José Alejandro Hernández Cadengo (1984).
Composer, Professor of the Faculty of Music of the National University Autonomus of Mexico, Double Bassist of the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico, Principal Double Bassist of the Symphony Orchestra of the National Polytechnic Institute.
He graduated with honors from the National Fine Arts Institute – Higher School of Music as a double bass performer, tutored by the Bulgarian maestro Nikola Georguiev Popov.
He obtained his master’s degree in musical composition with an outstanding average under the tutelage of the Spanish composer Zulema de la Cruz at the International University of La Rioja, presenting innovative musical proposals, alternating symphonic music and Mexican folklore.
Cadengo seeks to create through program music (images) a link of emotional and sentimental empathy towards difficult, social and natural causes, always linked to history, and highlighting geographical contrasts in its territory, and those events of great relevance that have traced an indelible line in time, without neglecting a nationalist line in his work.
In September 2023, Cadengo is the absolute first place winner, in the Bach International Music Competition in the original composition category, and is a finalist in the Sacrarium International Composition Competition 2023 in Ukraine. In April 2023, Cadengo is a finalist at the MAP International Music Competition in Los Angeles, California, and winner of the Platinum medal at the Beethoven International Music Contest, in March of the same year, he was the first place winner at the World Grand Prix International Music Contest, both contests held in the United Kingdom in the Original Composition category. In 2022 the Filarmonía orchestra in Spain made the world premiere of his composition Coyoacán for symphony orchestra, and in that same year he obtained two distinctions as a finalist in the Dimitri Shostakovich International Composition Competition and the KLKNewMusic International Composition Competition “Musica per archi”, in Ukraine. His works received their world premiere by the KLK String Orchestra and the Phoenix Ensemble in Ukraine.
In 2017 Giuseppe Ettorre, first double bass and soloist of the Orchestra del Teatro Alla Scala di Milano made the world premiere of his Concerto for Double Bass and Symphony Orchestra “L’inferno”, under the baton of Enrique Arturo Diemecke and the IPN Symphony Orchestra.
Orchestras such as the Querétaro Philharmonic Fine Arts Chamber Orchestra, Mexico State Symphony Orchestra, and various ensembles and chamber groups have performed world premieres of his works.
As a performer, he is currently recognized as one of the most renowned double bass players in Mexico. Being a soloist in front of numerous orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico. He performed the premiere in Mexico of Emil Tabakov’s Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra. He has participated in international festivals such as: The Texas Music Festival, where he was the winner of the Cynthia Woods Mitchel Young Artist Competition for soloists, Instrumenta – Puebla, Latin American Youth Orchestra – Venezuela, Pacific Music Festival – Canada, Youth Orchestra of the Americas – European Tour, Campos International Festival do Jordao – Brazil, Soloists Mexico – Japan.
He has published three books in literary essay style, and is designing his own double bass method for the next publication.
He has been under the baton of great directors such as Claudio Abbado, Riccardo Muti, Gustavo Dudamel, Kurt Masur, Enrique Arturo Diemecke.
Cadengo is also a Luthier, and he is currently studying as a trumpet player.