Born: 1930, Madrid, Spain

Nephew of the composers Rodolfo and Ernesto Halffter, Cristóbal Halffter studied at the Royal Conservatory in Madrid, where he later became director. He has explored many stylistic fields – neo-Classicism, 1950s modernism, aleatory, collage and quotation, and electro-acoustics – with great success, including operas, concertos, and string quartets. 

Further listening:Cello Concerto No. 2 (1985)Mstislav Rostropovich, ORTF NationalOrchestra, Cristóbal Halffter (Erato)

Ricercare (organ, 1981)Martin Haselböck (NCA)