Biography

CreArtBox creates and produces live art performances, fusing classical and contemporary music with original ideas encouraged by multidisciplinary interaction. Our programs are designed to support professional artists, encourage the creation of new meaningful work, make world-class performances accessible to everyone regardless of background or economic circumstance, inspire and educate future generations, revitalize local communities, and nurture new ways of human expression.

Celebrated by The New Yorker as one of its "art and music top picks", by Time Out as an "ensemble devoted to multidisciplinary events" and by Broadway World as “a wholly authentic, visually and aurally compelling experience”, CreArtBox has solidified its presence as one of the preeminent classical music organizations in New York City.

This organization was founded in New York City in 2013 by pianist Josefina Urraca and flutist Guillermo Laporta, who continue to serve as the organization’s artistic directors. The project was originally conceived in 2006 in Europe as "Cre.Art Project" by Guillermo Laporta and clarinetist and performance creator Tagore Gonzalez.

With its headquarters in New York City and Asturias, Spain, CreArtBox develops an array of distinctive platforms to pursue its mission, including a music festival in Queens, New York, a printed magazine, a classical music streaming platform, a live music podcast, international touring performances, a residency/commissioning program for composers, and a festival to develop the arts in rural Spain.

The type of performance that most defines the identity of CreArtBox can be referred to as a “visual concert". Visual art and theatrical design techniques are utilized to enhance the audience's listening experience of live classical and contemporary music while respecting the original musical composition. These multimedia performances are often presented in medium-size venues that allow the audience to be fully immersed in the atmosphere of the production created by lights and projections. CreArtBox also performs more traditional chamber music concerts that have taken the group to Japan, Spain, the UK, Canada, and different states on the east coast of the US.

Original full theatrical touring shows are also produced (mostly labeled as interdisciplinary), including the opera-ballet "Two Roads" (2020), "Visuality" (2012/14), the opera Noctum (2011), the musical "London the Show" (2009), and "Cre.Art Project I" (2006).

CreArtBox works with visual artists, designers, dancers, and other creative minds to craft multi-layered performances centered around classical music, operating with a roster of world-class classical musicians, including members of orchestras such as the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the BBC Orchestra, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

Grants and awards from public and private institutions sustain CreArtBox's nonprofit mission alongside a group of generous individual supporters, maintaining steady yearly growth. Major supporters include the New York State Council on the Arts, the Amphion Foundation, the Alice M. Ditson Fund, Spain Arts and Culture, the Asturias government, and Queens Council for the Arts.