Jazzik #4 – Tango special: “End of the Rainbow”

Born in Tolosa, Basque Country, Enrique Ugarte began playing the accordion at the age of 4. At the age of 6, he composed his first song, and at 7, he played his first public concert in front of 1,500 listeners. Enrique Ugarte studied accordion, oboe, and composition at the Conservatorio Superior de Música in San Sebastián. He then studied composition at the Munich University of Music (master class degree). He learned conducting from Sergiu Celibidache in Munich and Mainz and from Ernst Schelle in France.

Among the many international awards Enrique Ugarte has won as an ACCORDIONIST, the following titles are worth mentioning: European Champion in Tilburg, Holland; Vice World Champion at the Accordion World Championship in Recanati, Italy; winner of the “Coupe Noel de Paris.” He performs in Europe’s largest concert halls: Elbphilharmonie, Berlin Philharmonic, Musikverein Vienna, Munich Philharmonic, Cologne Philharmonic, Vienna Konzerthaus, and many more. Enrique Ugarte has performed with Chick Corea, Giora Feidman, and Till Brönner, as well as on many television and radio programs in Germany (Willy Astor (BR), Michael Schantze (ZDF)… BR, NDR, etc.), Spain, and Russia. Numerous CD recordings document his extensive work.

As a COMPOSER, he has created commissioned compositions for film, theater, symphonic music, opera, and musicals, and has arranged several pop-classical productions for orchestra. Clients: NDR, WDR, Komische Oper Berlin, Bremer Philharmoniker, and many more. Writes arrangements for many stars, such as Johannes Oerding, Kings Singers, Take 6, Giora Feidman, Max Mutzke, Dominique Horwitz, and many others.
Enrique Ugarte has orchestrated more than 60 national and international film soundtracks (including “Das Wunder von Bern” and “Die Päpstin”) and works on various projects as an orchestrator with the Basque National Orchestra, Munich Radio Orchestra, NDR Radio Philharmonic, WDR Symphony Orchestra, WDR Funkhaus Orchestra, Komische Oper Berlin, Zurich Symphony Orchestra, Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, Freiburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, Bochum Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Córdoba, among others. Most recently, CD productions with Max Mutzke, Johannes Oerding (Sony Records / NDR Radio Philharmonic).

As a CONDUCTOR, Enrique Ugarte works with world-renowned orchestras: Basque National Orchestra, BR-Munich Radio Orchestra, Komische Oper Berlin, NDR Radio Philharmonic, Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra, The English Chamber Orchestra, WDR Funkhausorchester, Tonkünstler Orchestra Vienna, Munich Symphony Orchestra, Württemberg Philharmonic Orchestra, Northwest German Philharmonic Orchestra, Kiel Philharmonic Orchestra, Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, Bremen Philharmonic Orchestra, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, Cordoba Symphony Orchestra, Pamplona “Concerto” Orchestra, Granada Symphony Orchestra, Minsk Bolshoi Theater Orchestra and Choir, Philharmonie der Nationen, Freiburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Hagen Philharmonic Orchestra, German Film Orchestra Babelsberg, Radio Symphony Orchestra Pilsen, Rheinische Philharmonie, Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, Slovak Radio Orchestra Bratislava, Zurich Symphony Orchestra, among others.

As a conductor, he works with renowned soloists such as Mischa Maisky, Fazil Say, Mike Oldfield, Till Brönner, Daniel Müller-Schott, Giora Feidman, Max Mutzke, Johannes Oerding, Take 6, and many others. He conducts in Europe’s most prestigious concert halls, such as the Elbphilharmonie and Musiverein in Vienna.
Enrique Ugarte conducts opera, symphonic music, symphonic jazz, soul, pop-classical productions (Max Mutzke, Johannes Oerding, Nena, Claudia Jung, etc.) and film scores, including for Buena Vista International. From 2003 to 2006, he was musical director of the Schlossfestspiele Ettlingen. He conducted the Basque National Orchestra at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao for the world premiere of the work “Sound of the Spheres” by and with Mike Oldfield. He is a regular guest conductor and arranger with the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. CD productions with the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Radio Orchestra, Basque National Orchestra San Sebastian, German Film Orchestra Babelsberg, Tessarini Chamber Orchestra Brno, Orquesta Concerto Pamplona, Slovak Radio Orchestra, among others.

For almost 20 years of touring, Quadro Nuevo has been searching for the soul of tango. The adventurous virtuosos have traveled to countless places, explored daring styles of playing, and won two ECHO awards.

At the beginning of 2014, they packed up their instruments once again:
this time it wasn’t to go on tour, but on an expedition to Buenos Aires in the summer.

They took up residence in an old city villa, rehearsed for days in the shimmering midday heat, swarmed out in the evenings, plunged headlong into the scene, mingled with Argentine musicians, accompanied dancers, met famous tangueros and crazy street poets, held nightly conversations until dawn, and intoxicated themselves with heavy wine and fresh tango straight from the source. These experiences, transformed into music, took shape in the new Quadro Nuevo album “TANGO!”