Guitarist · Composer · Producer
Catalan guitarist and composer born in Badalona, based between Barcelona and Mexico. Exploring the borders between gypsy jazz, contemporary music, and free improvisation.
Biography & Vision
Born in Badalona (Catalonia, Spain), Pere Soto is a self-taught guitarist, composer, arranger, and music producer whose career bridges Barcelona and Oaxaca. He is widely recognized on the international scene for his remarkable aesthetic flexibility.
His musical universe covers styles as diverse as gypsy jazz, free jazz, avant-garde, jazz fusion, and bebop. In the realm of classical music, his focus spans contemporary and electroacoustic works, with a strong emphasis on 20th-century styles.
As a prolific composer, his catalogue exceeds 1,000 registered compositions at SGAE (Sociedad General de Autores de España), spanning both jazz and classical domains. Alongside his performance career, he is active as a music producer running his own recording studio, and works as a consultant-engraver for music publishing companies and educational institutions.
Throughout his career, he has performed and recorded alongside world-class artists including John Engels, Han Bennink, Dave Douglas, Lou Donaldson, Jordi Rossy, Perico Sambeat, Jeff Ballard, Ben Allison, Dave Liebman, Lonnie Smith, Jimmy Rosenberg, Big John Patton, and many others.
First LP "Coincidencias" nominated for best album of the year by Nacional-Radio 4 (Spain), heavily broadcasted across Catalonia.
Records *“Metanoic”* with the Bill Gerhardt Quartet in Hilversum, selected as best record of the month and top 12 of the year by the Jazz South Art Federation (USA).
Records second CD *“Particular Vernacular”* in New York City featuring Jeff Ballard, Ben Allison, Dave Douglas, and Dave Liebman.
Travels to Mexico for the world premiere of his *“String Quartet No. 2”* by the Mexico City Quartet.
Cover of The Jazz Rag (UK) with Django’s Castle; featured act at the Birmingham International Jazz Festival. Press →
Featured in John Engels' reference book *“Uncommon Sound”* alongside Jimi Hendrix and Paul McCartney as one of history's most notable left-handed guitarists.
Performs at major U.S. Gypsy Jazz festivals: San Francisco DjangoFest and Los Angeles DjangoFest.
World premiere of his composition *“Triunphant”* at the Palacio de Congresos in Jaca during the international mathematical conference LIBGOBER.
Soloist with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Puebla, conducting original arrangements alongside the Oaxaca Big Band.
Records the show *“Fusió i swing a l'estudi”* for Catalan Television (TV3) with the Pere Soto Gypsy Project.
Major concert performance at the premier European jazz venue **BIMHUIS** in Amsterdam.
Performs at the Jamboree Jazz Club Festival in Barcelona and the Lunario (Auditorio Nacional) in Mexico City.
Composes 5 songs for the original soundtrack of the Honduras-USA feature film *“Un Lugar en el Caribe”*.
Teaches master classes and gives a concert at the University of Kansas (USA) and master classes at the Tijuana Jazz School (Mexico). KU extract →
Accepted as **Artist for Peace** by Joel Thome (New York Artists for Peace).
Featured interview in leading global publication *JazzGuitarToday*; executes a major Catalonia tour across iconic venues like Jamboree and Jazz Cava de Terrassa.
Artistic direction of the spectacle Suite de los Gigantes in Oaxaca. Fresh Sound Records releases Tribute to Charlie Parker · BIRD with worldwide distribution. Catalonia tour including Festival de Jazz Terrassa and Jamboree Jazz Club (Barcelona), among other concerts. Presentation of the book GOOFY Life.
Catalog as Leader
Collaborations & Guest Features
Repertoire & Formations
Guitar and saxophone duo rooted in bebop language and open improvisation. Building on the strong reception of the Charlie Parker tribute in Japan (Disk Union / Shūmatsu JAZZ), the project is oriented toward international stages with a focused, high-energy dialogue between the two instruments.
Dossier →
New contemporary jazz trio from Mexico: Pere Soto (guitar), Israel Cupich (double bass) and Gustavo Nandayapa (drums). A first-time meeting of three trajectories — original music, interaction and improvisation.
For this date Saúl Ojeda substitutes on double bass.
Large-scale interdisciplinary works spanning installation, procession, extended-duration performance and future AI-driven formats.
Together since 2000 in several projects — above all Soto’s gypsy groups. This duo is the fully guitar version of that partnership: two Selmer-style voices, lead and rhythm. Albums Thanks Django (Duets Manouche, 2010), Still Here (Temps Record, 2017) and Cookin’ (forthcoming). Both interviewed by Jazz Guitar Today.
Watch 1 ·
Watch 2 ·
Watch 3
Still Here — album
JGT — Pere Soto ·
JGT — Josep Traver
Ensemble dedicated to the aesthetic of manouche jazz and European swing, combining the spirit of Django Reinhardt with original arrangements and compositions full of energy.
Intimate solo guitar recital where jazz language is fused with free improvisation and a profound mastery of solo guitar repertoire.
Fusion project exploring the rich harmonies and warm rhythm of jazz combined with the roots and textures of Brazilian music and sambajazz.
The classic jazz formation (guitar, bass, and drums) performing both reinvented standards and original compositions of high harmonic voltage.
Direct homage to the bebop legacy, presenting the repertoire inspired by the "Bird" tribute album published under the Fresh Sound Records label. Japanese press (Disk Union, Shūmatsu JAZZ) highlights a full-hearted Bird tribute with Evan Tate and the moving “Klingon Bebop” with Jordi Bonell.
An avant-garde and sound exploration proposal without formal limits, delving into the territories of free improvisation and contemporary music.
Creative concept that transits through electroacoustic experimentation and genre fusion with a totally personal and transgressive look.
Concert posters
Published · Premiered · Recorded
Works with a public life: premiere, published score, recording, video or press. The complete catalogue remains on the Compositions page.
2000 · String quartet. World premiere by the Mexico City Quartet.
2009 · Piano trio and spoken poetry (Alonso, Cernuda, Salinas, Soto). Written for Trío Salduie as a tribute to Simón Tapia-Colman. Cited in Ritmo no. 877 (2014).
2009 · World premiere at the Palacio de Congresos, Jaca, during the international mathematics conference LIBGOBER.
Solo guitar. Recorded by Jairo Lozano on Integral de Guitarra, Vol. 1 (Ars Harmonica). Published score. Reviewed by Revista Musical Catalana.
Solo guitar. Larger-scale pieces on Integral de Guitarra, Vol. 1 (Jairo Lozano, Ars Harmonica, 2017).
2024 · Score for Procesión: Tiempo de Gigantes, Oaxaca (artistic direction). Covered by El Imparcial, NVI and Quadratín.
2008 · MACBA, Barcelona. Live interdisciplinary work: painting in real time with improvising musicians.
Books & Educational Works
A selection of instructional books, jazz series, sheet music and literary works available on Amazon. Full catalogue: about 90+ titles.
The Ultimate Guitar Chord Melody Encyclopedia — a systematic harmonic reference for guitarists.
Essential chord-melody approach for solo guitar — arrangements and harmonic thinking for the instrument.
Theory volume plus key-by-key arpeggio positions on the fretboard (14 volumes).
A collection of hundreds of original tunes and songs in lead-sheet format.
Jazz phrasing material over the essential II–V–I progression.
A study dedicated to Django Reinhardt and the gypsy jazz tradition.
Narrative of the life and adventures shared with Goofy, told from a unique perspective.
Original works for classical guitar (Hasta Siempre “Summer”, Sota, Sagastiti, and more).
A personal collection of poetry spanning a decade of emotions, fragility and hope.
Scores for flute & guitar, trumpet & guitar, trio, and other chamber combinations.
Broadcast
Selected radio and television appearances, grouped by country.
2012–13. Pere Soto Gypsy Project for Televisió de Catalunya (TV3 / 3Cat).
1989. Coincidències nominated for best album of the year and widely broadcast in Catalonia.
Extensive airplay of Coincidències (documented as more than 1,000 broadcasts).
Documented radio and television appearances on Catalan public and commercial networks.
July 2026. Programme 1158 with Pere Soto (Jazz Expresso / Sants 3 Ràdio).
9 March 2026. Conversation with Pere Soto about Tribute to Charlie Parker · BIRD and the Terrassa presentation.
13 March 2026. Interview with Pere Soto and Evan Tate around De Mozart a Swing and the masterclass at the Conservatori de Badalona.
16 September 2015. Episode of Una ració de blues, si us plau!, presented by Quico Pi de la Serra, with Pere Soto and the piece Cat Gària.
National television appearance on TVE2, documented in the artist CV and quartet dossier.
Radio appearance on Spain’s Cadena SER network.
2005. Live performance of Point of True (Pere Soto) with John Stowell at KMHD, Portland.
Programme devoted to Pere Soto’s recent duo recordings with Patricia Teles and Ken Basman.
Archive no. 1539 — Música Diferencia Pere Soto. 1:29:01. Radio UNAM 860 AM.
Live television interview on Como Cada Mañana (UTV 157 / Uniradio). Documented with the ICBC week and AFN / Los Angeles Times coverage.
2016. Press interview around the Lunario (Auditorio Nacional) concert in Mexico City.
Interview and filmed sessions, including Meet Pere Soto and live quartet footage.
Media & Recognition
Selected profiles, reviews and interviews from specialized jazz media and reference sources.
In-depth interview: gypsy jazz, influences, technique and composition.
US press clipping from Asheville. Video document of the same event: Pere Soto & Bill Gerhardt Quartet — I Remember Dolphy, live at Diana Wortham Center, Asheville, North Carolina.
David Dupont, Cadence — The Review of Jazz & Blues: Creative Improvised Music, New York, February 1993. Review of Metanoic (Pere Soto & Bill Gerhardt Quartet, Riff 85012-2): “Quartet plays tightly riveted ensembles. Within this framework, both leaders play long, clean lyrically turned solos. … this date is replete with small virtues and a sense of craftsmanship.”
Concert review of Pere Soto Quartet and Marc Ducret Quartet at the Centre Cultural de Terrassa (11 April 1992), within the cultural programme around the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games. Highlights Soto’s guitar intelligence, the tenderness of Princesa eterna, and a European jazz moment shared with Ducret and Paolo Fresu.
2002 review of a Django’s Castle album. Soto “connaît parfaitement la musique de Django” yet the phrasing also carries Larry Coryell and even Robert Johnson. Highlights the house arrangements of Minor Swing, Djangology and a surprising Body and Soul “digne du QHCF”, plus originals such as Menor-K, Hele Guify and Rumba 2001: “un des rares groupes de ce style en Espagne.”
Cover of The Jazz Rag (Autumn 2002): Django’s Castle From Barcelona. Birmingham International Jazz Festival reviews in the Birmingham Post and Birmingham Evening Mail call the group “the big hit of last year’s festival” and “one of the most authentic and one of the most original of the numerous Django-inspired bands.” Warwick Festival 2004: “the dream team among bands in the Hot Club of France tradition.”
Masterclass and concert at the University of Kansas: teaching document and programme extract from the residency.
The amazing Pere Soto! — profile published by Casa Valdez Studios.
Full profile: trajectory, influences, festivals, instruments and discography.
Curriculum and pedagogical work (Jazz Blues laboratory / masterclass).
Profile on international career and role as a gypsy jazz reference.
February 2007 interview with Pere Soto and David Valdez about Oasis, Soto’s gypsy-jazz writing, and Valdez’s work with the Lawrence Williams Project. Two parts (audio archive).
May 2008. Two reviews of Oasis (Pere Soto with David Valdez, Diatic Records).
Reviewers: Don Campbell and Kyle O’Brien (JazzScene, May 2008).
Review of Pere Soto Integral de Guitarra, Vol. 1 (Jairo Lozano, Ars Harmonica, 2017): fifteen works for classical guitar, including Suite Barroca 2012.
September 2014, no. 877. Interview with Trío Salduie (Elena Trujillo Hervás). They cite Pere Soto among the living composers whose works they have premiered. Related work: Azar de soñador (2009), piano trio with spoken poetry, written for Trío Salduie as a tribute to Simón Tapia-Colman.
“A full-hearted tribute by renowned Spanish guitarist Pere Soto to bebop giant Charlie Parker. With longtime ally Evan Tate at the front, it revives in the present the free-flying imagination of Bird.”
“Rooted in deep respect for Parker and Coltrane, seasoned players deliver the essence of swing in a gem of a session.” Highlights “Klingon Bebop” with Jordi Bonell as a record of friendship and solidarity.
Reference guide to musicians, festivals and venues of jazz in Spain (EdictOràlia, 2018).
Reference history of jazz in Mexico — Datos para esta historia (Fondo de Cultura Económica).
Get in Touch
For booking inquiries, masterclasses, studio collaborations, or score purchases, feel free to send a direct message using the form or reach out through email.
