Enrique Bátiz
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Enrique Bátiz Campbell (4 May 1942 – 30 March 2025) was a Mexican conductor and concert pianist. Trained as a pianist in Dallas, New York City and Warsaw, he focused on conducting from 1969. He co-founded the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México in 1971 and conducted it until 2018, with a short interruption from 1983 to 1989 when he headed the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra. He made many recordings, of symphonies by Beethoven and Tchaikovsky as well as the complete orchestral works by Joaquín Rodrigo and music by Mexican composers.
Life and career
Enrique Bátiz Campbell<ref name="Macmasters-2025">Template:Cite news</ref> was born in Mexico City<ref name="Crónica-2025">Template:Cite news</ref> on 4Template:NbspMay 1942.<ref name="El Universal-2025">Template:Cite news</ref> He began piano lessons at age 8<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025">Template:Cite magazine</ref> with Francisco Agea, and continued 10 years later with György Sándor. He began to study at the Southern Methodist University in Dallas<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" /> and moved to the Juilliard School in New York City<ref name="El Universal-2025" /> in 1965,<ref name="Codalario-2025">Template:Cite news</ref> where he became a student of Adele Marcus and also studied conducting.<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" /> In 1964, he made several national tours as a pianist, and in 1965 was a semifinalist in the Marguerite Long International Piano Competition in Paris.<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" /> A 1967 concert tour featured performances with the Łodz and Szczecin Philharmonics. From 1967 to 1970, he continued his piano studies in Poland at the Warsaw Conservatory with Zbigniew Drzewiecki,<ref name="Crónica-2025" /> where he also studied conducting with Stanisław Wisłocki; he graduated there as a pianist.<ref name="Música en México-2024">Template:Cite web</ref>
Bátiz returned to Mexico in 1969, making his debut as a conductor in the Palacio de Bellas Artes with the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra.<ref name="Crónica-2025" /> In 1970, he was a finalist in the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition in Italy.<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" />
In April 1971, he was co-founder, director and conductor of the State of Mexico Symphony Orchestra (OSEM).<ref name="Crónica-2025" /><ref name="Codalario-2025" /><ref name="Música en México-2024" /> He toured the United States with the orchestra in 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1984.<ref name="Macmasters-2025" />
From 1983, he was music director of the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra until 1989.<ref name="Música en México-2024" /> Outside of Mexico, Bátiz was named guest conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1984,<ref name="El Universal-2025" /><ref name="Música en México-2024" /> and conducted them in recordings.<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" /> He was both guest conductor and musical advisor of the symphony orchestra of Guanajuato.<ref name="Macmasters-2025" />
In 1990, he resumed his directorship of the OSEM. They toured in the United States in 2008 and in Europe and China several times.<ref name="Macmasters-2025" /> In 2018; Bátiz stood down as music director, nominally for health reasons related to Parkinson's disease.<ref name="El Universal-2025" /><ref name="Codalario-2025" />
He served as Artistic Director for the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Hidalgo from November 2022 until his death.<ref>Orquesta Sinfónica Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo 2025</ref>
Batiz died on 30 March 2025, at the age of 82.<ref name="Crónica-2025" /><ref name="El Universal-2025" /><ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" />
Recordings
Batíz made some 145 recordings:<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" /><ref name="Música en México-2024" /> As a pianist, Bátiz made a series of recordings for Polish and Salzburg broadcasters. In 1997, Bátiz and the OSEM recorded Tchaikovsky's six symphonies and other works,<ref name="Codalario-2025" /> Schumann's four symphonies and the four symphonies by Brahms. He recorded for labels such as EMI International, ASV Records, Musical Heritage Society, Naxos, Pickwick, and RPO Records. He recorded with the Royal Philharmonic, Mexico City Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Symphony, the Philharmonia, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, and Orchestra della Toscana. He recorded Beethoven's nine symphonies,<ref name="Codalario-2025" /> and the complete orchestral music by Joaquín Rodrigo,<ref name="Codalario-2025" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> music by Manuel M. Ponce and Georges Bizet, and eight volumes of Mexican music. He conducted the first digital recording of the Bachianas Brasileiras by Villa-Lobos.<ref name="The Violin Channel-2025" />
Awards
Throughout his career, Bátiz received numerous awards. These include the Presea Bernal in art from the State of Mexico Confederation of Professionals, Rome's International Gold Mercury award (the first given to a Latin American artist) and the Jose Marti and Tlatelolco's Eagle medals.<ref name="Macmasters-2025" /><ref name="Crónica-2025" /> The Mexican Union of Theatrical and Musical Broadcasters named him the most distinguished artist of the year four times (1971, 1981, 1983, and 1996). In 1986, Brazil awarded him the Rio Branco medal for making the first digital recording of the nine Bachianas Brasileiras by Villa-Lobos. In 1991, he received the Mozart medal given by the Domecq Cultural Institute.<ref name="Crónica-2025" /><ref name="El Universal-2025" /> In 1994, because of his contribution to the musical culture of the State of Mexico and the musical world, he received the Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz award for Arts and Letters. In recognition of his achievements, he was declared Mexiquense Destacado, (Outstanding Mexican).<ref name="Crónica-2025" />