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A native of Granada, Spain, Heras-Casado has been making headlines since his win – by unanimous vote – of the 2007 Lucerne Festival Conductors’ Competition. Since his 2008 U.S. debut at Carnegie Hall, he has brought his star power to performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, and the Berlin Philharmonic, to name but a few. Also active in the worlds of opera and ballet, he has conducted performances by the English and Welsh National Operas, the Teatro Real of Madrid, the Canadian Opera Company, and La Monnaie in Brussels, the Mariinsky in St Petersburg as well as the world premiere of Marc-Olivier Dupin’s ballet Les enfants du paradis for Opéra National de Paris.
In December 2011 Heras-Casado was awarded a Medal of Honor by the Rodriguez Acosta Foundation. 2012 highlights include performances with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at the Caramoor festival in July, as well as debuts with Bayerischer Rundfunk Munich, Concertgebouw Orchestra, Mahler Chamber Orchestra , Salzburg and Lucerne Festivals and L’elisir d’amore at the Baden-Baden Festpielehaus in June.
1. A few works of classical music that you adore:
Monteverdi’s Orfeo, Victoria’s “Tenebrae Responsories”, Mozart’s Nozze, Schumann 4, Verdi’s Macbeth, Berg’s Wozzeck, Debussy’s Jeux… should I stop?
2. Classical music recordings that you treasure:
Enrico Onofri’s “La voce nel violino,” Bach’s Missae breves with Cantus Köln, Brahms’ Piano Quartet with Trio Wanderer, Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra with Abbado.
3. Favorite non-classical musicians and/or recordings:
Esperanza Spalding, Enrique Morente, José Mercé, La Lupe, Goran Bregović, Wynton Marsalis
4. Music that makes you cry – any genre:
Depends on the moment and the mood… any great music.
5. Definitely underrated work(s) or composer (s):
Mendelssohn, Spanish Renaissance masters.
6. Possibly overrated work(s) or composer (s):
Some of the bel canto operas…
7. Live music performance (s) you attended – any genre – that you’ll never forget:
My first Fado experience in Lisbon, Mahler 2 in Berlin with BPO, Messiaen´s “Quatuor pour la fin du temps” in a small cemetery in the mountains.
8. A few relatively recent films you love:
Incendies; Amanece, que no es poco.
9. A few films you consider classics:
Les enfants du Paradis.
10. A book (or two) that is important to you (and why):
Cervantes’ “El Quijote” is the best book ever written: like the greatest art, it’s universal, sophisticated, intelligent, and simple and unpretentious (just read the preface!). I also really enjoy Lorca’s “Poeta en Nueva York,” wonderful poetry and a terrible critical vision of modern society; it’s sadly valid in our time.
11. Thing(s) about yourself that you’re most proud of:
I think I’m a good person.
12. Thing(s) about yourself that you’re embarrassed by:
No one needs to know that…!
13. Three things you can’t live without:
The sun, my family, and my iPhone!!
14. “When I want to get away from it all I…”
Go to Granada.
15. “People are surprised to find out that I…”
Don’t have a driver’s license, but I travel all over the world.
16. “My favorite cities are…”
Granada and New York (and sometimes Paris, Tokyo, Capileira, Bordeaux, Madrid, Toronto, Berlin…)
17. “I have a secret crush on…”
That’s a secret…!
18. “My most obvious guilty pleasure is…”
Cold beer after concerts.
19. “I’d really love to meet – or to have met…”
My grandfather Nicolás… before he died, I just started to understand how great that man was in his sublime simplicity.
20. “I never understood why…”
People don’t respect each other; your problems are not their fault (…in most cases).
BONUS QUESTION:
21. Question you wish someone would ask you (and the answer to that question):
Q: Would you like another espresso?
A: Yes.
Past installments of 20 (PLUS) QUESTIONS:
Harpsichordist and Conductor Christophe Rousset
New-Music Sextet eighth blackbird
Composer and Violinist Mark O'Connor
Composer Jake Heggie
Composer Ricky Ian Gordon
Pianist David Greilsammer
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Albert Imperato, a music promoter who co-founded 21C Media Group in January 2000, writes frequently about the arts for various publications and blogs.
His new series, 20 (PLUS) QUESTIONS, is his take on (and nod to) Vanity Fair's "Proust Questionnaire." Email him at [email protected].
