Santiago Marín Acuña
Director
Santiago Marín Acuña is Director of the Universidad de Santiago Chorus and of the San Ramón Female Chorus; he has worked over 30 years in the choral musical field in stages of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil and Ecuador.
He has been a member of outstanding vocal groups such as the “Solistas de Santiago” chorus, directed by Guido Minoletti, and the “Schola Cantorum”, directed by Richard Kistler.
He has participated and won the “Crecer cantando” contest of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago in three opportunities.
In 1976, together with finishing his Engineering career at the Universidad de Santiago, he is appointed assistant director of the Chamber Chorus and the Universidad de Santiago Chorus.
In this stage of his life, he carries out an important musical activity that embraces a capella and choral symphonic work from the universal patrimony. As a formal director, he has added, to his already long chorus repertoire, works such as Bach’s Christmas Oratorio and his 4 and 106 Cantatas, Mozart’s Masses of the Sparrows and the Crowning, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony and Choral Fantasy.
For the current year, he is preparing Mozart’s “Requiem” and Bach’s “Magnificat” to be performed by the Universidad de Santiago Orchestra directed by Master David del Pino Klinge.
The Universidad de Santiago’s Chorus was founded in November 1956 by Master Mario Baeza. It has been directed by outstanding Masters such as: Fernando Arévalo, Silvia Sandoval, Belfort Ruz, Vicente Bianchi, William Child, Guilllermo Cárdenas, Rodrigo Díaz and Santiago Marín. At present, it is considered one of the most prestigious musical groups in the choral music field.
In 1968 it gained fame at the Lincoln Center Festival of New York as one of the choruses with the highest artistic level. Its performances in different Latin-American countries and the whole Chilean territory- including visits to peasants communities and labor centers in distant regions- have given this chorus a great communication capacity and communion among the population and the world of art and it has been recognized by the public and specialized criticism.
In its repertoire there are authors of all times: Haendel ‘s “The Messiah” and “Te Deum Dettingen”, Bach’s “Christmas Oratorio”, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Bruckner’s “Requiem”, Fauré’s “Requiem”, Poulenc’s “Gloria”, Orff ‘s “Carmina Burana” and Pärt‘s “Misa Berlin”, besides participations in operas such as Strauss’s “The Bat”, Verdi’s “La Traviata” and Puccini’s “Madamme Butterfly”, besides the cycles.
It has two record productions “La Rosa de los Vientos” by Horacio Salinas, with “Inti Illimani” and “Neruda and Bianchi en canciones”, with Neruda’s verses and music by Vicente Bianchi.
It is important to highlight: “Its performances have given the chorus a great communication capacity and communion among the population and the world of art”.
