Rafael Ibarbia

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Ibarbia and the second or maternal family name is Serra.
Rafael Ibarbia
Born
Rafael Ibarbia Serra

1931
Barcelona, Spain
Died13 January 2003(2003-01-13) (aged 71–72)
Madrid, Spain
Occupation(s)Conductor, composer, arranger, pianist, and music director
SpouseAdelaida Ruiz Cárdenas

Rafael Ibarbia Serra (1931 – 13 January 2003), was a Spanish conductor, composer, pianist, and music director. He worked for twenty-seven years in Televisión Española (TVE) as music director, conductor, and arranger.

Career

He conducted the Spanish winning entry in the Eurovision Song Contest at the 1968 contest, "La La La" sung by Massiel.[1] The orchestral arrangement he made was totally right as it accelerated the pace of the song gaining strength.[2] He also conducted another five Spanish entries in the contest in different years: At the 1963 contest he conducted "Algo prodigioso" sung by José Guardiola,[3] at the 1964 contest he conducted "Caracola" sung by Nelly with Tim and Tony,[4] at the 1966 contest he conducted "Yo soy aquél" sung by Raphael,[5] at the 1974 contest he conducted "Canta y sé feliz" sung by Peret,[6] and at the 1977 contest he conducted "Enséñame a cantar" sung by Micky.[7]

He conducted the Spanish winning entry in the OTI Festival at the 1976 contest, "Canta cigarra [es]" sung by María Ostiz [es].[8] He was the musical director of the 1977 contest, which was held in Madrid, and conducted "Al nacer cada enero", sung by Fernando Casado, representing the Dominican Republic, "Enséñame a vivir", sung by Ana Marcela D'Antonio, representing El Salvador, "El verbo amar", sung by Mildred y Manolo, representing Guatemala, "El hombre", sung by Tony Morales, representing Honduras, "Gente eres tú", sung by Ced Ride [nl], representing the Netherlands Antilles, and "Canta a la vida", sung by Leopoldo Hernández, representing Panama.[9] He also conducted the Spanish entry at the 1974 contest, "Lapicero de madera" sung by Lia Uyá [es].[10]

He was the musical director of numerous Televisión Española (TVE) shows, such as Gente joven [es] and Gran parada [es]. He was also the musical director of the Benidorm International Song Festival in several editions. He made more than 3,000 music recordings of various genres, from classical music to flamenco. He recorded several albums with the RTVE Symphony Orchestra.[11]

Selected filmography

Year Title Notes
1958 Habanera
1964 La chica del gato
1971 El armario del tiempo [es]

References

  1. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1968". Eurovision Song Contest. 6 April 1968. BBC / EBU.
  2. ^ "Massiel y el "La, la, la", 40 años de éxito". eurovision-spain (in Spanish). 6 April 2008.
  3. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1963". Eurovision Song Contest. 23 March 1963. BBC / EBU.
  4. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1964". Eurovision Song Contest. 21 March 1964. DR / EBU.
  5. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1966". Eurovision Song Contest. 5 March 1966. CLT / EBU.
  6. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1974". Eurovision Song Contest. 6 April 1974. BBC / EBU.
  7. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest 1977". Eurovision Song Contest. 7 May 1977. BBC / EBU.
  8. ^ "Festival OTI de la Canción 1976". OTI Festival (in Spanish). 30 October 1976. Televisa / OTI.
  9. ^ "Festival OTI de la Canción 1977". OTI Festival. OTI Festival 1977 (in Spanish). 12 November 1977. TVE / OTI.
  10. ^ "Festival OTI de la Canción 1974". OTI Festival (in Spanish). 26 October 1974. Televisa / OTI.
  11. ^ "Muere el director de orquesta Rafael Ibarbia, que logró el éxito en TVE". ABC (in Spanish). 14 January 2003.