Ernesto Cortázar (May 2, 1940August 2, 2004) was a Mexican composer, arranger, and pianist, born in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

and who died in

Tampico Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. It is located on the north bank of the Pánuco River, about inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and directly north of the state of Veracruz. Tampico is the fifth ...

, Tamaulipas. He was the son of composer, Ernesto Cortázar, founder and president of the . At the age of 13, Ernesto Cortázar lost his parents in a car accident. He finished his musical studies, and at age 17, began his work as a film musician. In 1958, he won the Best Background Music Award for a Latin American film at the International Festival of Cartagena (Colombia), with the melody ''Rio de Sueños''. He scored more than 500 films and managed to become the #1 artist of mp3.com during the years 1999 and 2001, achieving more than 14 million downloads at that time. After living in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California for most of his adult life, he returned to Mexico, settling in Tampico, where he died, the victim of cancer in 2004.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cortázar, Ernesto, II Mexican composers Mexican pianists Mexican film score composers Male film score composers 1940 births 2004 deaths 20th-century pianists