Gonzalo Jiménez Barranco

Born in Vélez-Málaga, Spain, he started playing the double-bass at the age of eight at the Conservatory Manuel Carra in Málaga with Salvador de Alva and Jorge Muñoz. Later, in 2003, he moved with his family to Luxembourg, where he continued his musical education at the Conservatory of Luxembourg City with André Kieffer.

In 2013, he started his studies at the Hochschule Luzern where he obtained his bachelor's degree in 2016 and his Master's in 2018 with renowned Professor Božo Paradžik. Among other great teachers and orchestral musicians who have influenced his education are Duncan McTier at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste or Janne Saksala, Philipp Stubenrauch and Dorin Marc in masterclasses.

As a two-time participant in the Concours Européen pour Jeunes Solistes in Luxembourg, he won the gold medal in 2005 and the silver medal in 2010. In 2017, he participated in several international competitions, such as the Concorso Bottesini in Italy, the International Musikwettbewerb Markneukirchen in Germany and the International Double-Bass Competition of Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf in Slovakia, where he won the 3^rd prize. He was also awarded by the renowned masterclass Carl Flesch Academy, where he had the opportunity to perform as a soloist with the Baden-Baden Philharmonic and as a chamber music partner with Saschko Gawriloff, Hartmut Rohde and Wolfgang Böttcher.

Throughout his career, he has acquired great orchestral experience thanks to his internship at the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich (2015–2016) and at the Zurich Opera (2019–2021). He has also collaborated with orchestras such as the State Opera of Vienna, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Euskadi Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra and the Festival Strings Lucerne.

In his free time, he enjoys doing sports like cycling, running or playing football, as well as cooking or reading, and especially learning the challenging language of his new country: Czech.