Alexis Soriano

Biography

Alexis Soriano is a Spanish–Lithuanian orchestral conductor and composer. He studied piano at the Royal Conservatory of Madrid, continued his training in Manchester, and later studied conducting in Cleveland (USA) and Saint Petersburg, where he became a pupil of Ilya Musin. He subsequently received the mentorship of Valery Gergiev, participated in the film The Master and His Pupil, and, at Gergiev’s invitation, made his debut at the Mariinsky Theatre conducting Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro.[1]

From 1998 to 2008 Soriano served as Principal Associate Conductor of the Hermitage Orchestra. In 2001 he made his debut with the Saint Petersburg Symphony, becoming a regular guest there and with other major orchestras in Russia. Since 2009 he has been Artistic Director and principal conductor of the chamber opera company Opera Incognita, with which he conducted the company’s first fully staged opera, The Letters of Van Gogh by Grigory Frid, at the Hermitage Theatre — a production nominated for the Golden Mask Award. He was chief conductor of the INSO Lviv Symphony Orchestra (2010–2012) and, since 2012, Artistic Director of the New York Opera Society.[2]

Career

As a guest conductor, Soriano has appeared with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Symphony, Prague Symphony, Slovak Philharmonic, Lithuanian National Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, English Chamber Orchestra, Tapiola Sinfonietta (Finland), Orquestra Sinfônica de Minas Gerais, Danubia Symphony (Hungary), Moscow Virtuosi, Bacău Philharmonic, National Youth Russian Orchestra, Macedonian National Symphony, Regionale del Lazio, Seto Philharmonic (Japan), University of Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, Filarmonica de Buenos Aires, Oulu Symphony (Finland), Bari Metropolitan Orchestra, Great Theatre of Poznań, among others, and with the majority of Spain’s leading orchestras.[3]

In July 2014 he toured Japan, conducting the Seto Philharmonic and the University of Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, receiving positive notices for performances of Falla and Debussy; further invitations followed for subsequent seasons, including 2025.[4]

Opera

Soriano has appeared at the Teatro Real (Madrid), Teatro Colón (Buenos Aires), Palau de la Música de València, Gran Teatre del Liceu (Barcelona), Auditorio de Tenerife, Lithuanian National Opera, Theatro São Pedro (São Paulo), Teatro Sérgio Cardoso, Rimsky-Korsakov Theatre, Sankt Peterburg Opera, and the Hermitage Theatre. His staged opera repertoire includes Rigoletto, Faust, Boris Godunov, La fille du régiment, Le nozze di Figaro, Così fan tutte, Madama Butterfly, Eugene Onegin, Falstaff, Glaura y Cariolano (first recording of José Lidón’s 1792 opera), La scala di seta, L’arbore di Diana, Everardo II re di Lituania, and Il barbiere di Siviglia.[5]

Works and Compositions

Soriano’s catalogue spans orchestral and chamber works, solo pieces, vocal cycles, and chamber operas. His operas include Frida and Diego (based on the life of Frida Kahlo), Sonata for a Queen (on Queen Bárbara de Braganza and Ferdinand VI, with references to Scarlatti and Farinelli), and Malcolm X, A Portrait. Malcolm X, A Portrait premiered in Spain in February 2025; excerpts from Frida y Diego were presented at Casa de México en España and a full premiere is planned for 2026. In May 2024 his string quartet Of Souls and Prayers was premiered in Klaipėda (Lithuania) by the Kopa String Quartet.[6][7]

A proponent of contemporary opera, Soriano conducted world premieres such as A. Castilla-Ávila’s La Dulcinea de Don Quijote (Passau Festival, 2009), Ricardo Llorca’s Three Top Hats (São Paulo, 2017), David del Puerto’s Lilith, luna negra (Úbeda Festival, 2019), and a new production of Llorca’s The Empty Hours at the Teatro Real (Madrid, 2021).[8]

Teaching and juries

Soriano has held teaching positions and given conducting masterclasses at universities in Tokyo and Belo Horizonte, as well as in Spain. He is a member of the Spanish Composers’ Society and served as a juror at the composers’ competition in Sochi in 2015 and 2016.[9]

Festival direction

Since 2020 he has been the founder and Artistic Director of the international festival Alborada Clásica, held in Motril and Salobreña (Spain), which showcases established artists and includes masterclasses and special cultural events.[10]

Awards and recognition

  • Selected among the “100 Spaniards” excelling abroad (2014).[11]
  • Čiurlionis Foundation prize in Lithuania (as cited in the official biography).[12]

Press reception

Critical reception includes:

  • Review in Scherzo: “Las horas vacías. Soledad cibernética” (Madrid, 2021).[13]
  • La Razón praised his conducting as “Excellent and effective.”[14]
  • Ópera Actual highlighted his role in the premiere of David del Puerto’s Lilith, luna negra, noting the new horizons of contemporary opera.[15]
  • Ópera Actual also described his conducting as “Excellent and effective.”[16]

Upcoming engagements

Forthcoming conducting engagements include appearances in Spain, Lithuania, Japan, Brazil, Romania and Portugal.[17]

References

  1. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  2. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  3. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  4. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  5. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  6. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  7. ^ "Frida y Diego – Ópera de cámara en 21 cuadros". Casa de México en España (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  8. ^ Marco, Tomás (2021-11-13). "Las horas vacías. Soledad cibernética". Scherzo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  9. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  10. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  11. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  12. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  13. ^ Marco, Tomás (2021-11-13). "Las horas vacías. Soledad cibernética". Scherzo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  14. ^ "Review – La Razón". La Razón. 2021-03-20. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  15. ^ "Lilith y los nuevos horizontes". Ópera Actual (in Spanish). 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  16. ^ "Press review – Ópera Actual". Ópera Actual (in Spanish). 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
  17. ^ "Biography – Alexis Soriano". alexissoriano.com. Retrieved 2025-08-19.
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