hannover, the

Ulster Orchestra The Ulster Orchestra, based in Belfast, is the only full-time professional orchestra in Northern Ireland. The orchestra plays the majority of its concerts in Belfast's Ulster Hall and Waterfront Hall. It also gives concerts across the United K ...

(

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

) and the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz. Between 2002 and 2007, Antunes was the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of The National Chamber Choir of Ireland. He also returns annually to conduct in Brazil, where he appears with the Camerata Fukuda and with the São Paulo State Symphony. In August 2004, Antunes was bestowed the honour of the ''

Order of Rio Branco The Order of Rio Branco (''Ordem de Rio Branco'') is an honorific order of Brazil instituted by decree 51.697 of February 5, 1963. It is named in honor of the Brazilian diplomat José Paranhos, Baron of Rio Branco. The President of Brazil serves ...

'', in the rank of ''Commander'', by the Brazilian government, for the extraordinary artistic services rendered to his native Brazil.

Selected discography

External links

www.celsoantunes.net

1959 births Living people Brazilian conductors (music) Musicians from São Paulo 21st-century conductors (music) {{Brazil-musician-stub