Since 2006, Duo Hypatia has been performing pieces from a wide repertoire written specifically for them. They share Spanish music both at home and abroad. The duo’s repertoire includes pieces from the Baroque period to contemporary works, with special focus on twentieth- and twenty-first-century music, and the work of Spanish composers including pieces from lesser-known composers such as Francisco Manalt (1710-1759) and Jesús García Leoz (1904-1953).
The Duo has been noted for its quest to foster music written by women (both historical and contemporary), they contributed to the Asociación Española de Mujeres en la Música with the concert “Mujeres que dan la nota” performed in the Green Room of the Teatros del Canal in Madrid and with a tribute to Mª Luisa Ozaita at the Manuel de Falla Concert Hall at the SGAE.
Duo Hypatia has participated in such festivals as the Santa Ana Baroque Music Festival (Costa Rica), the Contemporary Music in Segovia series, the International Scientific Conferences of the Universidad de Granada Concert Cycle, the Ciudad de Majadahonda International Piano Festival (Madrid), and the Francisco Soto de Langa International Festival in San Esteban de Gormaz, Soria. They have also collaborated with the Spanish Consulate’s Spanish Cooperation Program in Jerusalem, performing at the Bethlehem International Center in Palestine.
Currently, both members of the Duo combine their concert activity with teaching; both are officially qualified teachers at the Conservatorio Profesional de Música “Teresa Berganza” in Madrid. They also collaborate with the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in Belt Sahour, Palestine, and the Musical School of Integrated Arts (EMAI) in Santa Ana (Costa Rica), where they give master classes.
ENRIQUE RIVAS
Enrique Rivas completed his advanced studies at the Padre Antonio Soler Conservatory in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain. He studied violin with F. J. Comesaña, and chamber music with Graham Jackson. After completing his studies, Rivas received scholarships from both La Caixa and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) to relocate to Germany and undertake postgraduate studies with Andreas Krecher at the Advanced Music School in Düsseldorf.
While in Dusseldorf, Rivas completed postgraduate studies with a specialisation in String Quartet under the tutelage of the Melos Quartet. He later continued his chamber music studies at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía under Rainer Schmidt. Rivas received chamber music training with the Enesco, Auryn and Vogler Quartets, and he has attended master classes with Zoria Chickmourzaieva, Nelly Skolnikova, Leon Spierer, Evgueni Bushkov, Joaquín Torre, and Marco Rizzi among many others.
Enrique Rivas was part of the National Spanish Youth Orchestra from 1994 to 1997. He has performed with many orchestras across Europe, including the Spanish National TV Orchestra (RTVE), the Comunidad de Madrid Orchestra, the Reina Sofía Orchestra, as well as the Neues Rheinisches Kammerorchester, Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss and Detmolder Kammerorchester in Germany. He has also taught at the Juan Crisóstomo de Arriaga Youth Orchestra in Majadahonda, Spain.
In additional to his orchestra work, Rivas has given concerts in well-known concert halls across Spain, France, Germany, China, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Palestine, alongside musicians such as José Luís Estellés, Imre Rohmann, Peter Buck, María Kliegel and Daniel del Pino. He has been invited to teach violin and chamber music classes in the Oviedo Advanced Music Conservatory, in Tenerife, Islas Baleares, the Musikakademie Sighisoara in Romania, the Edward Said National Music Conservatory in Palestine, and the Musical School of Integrated Arts (EMAI) in Costa Rica.
Rivas has recorded the Mendelssohn and Shostakovich octets for the German label Animato, and he has recorded the complete Ramón Barce quartets for Verso. Rivas has also recorded a CD with music by Antón García Abril and pieces by Alejandro Román and Ramón Paus for the Spanish Radio and Television Corporation (RTVE).
In his academic research, Rivas has earned a Master’s degree at the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos I, where he completed his work “Contributions of the String Quartet to XIX century Chamber Music” for which Granada University invited him to participate in a concert-conference at the International Congress: “Looking for identities: Chamber Music in the Mediterranean Countries during the late-19th and early-20th centuries”.
Enrique Rivas is a current member of the Duo Hypatia, together with pianist Elena de Santos. He also teaches violin at the Conservatorio Profesional de Música “Teresa Berganza” in Madrid.
Rivas plays a Roger G. Hargrave violin made in 2000 (a model copy of the 1742 Guarneri del Gesu ex-Lord Wilton) and uses a Noël Burke violin bow.
Aside from his musical career, Rivas holds a Bachelor’s Degree in psychology from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid.
ELENA DE SANTOS
Elena de Santos began her piano studies with Elena Aguado, and continued with Fernando Puchol at the Real Conservatorio Superior de Música in Madrid. She completed her Postgraduate studies with Michael Leuschner at the Saatliche Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg, Germany.
Santos studied Chamber Music with Mª Teresa Berrueta and Luis Rego, and later with Nicolás Chumachenco and Felix Gottlieb in Germany. She has completed a Master’s degree in Musical Creation and Interpretation at the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos in Madrid.
Santos has continued her piano studies, taking masterclasses with such well-known musicians as Jacques Rouvier, Akiko Ebi, Josep María Colom, Aquiles delle Vigne, Joaquín Soriano, Ramón Coll, Teresa Escandón, Almudena Cano, Andrzej Jasinsky, Graham Jackson and Anthony Spiri, among others.
She has received several awards from various competitions, including first prize at the “Jacinto Guerrero” National Piano Competition in Toledo; finalist at the “Ricard Viñes” International Piano Competition in Lérida; Injuve 2001 Music Circuits Program, and Young Musicians in Concert 2004, organized by the district of Castilla y León.
Santos has given piano recitals both as a soloist and as a member of various chamber music ensembles at festivals across Spain, Germany, Austria, the United States, Cuba, Costa Rica, and in Palestine.
She has played with the Comunidad de Madrid Orchestra, the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Orchestra, the Scala Aretina Orchestra, the Toledo Music Orchestra International Forum, and ENCRIM, and has been conducted by such well-known Meastros as José de Eusebio, José Ramón Encinar, Pilar Jurado, Gabriella de Esteban, Alexis Soriano and Flores Chaviano.
Santos has premiered piano pieces by prestigious Spanish composers, some of which have been dedicated to her. She has recorded for the Spanish Radio and Television Corporation (RTVE) and German Southwest Broadcasting (SWR), and recorded an album called “Mujeres que dan la Nota” for the Cezanne Produccioneslabel, which includes works by contemporary Spanish women composers. The CD was first presented at the New Music Miami Festival in the United States.
Currently, Elena de Santos combines her concert activity with teaching. She is a member of the Duo Hypatia, together with violinist Enrique Rivas, and is pianist of the Nuevo Ensemble de Segovia (“neSg”). Santos also teaches piano at the Conservatorio Profesional de Música “Teresa Berganza” in Madrid.