Javier Asencio, a pianist, composer, and orchestrator of Argentine origin, is passionate about the relationship between music, sound design, and the visual universe.

Since his arrival in Montréal, his work has been featured in projects for the National Film Board, the Quartier des spectacles, and for various directors, choreographers, and orchestras.

A Berklee College of Music scholar, his professional trajectory first wound through jazz. He recorded the critically acclaimed and popular album Ciclos in 2006. In Québec, he met the great Edith Butler, whose pianist he has been for more than eight years.

Asencio honed his skills writing for cinema with Robert Marcel Lepage, with whom he went on to collaborate. At the same time, he created the composition and sound design for two contemporary dance shows by choreographer Maria Isabel Rondón: Barravento and Projet Chevelu.

In 2014, he began a close collaboration with the prestigious Buzz brass quintet, for which he composed and orchestrated the music for a number of shows (Buzz Beat, ClassiRque, Buzz Symphonique).

His compositions for the big screen include for feature films by Patricio Henríquez (My National Insecurity, 2014) and David Fábrega (Back to Cuba, 2016).

He has been recognized at festivals around the world for his work in collaborations with director Adham Kosht: El Tiempo del agua (The Time of Water) was the official selection for the Hollywood Hollyshorts opening, and Two Queens won bronze for best film soundtrack at the Global Music Awards.

His meeting with the interactive installation designer Étienne Paquette (Mégaphone, Porteurs de lumière) led to the creation of several multimedia works, including the video installation for the exhibition Morrice and Lyman in the Company of Matisse at the Musée des beaux-arts du Québec, the installation Beyond the Ice at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, and the installation Instrument à vent for la Nuit des possibles as part of the 375th anniversary of the City of Montréal.

His work has been recognized and supported by the Conseil des arts de Montréal and the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.

In 2019, his compositions and arrangements were performed by the Orchestre symphonique de Gatineau and the Orchestre symphonique de Québec. Other concerts are planned with various orchestras during the next Chinese tour of the Buzz Brass quintet.

Asencio is currently working on the creation of a piece for string orchestra and piano to be performed in 2023.




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