Life
Xavier Díaz-Latorre was born in Barcelona, Spain, in 1968. He trained first as a classical guitarist, studying with Óscar Ghiglia at the Musikhochschule Basel and graduating in 1993, before turning to early music and studying lute with Hopkinson Smith at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. Since 1995 he has performed widely in baroque opera and concert repertoire as a member of Jordi Savall’s ensembles Hespèrion XXI, La Capella Reial de Catalunya and Le Concert des Nations, and has appeared under conductors including René Jacobs and Thomas Hengelbrock. He leads his own ensemble, Laberintos Ingeniosos, devoted to Spanish Golden Age music, and has taught at ESMUC Barcelona, the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, and, from 2024, the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis.
Impact
As guitarist, lutenist and theorbist, Xavier Díaz-Latorre has been a fixture of Jordi Savall’s ensembles for three decades, contributing to more than thirty recordings that helped shape the modern sound of Iberian and French baroque continuo playing. Through Laberintos Ingeniosos he has championed neglected Spanish Golden Age guitar and lute repertoire, while his teaching posts at ESMUC, Brussels and now the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis place him at the center of training Europe’s next generation of plucked-string continuo specialists.
Repertoire
Suite in G minor, BWV 995 by Johann Sebastian Bach
Gigue by J.S.BACH BWV 995/Xavier Díaz-Latorre Lute
Allemande BWV 995 J.S.BACH/ Xavier Díaz-Latorre, lute
Passacaglia by Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber
Passacaglia by BIBER played on the 13 courses lute by Xavier Díaz-Latorre
Chaconne by Robert de Visée
Chaconne by Robert de Visée, played on the 14 course theorbo by Xavier Díaz-Latorre — theorbo
La Compagna by Francesco da Milano
La Compagna by Francesco da Milano played by Xavier Díaz-Latorre on the 6 courses lute