Agustí Charles Soler

Agustí Charles Soler was born in Manresa (Barcelona), and began working in contemporary composition in the 1980s with the guidance of his first teachers: Miquel Roger, Albert Sardà and Josep Soler. He later studied with Franco Donatoni, Luigi Nono and Samuel Adler, as well as working with Joan Guinjoan, Cristóbal Halffter, J.R. Encinar and Ros Marbà.

He has close to fifty awards, including some of the most renowned national and international composition prizes. He has also received commissions from many institutions and prestigious musicians, and his music has been performed all over the world as a result. In 2003 he received the prize of the Association of Spanish Symphony Orchestras (AEOS) for his work Seven Looks, which was performed by all the major Spanish orchestras between the 2004 and 2008 season.

He premiered his first opera, La Cuzzoni, esperpent d'una veu in Germany in 2007. In 2012 the premier of his third opera, Java Suite, took place at the Peralada Festival (Spain) and was later performed in Barcelona and Basel.

He orchestral works have been released on various CDs. In March 2011 his second opera, Lord Byron, un estiu sense estiu, was premiered at the Staatstheater Darmstadt (Germany), with libretto by M. Rosich and stage direction by A. Romero, and was a great success with critics and the audience. In June 2011 the opera was staged in the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona.

He is also the author of numerous texts and books related to composition and musical analysis, including: "Análisis de la Música española del siglo XX" (2002), "Dodecafonismo y serialismo en España" (2005), and Instrumentación y orquestación clásica y contemporánea (5 vols).

He has a doctorate in the History of Art and currently teaches at the Aragon Superior Conservatory of Music, where he is also Director.