Roc Fargas i Castells, born in Barcelona, is a versatile and accomplished conductor, equally active in opera, ballet, and symphonic repertoire. With a foundation in Historical Performance and extensive experience in contemporary music, he brings a dynamic and multifaceted approach to his work. He studied music at Cambridge University, Historical Performance and Conducting at the Royal Academy of Music with Prof. Sian Edwards, and completed a Konzertexamen in conducting at the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar with Prof. Nicolás Pasquet and Ekhart Wycik. He is also a scholarship recipient of the German Music Council’s Conducting Forum.
His 2024/25 season includes debuts at the Staatsoper Hamburg and the Kölner Kammerorchester, as well as assistantships in productions at the Staatsoper Hannover and the Musiktheater im Revier Gelsenkirchen. Additionally, he will return to the Jenaer Philharmonie, the Göttinger Symphonieorchester, and the LandesJugendOrchester Hessen.
Since 2023, Fargas has been committed to supporting Ukraine through music during this critical and challenging time. He has conducted projects with Open Opera Ukraine and Kyiv Camerata, and led the opening concert of the 2024 Kharkiv Music Festival in a bomb shelter. In February 2024, he performed with Mriya Orchestra at Potsdam’s Nicholas Church, Berlin’s Gedächtniskirche, and Leipzig’s Gewandhaus in commemoration of the tragic beginning of the invasion on 24 February 2022. He also toured through Belgium, the Netherlands, and France with the Presidential Orchestra of Ukraine.
A passionate advocate for Spanish and contemporary music, Fargas has conducted zarzuela at Mumbai’s Royal Opera House, premiered the Galician contemporary-folk opera María Soliña by Nacho Mañá, and premiered works by composers from the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar and the Manhattan School of Music in New York. In February 2024, he conducted the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken, collaborating with Prof. Manuel Nawri and composers Johannes Schöllhorn and Eun-Hwa Cho.
As a Baroque violist, Fargas has performed with leading ensembles such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Academy of Ancient Music. He was a former member and Bass of the London Symphony Chorus, the Choir of the Orchestre de Paris, and the Weimar Chamber Choir.
