Javier Alvarez

Spanish Contemporary Classical Composer

Javier Alvarez (8 May 1956, Mexico City, Mexico) is a Mexican composer who studied the clarinet and composition in Mexico City before attending the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. He moved to London in 1981, where he studied at the RCM and at City University (PhD 1993). He was a founding member and chair of the Sonic arts network, and artistic director of the SPNM (1995–96). In 1997, he was appointed professor of composition at the Malmö Conservatory. His music combines the energy and rhythmic vitality of his Latin-American roots with elements of the European symphonic tradition. A large number of his works composed after 1982 skilfully combine solo instruments with electro-acoustic sounds derived from the instrument’s timbre.