José Luis García del Busto Arregui

He was born in Xàtiva (Valencia) in 1947. He holds a degree in Mathematics from the Complutense University and taught mathematics at the Cardenal Cisneros Institute in Madrid.

At the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid, his main professors were Roberto Plá and Mili Porta (music theory), Hermes Kriales (violin), Amparo Fuster (piano), Enrique Massó (harmony), Manuel García Matos (folklore), and Federico Sopeña (musical history and aesthetics). Sopeña and Enrique Franco were his main teachers and mentors in the fields of music history and criticism.

In 1972, he began his career as a lecturer and writer on music. Between 1974 and 2007, he worked on music programs for Spanish National Radio, where he produced thousands of hours of music programming. He served as Head of Classical Radio Programs and represented RNE at the UNESCO International Tribune of Composers and the Italian Prize.

Between 1990 and 1994, he was deputy director of the Center for the Diffusion of Contemporary Music at INAEM (Ministry of Culture), subsequently returning to the programs of Classical Radio (RNE).

From 1976 to 1985, he was a music critic for “El País” and, from 1995 to 2006, for “ABC.”

He has published books on Luis de Pablo, Joaquín Turina, Tomás Marco, Manuel de Falla, Carmelo Bernaola, José Cubiles, and Joan Guinjoan. As a translator, he is co-author of the Spanish version of the “Guide to Chamber Music” and of the book “Carlo Gesualdo” by Denis Morrier, both published by Ed. Fayard, Paris. He is also the author of works on the Orchestra and Choir of the Community of Madrid, the Reina Sofía Chamber Orchestra, the Spanish National Choir, and the Spanish National Orchestra.

He regularly collaborates on program notes for concerts throughout Spain, on record booklets, and on entries in music dictionaries and encyclopedias.

He has served on Spanish and international juries for numerous music awards in Performance and Composition.

Since 2016, he has taught music courses for the UNED Senior University of Xàtiva (Valencia).

Since 2013 he has been a Full Member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando (Madrid), an institution of which he was Secretary General between 2015-2023, and has been appointed Corresponding Member of the Academies of Our Lady of Angustias (Granada), St. Elizabeth of Hungary (Seville), Sant Jordi (Barcelona) and San Carlos (Valencia).