Cristóbal Halffter

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Cristóbal Halffter (born March 24, 1930 in Madrid) is a Spanish composer. He is the nephew of two other composers, Rodolfo and Ernesto Halffter.

In 1936, Halffter's family moved to Germany to escape the Spanish Civil War, but they returned to Madrid in 1939, and Halftter studied at the German Conservatory there, graduating in 1951. In 1955, he was appointed conductor of the Falla orchestra. He forged a successful career as composer and conductor, writing music which combined a traditional Spanish element with avant-garde techniques. His Piano Concerto won the National Music Prize in 1953. In 1961 he became Professor of Composition at the Royal Conservatory of Madrid.

Halffter's works include the opera Don Quijote (2000).

[edit] Selected works

• Concerto for piano and orchestra (1953)
• Tres piezas (1955) for string quartet
• Introducción, fuga y finale (1957) for piano
• Líneas y puntos (1966) for 20 wind instruments and electroacoustics
• Anillos (1966) for orchestra
• Cantata Symposium (1966)
• Yes, speak out, yes (1966), cantata
• Noche pasiva del sentido (1970) for soprano, two percussionists and 4 tape recorders
• Llanto por las víctimas de la violencia (1971) for chamber group and electroacoustics
• Elegía de la muerte de tres poetas españoles (1975)
• Officium defunctuorum (1979) for orchestra and chorus
• Versus (1983)
• Siete cantos de España (1992/92)
• Don Quixote (2000), opera
• Attendite (2003) for cello octet