Featured Artist

Matias Piñeira

Matias Piñeira was born in Chile and started to learn the French horn at the age of seven under the mentorship of his maternal grandfather, Antenor Piñeira. In 2000 he began his private studies with maestro Edward Brown and at the same time he was invited to be part of the National Youth Symphony Orchestra of Chile. He subsequently studied the instrument at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and attended masterclasses, among others at German Brass and with Ignacio García, the solo hornist of Staatskapelle Berlin. In 2005 he joined the National Youth Symphony Orchestra as soloist with a scholarship. The next year, he won a scholarship position and was invited to participate in the Campos do Jordão winter festival, Brazil. In this period, he was also taking lessons with the most prominent musicians of the greatest European and American orchestras. In 2008, at the age of 19, he won the position of Solo Horn of the Symphonic Orchestra of Chile where he stayed as permanent member for the following five years. In the same year Maestro Ignacio García, Solo Horn of the Berlin State Opera, invited him to take private lessons in Berlin, Germany. In this time, Matias was recognized by the Chilean press and musical critics as one of the best soloists of the season, through numerous awards. In 2014 he was part of the Orchestral Academy of the Berlin State Opera, under the baton of Maestro Daniel Barenboim. In 2015, under the mentorship of Ignacio García, he won the position of Solo Horn in the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, currently conducted by maestro Valery Gergiev.