Diego Navarro is an award-winning composer and conductor and is considered one of the most relevant voices in film music in Spain, having established himself internationally as a leading figure in the genre through his multiple roles: composer specialised in audiovisual music, conductor, and active promoter of music for the screen.
His filmography includes major successful titles such as the multi-award-winning and Goya Award–winning animated feature films Black Butterflies (Mariposas Negras, dir. David Baute) and Catch the Flag (Atrapa la Bandera, dir. Enrique Gato), as well as The Photographer of Mauthausen (El Fotógrafo de Mauthausen, dir. Mar Targarona), among others.
Since 2007 he has founded and directed the Tenerife International Film Music Festival, FIMUCITÉ, currently the longest-running film music festival in the world. The event will celebrate its 20th anniversary in June/July 2026, having been held uninterruptedly since its creation. As a conductor, he has led a vast number of world premieres of major productions from both Hollywood and Europe.
Particularly noteworthy are the historic official concerts celebrating the centenary of Universal Pictures Studios (FIMUCITÉ), the centenary of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) at the Krakow Film Music Festival, the DreamWorks Animation Studios concert (FIMUCITÉ), the 40th anniversary of the Hollywood film music label Varèse Sarabande (Edinburgh–Glasgow tour), and the official HBO and Netflix concert at the Krakow Film Music Festival.
In 2022 he made his successful debut at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, conducting the world premiere of the 40th Anniversary Suite of Conan the Barbarian, with the presence of its director John Milius and presented by Francis Ford Coppola and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Diego Navarro has had the privilege of working with major figures in the field such as Hans Zimmer, Howard Shore, Elliot Goldenthal, Michael Giacchino, Christopher Young, Patrick Doyle, Dario Marianelli, Jan Kaczmarek, Bruno Coulais and Antón García Abril, among others.
He is currently regarded as one of the most respected figures in film music conducting worldwide, having conducted leading symphony orchestras such as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra & Choir (RSNO), Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra, Bordeaux and Aquitaine National Opera Orchestra, Paris Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Film Orchestra, Krakow Symphony Orchestra, Aukso Orchestra, Tenerife Symphony Orchestra and the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, among many others. His repertoire includes classic scores by Ennio Morricone, Bernard Herrmann, Alex North, John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, John Barry, Georges Delerue, Maurice Jarre and Philippe Sarde, earning widespread acclaim from both audiences and critics.
He also conducted the 10th Anniversary Concert of the Krakow Film Music Festival in 2017 and the “Space Gala” in May 2023, where he led, among other works, the world premiere of the score of Avatar: The Way of Water, with its composer Simon Franglen in attendance. On this occasion, Polish television channel Play Krakow produced and broadcast a documentary about the Canarian maestro entitled Diego Navarro: Space Gala, reflecting his strong connection with Polish audiences and his role as one of the festival’s main guest conductors since 2009. In 2015 he was awarded the Ambassador Award by the Krakow Film Music Festival.
In November 2024 he made a highly successful debut in Chicago with Dracula in Concert, reviving Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula in its American premiere, conducting the Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chicago Chamber Choir at the legendary Auditorium Theatre, in an exclusive co-production between FIMUCITÉ and the Krakow Film Music Festival. That same month he travelled to Rome as the official conductor selected by Paramount Pictures to participate in the recording and filming of the concert suite of Gladiator II by Harry Gregson-Williams for its world premiere.
As a composer, in December 2024 he premiered his most recent works: the animated feature films Super Klaus and Black Butterflies, both nominated for Best Animated Feature at the 2025 Goya Awards. Black Butterflies eventually won the Goya Award for Best Animated Feature and became a multi-award-winning film after also receiving the Forqué, Gaudí, Platino and Quirino Awards in the same category. Navarro was also awarded the 2025 Cygnus Award by the University of Alcalá de Henares for Best Original Score for Black Butterflies, recognising values such as sustainability and solidarity.
He has recently been involved in composing music for various projects, including a commissioned work by the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra for the closing of its traditional Christmas Concert, premiered to great success on 25 December, as well as the upcoming animated project Shadow Play, yet to be released.
Among his 2025 projects is the animated feature Winnipeg, the Ship of Hope (Winnipeg, el Barco de la Esperanza, dir. Elio Quiroga and Beñat Beitia), an international co-production (Spain–Chile) that tells the story of the French ship chartered by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda to help 2,500 Spaniards flee the Civil War to Chile. His agenda also includes other live-action projects to be announced shortly.
The award-winning composer and conductor combines his work in film music composition with the direction of FIMUCITÉ and the performance of film music concerts both at his festival and at major international events.
Navarro is a member of the Spanish Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Musimagen and SGAE (Spanish Society of Authors and Publishers). In July 2024 he was invited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS — the Oscars) to become a member of this prestigious institution.
In 2022 the City Council of Santa Cruz de Tenerife awarded him its highest distinction, the Gold Medal of the city, in recognition of his contribution to culture and music and for promoting the international prestige of his hometown. In March 2025 he received the honorary title of Distinguished Son of the Island, awarded by the Island Council of Tenerife.