Mateo Sepúlveda Rios
(Colombia, 1989)
Mateo Sepúlveda Ríos is a Colombian composer, conductor, and educator born in 1989. He is currently a professor of Composition and Orchestration at the National University of Colombia, as well as a professor of Conducting at Cundinamarca University, where he also serves as the Music Director of the University of Cundinamarca Symphony Orchestra.
Sepúlveda Ríos has gained recognition as a guest composer of the Impronta Ensemble, with his music featured in various international music festivals, including the CafeBudapest Music Festival in Hungary, the OggiMusica Festival in Switzerland, and the Festival Campos do Jordão in Brazil.
His works have been selected three times by the Colombian National Association of Symphonic Music for its "Plataforma 28" program, and his orchestral work "Zeit-Esencial-Zeit" was part of the symphonic program in 2015. In 2011, he was honored with the "Composers Under 25 Years" award at the "Premio Nacional de Estímulos" by the Ministry of Culture in Colombia.
As a conductor, Sepúlveda Ríos has led numerous orchestras, including the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra in the Czech Republic, the RSO (Recording Symphony Orchestra) in Colombia, the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana in Switzerland, and the Pereira Symphonic Band, among others.
Sepúlveda Ríos has received master classes in composition from notable composers such as Flo Menezes, Gustavo Parra, Moisés Bertrán, Sidney Corbett, and Anna Clyne. He completed his undergraduate degree with an emphasis in orchestral conducting at the Colombian National Conservatory of Music under the mentorship of Juan Felipe Molano and his Master's studies in Contemporary Music Conducting under the tutelage of Marc Kissoczy and the CAS with Arturo Tamayo at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana, Switzerland.
In 2019, Sepúlveda Ríos won the "Premio Estímulos Ministerio de Cultura de Colombia 2019," the most prestigious composition competition in Colombia, with his piece "(Bi)centenario" for orchestra and choir.
