Ernesto Cortázar (May 2, 1940August 2, 2004) was a Mexican composer, arranger, and pianist, born in
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
and who died in
Tampico
Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. 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 fif ...
, 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
MP3.com was a website operated by Paramount Global publishing tabloid-style news items about digital music and artists, songs, services, and technologies. It is better known for its original incarnation as a legal, free music-sharing service, ...
during the years 1999 and 2001, achieving more than 14 million downloads at that time.
After living in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, 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
Mexican male film score composers
1940 births
2004 deaths
20th-century pianists