Born in Barcelona in 1984, Marcos Fernández-Barrero graduated in piano from ESMUC, in composition from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and obtained a master's degree in composition from the Royal College of Music in London. He mainly trained with Rory Boyle, and among other teachers, he also studied with Carles Guinovart, Xavier Boliart, Arnau Bataller, Mark Anthony-Turnage, and Howard Shore, the composer of the music for The Lord of the Rings.
At the age of 39, he has already received numerous awards both in Spain and abroad, including the AEOS-Fundación BBVA 2017 award and the Francisco Guerrero Prize from SGAE. His work has been programmed worldwide, with notable performances by the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, the National Orchestra of Spain, the Orchestra of Radio Television Española, the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, the National Orchestra of Malta, the Britten Sinfonia, the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestra of Barcelona, the Galicia Symphony Orchestra, the Symhony Ochestra of Madrid, the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, the Galicia Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Symphony Orchestra of the Principality of Asturias, with whom he has been featured in more than six programs as well as on tour.
His most notable works include his recent requiem for the Corus and the Symphony Orchestra of the of Madrid (ORCAM) for its premiere at the National Concert Hall of Spain, his piano works for the Palau de la Música Catalana as well for the Maria Canals International Piano Competition, and symphonic music for the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC) at l'Auditori as well as his work Nocturno Sinfonico, programmed by the 30 professional orchestras of Spain.
He was the resident composer of the Crea.Art Project company for the creation of their first opera 'Noctum' and continued with a second opera about the world of football and the Premier League, titled 'Miracle', written in collaboration with best-seller author David Almond. After receiving great acclaim from British critics and audiences, the Arts Council of England funded the commission of his third opera to be premiered in the 2019/2020 season, 'The Soldier's Return', with a libretto by Eliot prize-winning poet Jacob Polley Jacob
His music is distinguished by a wide crossbreeding of techniques and aesthetics, where modern currents converge with contemporary tendencies, minimalism, electroacoustics, Celtic folklore, flamenco, or jazz in a versatile way, both in symphonic works and in his three operas, two ballets, chamber works, piano works, as well as work in the genre of film scores, which he also practices. All of this gives his style a unique language that has interested very different audiences, and for which he has been Composer in Residence for institutions in New York, Italy, Spain as well as for a European Union project collaborating with various countries and orchestras.
Due to his commitment to bringing music closer to society, Marcos was invited by the Royal Society of Arts to become one of their fellows in London, contry where he resided for 12 years. There, he founded the composition course at the Trinity Music Academy. After his time in Madrid, where he was a composition professor, he currently combines his work as a composer with that of a teacher at the Barcelona Conservatory, where he is currently based.
Marcos Fernandez. Sarajevo
Watch videos of interviews to the catalan composer Marcos Fernandez-Barrero here