Enrique Bátiz Campbell (4 May 1942 – 30 March 2025) was a Mexican conductor and concert pianist. Trained as a pianist inDallas, New York City and Warsaw, he focused on conducting from 1969. He co-founded theOrquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México in 1971 and conducted it until 2018, with a short interruption from 1983 to 1989 when he headed theMexico City Philharmonic Orchestra. He made many recordings, of symphonies byBeethoven andTchaikovsky as well as the complete orchestral works byJoaquín Rodrigo and music by Mexican composers.
Enrique Bátiz | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Bátiz in 2019 | |
| Born | (1942-05-04)4 May 1942 Mexico City, Mexico |
| Died | 30 March 2025(2025-03-30) (aged 82) |
| Occupations |
|
| Organizations | |
| Awards | |
Life and career
editEnrique Bátiz Campbell[1] was born inMexico City[2] on 4 May 1942.[3] He began piano lessons at age 8[4] with Francisco Agea, and continued 10 years later withGyörgy Sándor. He began to study at theSouthern Methodist University inDallas[4] and moved to theJuilliard School in New City[3] in 1965,[5] where he became a student ofAdele Marcus and also studied conducting.[4] In 1964, he made several national tours as a pianist, and in 1965 was a semifinalist in theMarguerite Long International Piano Competition in Paris.[4] A 1967 concert tour featured performances with theŁodz andSzczecin Philharmonics. From 1967 to 1970, he continued his piano studies in Poland at theWarsaw Conservatory withZbigniew Drzewiecki,[2] where he also studied conducting withStanisław Wisłocki; he graduated there as a pianist.[6]
Bátiz returned to Mexico in 1969, making his debut as a conductor in thePalacio de Bellas Artes with theXalapa Symphony Orchestra.[2] In 1970, he was a finalist in theFerruccio Busoni International Piano Competition in Italy.[4]
In April 1971, he was co-founder, director and conductor of theState of Mexico Symphony Orchestra (OSEM).[2][5][6] He toured the United States with the orchestra in 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1984.[1]
From 1983, he was music director of theMexico City Philharmonic Orchestra until 1989.[6] Outside of Mexico, Bátiz was named guest conductor of theRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1984,[3][6] and conducted them in recordings.[4] He was both guest conductor and musical advisor of the symphony orchestra ofGuanajuato.[1]
In 1990, he resumed his directorship of the OSEM. They toured in the United States in 2008 and in Europe and China several times.[1] In 2018; Bátiz stood down as music director, nominally for health reasons related to Parkinson's Disease.[3][5]
Recordings
editBatíz made some 145 recordings:[4][6] As a pianist, Bátiz made a series of recordings for Polish and Salzburg broadcasters. In 1997, Bátiz and the OSEM recordedTchaikovsky's six symphonies and other works,[5]Schumann's four symphonies and the four symphonies byBrahms. He recorded for labels such asEMI International,ASV Records,Musical Heritage Society,Naxos,Pickwick, and RPO Records. He recorded with the Royal Philharmonic, Mexico City Philharmonic, theLondon Philharmonic Orchestra, theLondon Symphony, thePhilharmonia, theRoyal Liverpool Philharmonic, and Orchestra della Toscana. He recordedBeethoven's nine symphonies,[5] and the complete orchestral music byJoaquín Rodrigo,[5][7] music byManuel M. Ponce andGeorges Bizet, and eight volumes of Mexican music. He conducted the first digital recording of theBachianas Brasileiras by Villa-Lobos.[4]
Awards
editThroughout his career, Bátiz received numerous awards. These include the Presea Bernal in art from the State of Mexico Confederation of Professionals, Rome'sInternational Gold Mercury award (the first given to a Latin American artist) and the Jose Marti and Tlatelolco's Eagle medals.[1][2] The Mexican Union of Theatrical and Musical Broadcasters named him the most distinguished artist of the year four times (1971, 1981, 1983, and 1996). In 1986, Brazil awarded him the Rio Branco medal for making the first digital recording of the nineBachianas Brasileiras by Villa-Lobos. In 1991, he received theMozart medal given by the Domecq Cultural Institute.[2][3] In 1994, because of his contribution to the musical culture of the State of Mexico and the musical world, he received theSor Juana Ines de la Cruz award for Arts and Letters. In recognition of his achievements, he was declaredMexiquense Destacado, (Outstanding Mexican).[2]
References
edit- ^abcdeMacmasters, Merry (31 March 2025)."Falleció el director de orquesta Enrique Bátiz Campbell, fundador de la OSEM".La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved4 April 2025.
- ^abcdefgh"Muere Enrique Bátiz, uno de los más importantes directores de orquesta de los últimos 50 años".Crónica (in Spanish). 30 March 2025. Retrieved2 April 2025.
- ^abcdef"Fallece el director de orquesta Enrique Bátiz".El Universal (in Spanish). 30 March 2025. Retrieved31 March 2025.
- ^abcdefghi"Conductor and Pianist Enrique Bátiz has Died, Aged 82".The Violin Channel. 1 April 2025. Retrieved2 April 2025.
- ^abcdef"Muere el director de orquesta mexicano Enrique Bátiz".Codalario (in Spanish). Oviedo. 30 March 2025. Retrieved2 April 2025.
- ^abcde"Enrique Bátiz – Director".Música en México (in Spanish). 28 August 2024. Retrieved31 March 2025.
- ^Barnett, Rob (August 2003)."Joaquin Rodrigo (1901-1999) / The Rodrigo Edition".musicweb-international.com. Retrieved2 April 2025.
External links
edit
- Enrique Bátiz discography atDiscogs
- Enrique Bátiz atIMDb
