PONCE, Manuel

Born in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Dec 8, 1882 
Died in Mexico City, April 24, 1948 

Full name: Manuel María Ponce Cuéllar  

• Ponce was recognized as the leading Mexican composer of his time, instrumental in helping to create a Mexican national style.
• As a young man, Ponce was a church chorister and organist. He then went on to study music in Mexico City, then in Bologna, Italy, and then in Berlin, before returning to Mexico. He also visited France from 1925-1933 to refresh his compositional style, studying with Dukas and collaborating with Andrès Segovia. 
• Ponce served at the Conservatorio Nacional in Mexico City as a piano professor, and latterly as its Director.
• Ponce was a lecturer on musicology, especially Mexican music. He also edited Mexican music publications and wrote extensively on musical topics.¹

Short biography

1. Ricardo Miranda Pérez, “Ponce (Cuéllar), Manuel,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed July 7, 2021, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000022072.