L’Auditori and the Barcelona Symphony Band are organising, with the collaboration ‎of the Catalan Federation of Musical Societies (FCSM), L’Auditori’s First Conducting ‎Course for Symphony Bands. Led by José Rafael Pascual-Vilaplana, principal ‎conductor of the Barcelona Symphony Band, the course will take place between ‎‎13 and 17 July.‎
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L’Auditori and the Band are offering this training course in order to contribute towards ‎enhancing skills within the field of orchestral conducting through theoretical and ‎practical learning. Students will work on the repertoire with the Barcelona ‎Symphony Band and cover elements such as learning conducting gestures, score study and ‎analysis technique, rehearsal planning, the challenge faced by conductors to achieve ‎instrumental tuning, and also other vital aspects such as taking into account practical ‎considerations including programming for an amateur band, motivation and ensemble ‎development.‎

His experience with similar courses has led the Band’s principal conductor, José Rafael ‎Pascual-Vilaplana, to devise a course that will enable concert band conductors to explore the ‎technical aspects of their role in greater depth and gain a contextual insight of ‎concert bands, both from the point of view of the original repertoire for this ensemble and ‎from the perspective of their singularity as an orchestral group.‎

The final day of the course, Friday 17 July, will be devoted to ‎‎preparing the closing concert, in which course participants will conduct the ‎Barcelona Symphony Band presenting the pieces they have worked on during the ‎week. The concert will take place in L’Auditori’s Sala 2 Oriol Martorell and entry will ‎be free with invitation. ‎


‎Two registration options‎
In order to make L’Auditori’s First Conducting Course for Symphony Bands as accessible as ‎possible, a maximum of 10 participating students will be accepted and also ‎several observing studentswill be able to attend, sitting in on the theory ‎and practical classes as spectators. The course will take place in the mornings and afternoons. ‎

‎José Rafael Pascual-Vilaplana, a well-established conductor ‎
José R. Pascual-Vilaplana, principal conductor of the Barcelona Symphony Band and director ‎of the Conducting Course, boasts a career path that attests to his excellence in conducting ‎and also composition. He was born in Muro (Alicante) and studied Conducting for Symphony ‎Bands in Holland with maestros such as Jan Cober and Eugene Corporon, and also Orchestral ‎Conducting in Vienna with figures including Karl Österreicher, Yuji Yuhasa and Hans Graf.‎

He has directed the Buenos Aires Symphony Band, the National Youth Orchestra of the ‎Netherlands, the National Band of Cuba, the symphony bands of Alicante, Castellón, Madrid, ‎Pontevedra, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, and others. Since 2018, he has been principal conductor ‎of the Barcelona Symphony Band. He is also conductor of the Orquestra de Vents Filharmonia ‎and principal guest conductor of the Portuguese Symphonic Band (Porto).‎
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He teaches conducting for concert band at the E.C.M Vall d’Albaida and the ISEB in Trento ‎‎(Italy). Most notable amongst the various awards he has received is the First Prize “Baton of ‎Honour” of the 1st European Young Conductors’ Competition for Composition organised by ‎the EBBA in Birmingham (UK) and the Federation of Music Societies of the Autonomous ‎Region of Valencia’s Euterpe Award in two categories: Festival Music Composition and ‎Orchestral Conducting.‎


‎The Barcelona Symphony Band, an institution with more than 130 years’ ‎history ‎

The Barcelona Symphony Band is one of the oldest music ensembles in Barcelona. Founded ‎in 1886 by Barcelona City Council, L’Auditori has been its home since 2007 and is the venue for ‎its regular concert season. It develops projects in collaboration with Spanish and international ‎artists and groups. As of September 2018, it began a new phase with José R. Pascual-‎Vilaplana as its principal conductor.‎

In 2016, the Band celebrated 130 years of existence, during which time it has remained ‎faithful to the objectives for which it was originally created; namely, bringing the music of ‎great composers to the public by offering high-quality performances. It has also succeeded in ‎adapting to new challenges by expanding the reach of the current concert band repertoire, ‎commissioning new works by Catalan composers and collaborating with a diverse range of ‎artists.‎

Today, the Barcelona Symphony Band is an institution that is committed to the society ‎around it, giving its time and being an active player in championing the Barcelona ‎instrumental scene.‎

For more information about L’Auditori’s First Conducting Course for Symphony Bands, from ‎‎13 to 17 July 2020, write to ‎‎cursdirecciobandes2020@gmail.com.‎