Cor de Cambra
Xavier Puig
Conductor
Born in Cervera, in the province of Lleida, Xavier Puig started his music studies at Cervera Municipal Conservatory of Music with the piano and violin. He went on to expand his musical knowledge further at the Badalona Professional Conservatory of Music, where he received the qualifications to teach harmony, counterpoint, composition and instrumentation, under the tutelage of M. A. Hurtado, M. Roger, B. Casablancas and J. Soler.
In parallel, he began studying choral conducting at the International Choral Conducting Course in Lleida, studying under maestros Josep Prats, Johan Duijck, Laszlo Heltay and Jordi Casas (1990-1994). He also received a masterclass from conductor Eric Ericson, organised by the “La Caixa” Foundation. Puig i Ortiz continued his training as a choral conductor at the European Conducting Course taught by Pierre Cao in Catalonia (1996-1998) and at the Académie Intenationale de Pontarlier (France, 1997-98).
He was introduced to orchestral conducting by maestro Salvador Mas at the Barcelona Municipal Conservatory of Music (1994-95) and at the Wiener Meisterkurs (1999). In 1999 he was admitted to the Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Vienna, where for three years he studied Musikleitung (musical conducting), specialising in orchestra conducting, under the tutelage of Leopold Hager, Yuji Yuassa, Günther Theuring and Howard Arman, among others. In March 2001, he received the Erste Diplom from this renowned music institution.
In March 2002 Puig i Ortiz obtained a permanent post to become assistant conductor for the Joven Orquesta Nacional de España (JONDE), a position he held until 2004. Over the course of his time as assistant conductor, the orchestra gave concerts at the prestigious Schleswig-Holstein Festival, at the Konzerthaus in Berlin, and at the Auditorio in León. In 2005 he conducted JONDE in a recording of Spanish music, with works by Esplà and Gómez.
In July 2003 he obtained a permanent post to become assistant conductor of the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya (OBC), a position he held until July 2005, conducting programmes including works by Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Britten.
He is resident conductor for the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès (OSV), which he led between 2018 and 2025. Prior to this, he also had links to the orchestra through its Easter tour, which is dedicated to symphonic-choral repertoire. He has conducted the Cor de Cambra chamber choir at the Palau de la Música Catalana since 2018, and the chamber choir at the Orfeó Català since 2025, through which he has given a new energy to Catalan choral heritage, performing works by contemporary choral composers and creating a range of different choral projects on stage. He is also principal guest conductor for the Orquestra de Girona. Puig i Ortiz conducted the Cor de Cambra de l’Auditori Enric Granados de Lleida from 2002 to 2025, working on a number of projects featuring folk songs, in addition to classics from choral-orchestral repertoire. He also conducted the Coral Ginesta de Cervera between 1994 and 2018. In terms of opera, he founded the Òpera de Tres Rals company, dedicated to small-format opera, and has conducted a number of different works for Òpera a Catalunya in Sabadell and Òpera Popular de Barcelona.
As guest conductor, he has conducted the Orquesta Nacional de España (ONE), Orquesta y Coro de RTVE, Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra and the orchestras of Granada, Extremadura, Córdoba, and also the Orquestra Nacional Clàssica d’Andorra, Orquestra Barroca Catalana, the ensemble Kaleidoscop der Nationen de Viena, Orquestra Simfònica Julià Carbonell de les Terres de Lleida, Camerata XXI de Reus, Camerata Eduard Toldrà de Vilanova, Orquestra de Cambra de Granollers, Orquestra Camera Musicae, Lleidart Ensemble and Orquestra Terrassa 48.
In terms of teaching, he is a professor of orchestra and conducting at the Catalonia College of Music (ESMUC). He has been guest conductor for a number youth orchestras, including the Joven Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid (JORCAM), the orchestras of the music conservatories of the Canary Islands, Musikene, Badajoz and Tarragona, as well as the Encuentro de Jóvenes Orquestas de Igualada and the Jove Orquestra de la Diputació de Tarragona, in addition to the Jove Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès, which he conducts annually. Xavier Puig i Ortiz has been a professor on the FCEC and FESTCAT Choral Conducting Courses, has taught at the Cervera International Course, and since 2017 he has directed the Conducting Course for Orquestra Terrassa 48.
His recordings include an album of religious music by Mompou and Blancafort, the first recording of the Concertos for violin and oboe by Joan Manén, and a symphonic work by Ricard Lamote de Grignon, as well as a number of programmes for TV3.
He was artistic director for the Cervera Easter Festival for the first six years of the event, which he founded in 2011 and which is dedicated to Catalan classical music. In addition to his work conducting the concert commemorating the National Day of Catalonia on 11 September, he has done excellent work to re-energise and promote music by Catalan composers.
Júlia Sesé
Choir master for the Palau chamber choir, the Cor de Cambra
Júlia Sesé Lara studied Choral Conducting and Classical and Contemporary Singing at ESMUC. She has conducted the Cor Bruckner Barcelona since 2007, with which she has become a leading figure in Catalonia, particularly in a cappella and contemporary choral repertoire. She has regularly served as associate conductor of the Cor de Cambra del Palau de la Música Catalana since 2017.
She has conducted Contrapunto Vocale since September 2025. She is a professor at the Conservatori Superior del Liceu, where she has taught the a cappella vocal chamber ensembles course since September 2026. She is the first woman to have conducted the Cor de Cambra Francesc Valls at Masses in Barcelona Cathedral and the Sagrada Família. She teaches conducting on the FCEC Conducting Course.
She has taught at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid (2021-2025) and on the Cicle Formatiu en Tècniques de Direcció Coral (2025-2026). She has served as a jury member at choral competitions including La Festa de la Música (2018 and 2020), the Certamen Coral Ejea de los Caballeros (2022), the Certamen Coral de Binissalem (2023) and the Certamen Coral de Totana (2024).
Jordi Armengol i Puig
Pianist
Born in Prats de Lluçanès in Barcelona province, Jordi Armengol began his piano studies with Vicenç Prunés at the Escolania de Montserrat, where he also studied the violin and organ. He then continued his piano studies with Albert Attenelle and studied chamber music with Jordi Mora at the Escola de Música de Barcelona. In 1994 he earned a diploma in Recital from the Guidhall School of Music and Drama in London and in 1996 he completed his studies at the Conservatori Professional de Música de Tarragona, earning first prize. He then moved to a Freiburg to study with Vitali Berzon. He gained outstanding results in the national competitions in Madrid, Vilafranca del Penedès, Berga and Carlet.
He has performed as a piano accompanist at the Grec Festival and Maig Coral in Barcelona, in the Cambra Coral and Concerts de Tarda series at the Palau de la Música Catalana and at the Auditori and the Liceu. He has also performed in the Josep Carreres auditorium in Vila-seca, the Enric Granados auditorium in Lleida and in Manresa, Tarragona and other towns around Catalonia. He took part in the 20th Ciclo Música y Teatro at the royal monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, in the 21st Ciclo de Música Clásica in Penyíscola and in the Cicle de Concerts dels Jardins de Can March in Mallorca. Outside Spain he has performed in France, Estonia and Guatemala.
Jordi Armengol has given concerts alongside conductors such as Jordi Casas, Mireia Barrera, Fernando Marina, Daniel Mestre, Simon Halsey, Josep Vila i Jover, Júlia Sessé, as well as with composers and conductors including Eric Whitacre, Josep Vila i Casañas, Gorka Sierra and Johan Duijck. He has played in rehearsals with conductors Salvador Brotons, Edmon Colomer, Antoni Ros Marbà, Salvador Mas, Manel Valdivieso, Josep Pons, Jesús López Cobos, Víctor Pablo, Sir Neville Marriner, Helmut Rilling, Daniel Barenboim and Jean-Christophe Spinosi, among others.
He has provided piano accompaniment for flute lessons with Magdalena Martínez and singing lessons with Meribeth Dayme, Russell Smith, Dolors Aldea, Elena Copons and Ana Luisa Chova, among other artists, in Barcelona, Terrassa and Tortosa. In addition, he has played as an accompanist at the Dénia International Music Course, at the Tarragona Music Festival and at the International Course of Historical Music Interpretation organised by “la Caixa” Foundation.
He has played piano accompaniment for oboe and bassoon lessons at the Catalonia College of Music (ESMUC), and has taught piano and chamber music at the Barcelona School of Music. As a composer, Armengol has had his work published with Boileau and has recorded an album on the choral and piano work of composer Cristòfor Taltabull, together with the Palau de la Música Catalana chamber choir, the Cor de Cambra.
He plays chamber music with a number of different ensembles, as well as accompanying recitals with singers. He has performed regularly with sopranos Elena Copons and Ulrike Haller and with baritone Josep-Ramon Olivé, with whom he has appeared on stage in numerous festivals and concert series, including the Auditori de Barcelona, La Pedrera, the Vilabertran Schubertiade, the prestigious Echo Rising Stars concert series, LIFE Victoria, the Joan Manén Catalan Music Concerts, and the Intèrprets Catalans concert series at Petit Palau. He is currently the pianist for the Cor de Cambra chamber choir at the Palau de la Música Catalana, which is directed by Xavier Puig.