Mariana Villanueva (born 1964) is a Mexican music educator and composer.
Mariana Villanueva. (Mexico City, 1964)
Music as highly spiritual activity is the core of Mariana Villanueva´s music, through which she tries to reach de very depths of her inner world in search of an ancestral knowledge of a universal nature. Such a treasure can be revealed trough, dreams, symbols, myths and art. The way to a transcendent world trough the music, is the path of this composer.
Mariana Villanueva has received the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Award (1999); The MEXICO/ USA Rockefeller, FONCA/ BANCOMER Prize (1995) (1996); and some other rewards from FONCA (1993) (1997) and Carnegie Mellon University. She has been written works for the Carnegie Mellon Trio (1993), The Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble (1996); and The Ensamble Cosmopolitano of Berlín (2002).
She also has collaborated for the Carnegie Mellon Drama Department under the direction of stage directors Rina Yerushalmi (La casa de Bernarda Alba, 1990) and Yossy Israeli (Antigone,1991) , and in Mexico for The Ballet del Teatro del Espacio with Gladiola Orozco (El Gran Viaje,1997).
She began her musical studies at National Conservatory in México City,studying under Mario Lavista, Fredrico Ibarra, Julio Estrada and [[Daniel Catan] and continued her preparation at Carnegie Mellon University, under Leonardo Balada and Lucas Foss, where she received her Bachelors (1992) and Masters (1995) degrees in Music Composition. Since 1987, her works have been performed in Mexico, and occasionally in The United States (New York, New Mexico Indiana, and Pittsburgh) by the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, Carnegie Mellon Trio and The New Mexico String Quartet. In Europe her music has heard in Spain, Germany, Switzerland and Sweden.
As a complement for her creative search, M.Villanueva completed a Ph.Degree in Music History (Mexico City, UAM-I, 2004) in relation with musical archetypes in the case of the Cuban composer Julian Orbón. Currently she teaches music composition at he Centro Morelense de las Artes in Cuernavca, Morelos
Villanueva has composed for solo instruments, musical theater, chamber ensemble and symphony orchestra. Selected works include:
"Ritual" For orchestra. (1993)
"El jardín del sol" (1997) "Ishtar" For soprano and prepared piano. (1999)
"Medea" for solo viola (2009)
Her work has been recorded and issued on CD, including: