Blanca Anabitarte

Graduated in Art History from the Autonomous University of Madrid, in 1989 she moved to Boston, receiving a scholarship from the Fulbright Commission, and achieved the degree of Master in Choir Conducting at the New England Conservatory of Music, under the tutelage of Tamara Brooks. After a four-year stay in the United States, he returned to Madrid where he obtained the Higher Degree in Choir Conducting in 1994.

His training in choral conducting is complemented by studies in Orchestra direction abroad under the direction of teachers such as Kirk Trevor, Tsung Yeh, Harold Farberman and Daniel Lewis, and Choral Conducting courses in Spain taught by teachers Eric Ericson, Christian Grube and Adrianne Vinczeffy.

Is artistic director of the Francis Poulenc Choir of Madrid since its foundation in 1993. She also directs the Alumni Choir of the Colegio Nuestra Señora Santa María de Madrid (currently Colegio Madrid-Fundación Santa María) and the Symphonic Choir, Women's Choir and Chamber Choir of the Superior Conservatory of Music of Castilla y León, whose chair he has held since 2000.

He has directed the Semicircle Choir from the Higher School of Industrial Engineers of Madrid (1997-2000) with which he obtained Third Prize in the IX “Villa de Griñón” Spanish Song Contest for Choral Masses in 1999, the Choir of the Municipal School of Music of Pinto ( 1997-1999), the Sta. María de los Rosales School Choir (1993-1994) and the Attleborough Public School Choir in the United States (1991-1992).

As director of the Francis Poulenc Choir she has performed in some of the most important festivals and auditoriums of Spanish geography: Festival of Sacred Art of the CAM -FIAS-, Sacred Music Week of Segovia, Sacred Music Cycle “Music and Holy Week in Europe” of Galicia, Ribagorza Festival of Huesca, Royal Coliseum Carlos III of El Escorial, Teatro Real de Madrid, Joaquín Rodrigo de Aranjuez Auditorium, etc. Outside of Spain, he has participated in the Guayaquil International Choir Festival (Ecuador, 1999), Santiago de Cuba Choir Festival (Cuba, 2005) and the Algarve Choir Festival (Portugal, 2011). He has toured France (1999), on the occasion of the Anthological Exhibition on Goya held at the Musée de Beaux-Arts of Lille, Germany (2006), invited by the Universität der Künste of Berlin, Netherlands (2008), with a project in collaboration with the Naarden Chamber Orchestra; In 2017, he went on a concert tour of Sweden, invited by the Landstingskoren of Uppsala and last May he celebrated his thirtieth anniversary with two concerts in Rome: Iglesia San Carlino alle Quattro Fontane and Iglesia del Montserrato.

In the field of old music He has performed, in collaboration with relevant historicist groups, some of the most representative works such as: The Passion According to Saint John by JS Bach, Musikalische Exequien by H. Schütz, Membra Jesu Nostri by D. Buxtehude, Cantatas BWV 4&150 or Misa in G minor BWV235 by JS Bach, among others.

In the symphonic-choral field, the Francis Poulenc Choir, under the training of its director, has collaborated with various symphony orchestras, among which we can mention the Naardens Kamerorkest of Holland (Nänie by J. Brahms, 2008), the Symphony Orchestra of Ávila (Mozart Requiem, 2019), and the Madrid Stage Orchestra (Cimarosa Requiem, 2015). Since 2012 he has collaborated with the Choir and the Symphony Orchestra of the Superior Conservatory of Music of Castilla y León in various projects, among which it is worth mentioning A German Requiem by J. Brahms (December, 2011), and Choros nº10 by H. Villa-Lobos (June, 2013), Requiem K626 by WA Mozart (June, 2015) and Psalm 42 Op.42 by F. Mendelssohn (June, 2022).

The Francis Poulenc Choir has obtained the following awards : First Prize in the Antonio José de Burgos National Choral Competition. October 2004 · Audience Award and Third Prize at the XXXIV Ejea de los Caballeros Choral Competition. April 2003. · Second Prize at the XIV Festival of Choral Masses of Autol (La Rioja). June 2001 Second Prize in the Christmas Carol Contest of the Excmo. City of Madrid. Cultural Center of the Village. December 1999. · First Prize in the VII Santa Lucía '98 Christmas Carol Contest in Madrid. December 1998. · First Prize in the XII Ciudad de Colmenar de Oreja Christmas Carol Contest (Madrid). December 1998. · Third Prize in the XXIX Choral Competition of Ejea de los Caballeros (Zaragoza). April 1998. · First Prize in the Christmas Carol Contest of the Hon. City of Madrid. Cultural Center of the Village. December 1997.

As a guest conductor, she has conducted, among others, The New Times Baroque Voices (Belgium), El Arte Mvsico, the Baroque Orchestra of the Castelló Superior Conservatory of Music, the Kammerchor der Universität der Künste of Berlin, the OBAROQ Baroque Orchestra and Choir of Roquetas de Mar, the Naardens Kammerorkest of Holland, the Attleborough Choir (USA), the Ensemble Coeli et Terra of Lille (France), the Choir and Orchestra of the “New England Conservatory of Music” of Boston (USA), among others.

He has prepared choirs for the Ávila Symphony Orchestra (Mozart Requiem, 2017), Castilla y León Symphony Orchestra (Verdi Requiem, 2018), Ensemble Matheus and Baroque Orchestra of the OSCyL (Gloria de Vivaldi, 2017), Symphony Orchestra of Higher Conservatory of Music of Castilla y León (German Requiem by Brahms, 2011, Choros no. , and San Juan de Dios Baroque Orchestra (Passion according to Saint John by JS Bach, 2019).