(b. 1982, Mexico City).
Bolivian composer, born in Mexico and now resident in Germany, of mostly chamber, vocal, piano, and electroacoustic works that have been performed in the Americas and Europe.
Mr. Zuleta studied composition with Cergio Prudencio and Alberto Villalpando and conducting with Carlos Rosso and Ramiro Soriano at the Universidad Católica Boliviana San Pablo in La Paz from 1999–2003, where he earned his bachelor's degree. He later studied composition with Cornelius Schwehr at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg in Freiburg im Breisgau from 2018–20 and there then studied electronic composition with Alexander Grebtschenko from 2020–23 and earned his master's degree in each subject. He then had postgraduate studies in composition with Annesley Black at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Graz in 2023–24.
Among his honours are scholarships from the Sistema Nacional de Creadores del Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (FONCA) in Mexico City (2008), the Kunststiftung Baden-Württemberg in Stuttgart (2018–19) and the E. T. A. Hoffmann Stiftung (2021–22). His music has been performed in Austria, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Mexico, and Switzerland.
He is also active in other positions. He was a member of the Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos in La Paz from 2004–06, which he also guest-conducted on occasion. As a popular musician, he performed as a guitarist and vocalist with the bands La Burkina from 2009–18 and Zuleta Balvulard from 2012–15, both in La Paz. He co-founded the performance space Casataller in La Paz in 2011. He has contributed articles for magazines and newspapers in Bolivia and Germany.
He taught composition at the Escuela de Composición in La Paz from 2015–18.
He lived in Bolivia from 1983–2018 and has lived in Germany since 2018.
In addition to the works listed below, he has composed music for dance, film and radio productions.
SELECT LIST OF WORKS
ORCHESTRAL:
Cinco piezas, orchestra (8 winds, 9 brass, harp, piano, accordion, 12 strings), live electronics, 2020–21
CHAMBER MUSIC:
El puente, 2 violins, viola, cello, double bass, 2004–05
El tiempo y el ruido, flute, bassoon, French horn, violin, cello, double bass, 2005
El desorden, 4 siku (pan flutes from South America), charango (10-string lute from Bolivia) (+ wankara [drum from South America]), 2005–06
Especulario, clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, trombone, 2 percussion, violin, viola, cello, double bass, 2008
123, 4 siku, percussion, 2012
Solar, violin, viola, cello, 2014
Estrella distante, flute, clarinet, viola, cello, piano, 2020
Ñembosarai, violin, toy piano, snare drum, 2020
paraungong, percussion, 2021
cross, 2 pianos, 2 percussion, live electronics, 2021
Maracatapa, percussion, live electronics, 2022
trioshka, violin, cello, piano, 2022
badruka_remix, percussion, live electronics, 2023
Perdido viajero, flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, cello (all + various instruments), live electronics, 2023
taquara, string quartet, 2025
VOCAL:
Amapola (text by the composer), soprano, piano, 2004
Alegoría (vocalise), 2 female voices (both + objects), 4 players (with siku, mohoceño [large recorders from South America], percussion, objects), percussion–conductor, lights, 2006
Interior (vocalise), 6 mixed voices (all + various instruments, objects), 2010
badruka (vocalise), female voice, viola, cello, accordion, live electronics, 2019
PIANO:
moska (8 pieces), prepared piano, 2019
morton, 2 pianos, live electronics, 2021–22
Cuatro piezas, 2022
für Yeji, piano, live electronics, 2022
remixx, piano, live electronics, 2024
ELECTROACOUSTIC:
Monominiaturas (21 micro-pieces), fixed media (1 track), 2022
cover_stockhausen, live electronics, 2022
Monominiaturas 8ch (32 micro-pieces), fixed media (8 tracks), 2023
cover_villalpando, live electronics, 2023
cover_llanque, live electronics, 2024
POPULAR MUSIC (ALBUMS) (text by the composer except where noted):
Este árbol (solo, 15 songs), 2008
Semilla de vida (solo with Vozabierta, EP, 5 songs, texts by inmates of the Cárcel de Obrajes in La Paz), 2011
Mecánica (La Burkina, EP, 4 songs), 2011
Chuquiago Market (La Burkina, 14 songs), 2013
Bahía (Zuleta Balvulard, EP, 4 songs, text by Jorge Amado), 2015
Polaroids (Zuleta Balvulard, 10 songs), 2016
Lado B is for Burkina (La Burkina, 9 songs), 2017