Cristina Pato

Gaita, composer (Spain) Cristina Pato has already opened historical new paths for the gaita (Galician bagpipe). In 1998 Cristina Pato became the first female gaita player to release a solo album, and since then she has collaborated with world music, jazz, classical and experimental artists (including the Chicago Symphony, Yo-Yo Ma, The Chieftains and the Royal Pipe Band). Her unique and powerful style full of passion and energy has been acclaimed by the New York Times as “a virtuosic burst of energy;" the BBC has called her “the Galician bagpipe diva.” Cristina Pato fuses the influences of Latin music, jazz, pop and contemporary music, and uses her artistry and unprecedented virtuosic skill to bring her musical vision to life. Pato is a member of Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble.

Internationally acclaimed as a gaita master and classical pianist, Cristina Pato enjoys an active professional career devoted to both Galician popular and classical music. Her dual careers have led to performances throughout major stages throughout the world, including the U.S. (Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center), India (Kamani Auditorium), Jerusalem (Jerusalem Festival), Portugal (Festa do Avante), Brazil (Liszt Festival), U.K. (Celtic Connections), France, Italy (Etnofestival), Germany, Mexico (Palacio de Bellas Artes) and her native Spain.

An active recording artist and performer since age 12, Ms. Pato has released four solo gaita recordings (including the self-produced The Galician Connection, 2010) and two as a pianist (most recently SOAS: Muller, 2010), and has collaborated in more than thirty recordings as a guest artist, including the Grammy award winner Yo-Yo Ma and Friends: Songs of Joy and Peace (SONY BMG 2008). Ms. Pato has given more than 500 concerts with her own band, many of them recorded and broadcast by television stations such as BBC, TVG, CNN and RTVE, and she has been praised by newspapers as the New York Times, El Pais, La Voz de Galicia and the Scotsman.

Ms. Pato holds doctorate in Musical Arts in Collaborative Piano from the Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University (NJ, U.S.), where she studied with a fellowship from Fundacion Barrie de la Maza. She was awarded with the Edna Mason Scholarship and the Irene Alm Memorial Prize for excellence in scholarly research and performance (Rutgers University, May 2008). Cristina Pato holds both a Master of Music Degree in Piano Performance and a Master of Music Degree in Music Theory and Chamber Music (with honors) from the Conservatorio de Musica del Liceu (Barcelona). She also holds also a Master of Fine Arts Degree in Digital Arts (Computer Music) from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona). 

Cristina Pato has performed several world premieres of pieces such as Air to Air (by Osvaldo Golijov) with the Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma; Norte, dedicated to Cristina (by Montserrat Torras); Rose of the Winds (by Osvaldo Golijov) with Yo-Yo Ma, the Silk Road Ensemble and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; and the Piano Concerto (by Octavio Vazquez) with Orquesta Sinfonica de Galicia. Cristina Pato produced and composed the soundtrack of the Spanish film El Hombre de Arena (Sony Pictures, Iroko Films, Spain). Ms. Pato served as artistic director of the Chamber Series for the 40th anniversary of Fundacion Barrie de la Maza and was the Cultural Ambassador of Xacobeo (the way to Santiago de Compostela) in the U.S.

Pato has resided in New York City since 2004. She appears on the Silk Road Ensemble's most recent album, Off the Map.