Carlos Cárdenas

Carlos Cárdenas is a versatile composer whose musical work explores the tension between traditional musical forms and contemporary compositional techniques. He has a particular interest in the relationship between sound and image, especially in the context of film and visual media. His repertoire includes solo and ensemble works, pieces for brass band, performance art, wind orchestra, and symphony orchestra. His music has been performed in Europe and South America.

He has received commissions from institutions such as the European Brass Band Association, the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, the Jenaer Philharmonie, the Theater Altenburg Gera, the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, and the contemporary music ensemble of the University of Caldas in Colombia. His compositions have also been broadcast by stations such as Deutschlandfunk, rbbKultur, hr2-kultur, and MDR Kultur.

In 2022, he was awarded the Theodor Gouvy Composition Prize in Saarbrücken, as part of the composers’ workshop in cooperation with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie. He has also received scholarships and awards from the Fundación Mazda para el Arte y la Ciencia (2013), the DAAD Prize for outstanding achievements by international students at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg (2014), the Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg (2016), the Schloss Wiepersdorf Artist Residency (2018), and the Goethe-Institut (2020).

As a music educator, he combines artistic and pedagogical approaches to create inspiring teaching environments. His experience teaching in Germany and Colombia has enabled him to support students with diverse backgrounds and levels of experience, foster creativity, and achieve sustainable learning outcomes. He has taught at several music schools in Bogotá, has been a guest lecturer at the International Music Festival of Manizales (Colombia), and served as adjunct faculty at the Universidad de los Andes. In addition, he has taught at various educational institutions in Freiburg and Dresden.

He has served on juries and selection panels for artistic and educational projects in various Latin American cultural institutions, including the Sociedad de Autores y Compositores del Ecuador (Sayce), the Instituto Distrital de las Artes de Bogotá (IDARTES), the Colombian Ministry of Culture, and the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá (OFB).

Cárdenas studied piano, composition, and music education at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá. He then completed the Konzertexamen/Master Class in Composition at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg under Prof. Cornelius Schwehr. He also earned a Master’s degree in Film Music and completed composition studies with Prof. Brice Pauset. He has attended masterclasses with Luis Bacalov, Benjamin Köthe, Mathias Steinauer, Vladimir Tarnopolski, and Carola Bauckholt.

In addition to working as a freelance composer, he teaches music at general education schools in Gera (Germany) and is actively involved in organizing concerts as well as artistic and educational projects.