Long Bio

His most popular orchestral piece, Mariachitlán, has garnered an impressive 120 performances worldwide, including a notable rendition by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. Contreras is the founder and conductor of the Orquesta Latino Mexicana, a two-time Latin GRAMMY®-nominated ensemble based in Guadalajara. He is renowned as the first Mexican-born composer to sign a record deal with Universal Music, to serve as Sound Investment Composer for Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and to win the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise.

Contreras’ music has been performed by 60 major orchestras around the world, including Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, and National Symphony Orchestra (USA), Extremadura Orchestra (Spain), Jalisco Philharmonic and Minería Symphony Orchestra (Mexico), Córdoba Symphony (Argentina), National Symphony of Colombia, and Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela. His works have also been presented in prestigious venues such as Walt Disney Concert Hall, Carnegie Hall, and Hollywood Bowl. Contreras has received commissions from Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, California Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Tucson Symphony, ROCO, Berkeley Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic, Chicago Sinfonietta, Las Vegas Philharmonic, and Richmond Symphony.

He has been honored with numerous awards, including BMI William Schuman Prize, New Music USA’s Amplifying Voices, Presser Music Award, Jalisco Orchestral Composition Prize, Brian Israel Prize, Arturo Márquez Composition Contest, ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award, Dutch Harp Composition Contest, Nicolas Flagello Award, and two grants from Mexico’s National Fund for Culture and the Arts. Contreras has also served as Composer-in-Residence with Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, soundON Festival of Modern Music in San Diego, Cactus Pear Music Festival in San Antonio, and Concerts on the Slope in New York.

He earned degrees in composition from University of Southern California (DMA), Manhattan School of Music (MM), and California Institute of the Arts (BFA). His most influential teachers include Richard Danielpour, Daniel Catán, Nils Vigeland, Andrew Norman, and Donald Crockett. Contreras’ music has been recorded on Universal Music Mexico, EMI, Albany Records, Epsa Music, and Urtext Digital Classics. With a deep commitment to championing the music of living composers, Contreras is the first Mexican-born member of New Music USA’s Board of Directors. He lives in Los Angeles and currently teaches at the USC Thornton School of Music.