biography

Biography

Mr. Urretxo is currently professor at the Suwon University after serving for 5 years as a Principal Trombonist of the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra. Mr. Urrecho is a very active musician playing trombone concertos, recitals and chamber music concerts around the world.

A native of Basque Country, Spain, Unai Urretxo started his music education at the age of eight. He began his trombone studies a few years later with his brother Alberto Urretxo, currently Principal Trombonist of the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra.

In the following years, Mr.Urretxo was awarded the Maximum Award of Trombone Performance for Medium-grade and Superior-grade degrees from the San Sebastian Music Conservatory in 1995 and 2000. Francisco Rosario, Principal Trombonist of the Royal Symphony Orchestra of Seville, was his teacher while he was pursuing his Superior-grade degree. From 2000 to 2004, Mr. Urretxo continued his studies at Boston University where he was given a full scholarship from 2001 through 2004. He was also the recipient of Diputacion Foral de Guipuzcoa scholarship, a study abroad grant from Spain in 2000 and 2001. Mr. Urretxo earned his Performance Diploma Boston University in 2004. His teachers include Scott Hartman and Ronald Barron.

As an educator, Mr. Urretxo has served on the faculty of the Arrasate Musical Music School from 1997 to 2000, the Onati Musika Eskola from 1998 to 2000, and Milton High School from 2003 to 2004. During the Boston years, he has been an assistant to the trombone studio of Scott Hartman and the chamber music program for woodwind and brass. He has also conducted several trombone seminars and appeared in educational performances in the US, Spain, Brazil, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan.

As an active chamber musician, Mr. Urretxo was previously a member of the Euskadi Brass (Spain), The Commonwealth Brass Quintet (Boston, MA), and The New England Trombone Quartet (Boston, MA). His appearances with The New England Trombone Quartet include a concert at Boston University's Tanglewood Institute in June 2003.

In addition to winning Boston University's 2003 Concerto/Aria Competition, Mr. Urretxo has appeared as a soloist with the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, Korean Wind Symphony Orchestra, Bilbao Symphonic Wind Band and Arrasate Musikal Symphony Orchestra, Sogyuipo Municipal Wind Band. His numerous recital appearances have occured at Boston University, Boston University's Tanglewood Institute, and the International Music Festival in San Sebastian, Spain, where he took part in the New Artist Concert Series and received positive reviews. His latest recital appearances took place in different cities in South Korea in 2006 to the present.

As an orchestral musician, Mr. Urretxo has been principal trombonist of the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra and Sao Paolo State Symphony Orchestra. Also has performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Basque National Symphony Orchestra, Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, Cataluña National and Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, New World Symphony Orchestra, Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Cantata Singers Orchestra, Emmanuel Music Orchstra, Spoleto Festival Orchestra and Brockton Symphony Orchestra. He has also been a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center in 2001 and 2002, and was selected by the European Union Youth Orchestra in 2001. Mr. Urretxo has worked under the baton of Seiji Ozawa, Robert Spano, James Colon, Kurt Masur, Robert Abbado, Andre Previn and Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos.

In the present Unai plays with trombone Stomvi Titan.