Eduardo Mata, the 1991 Hispanic Heritage Award Honoree for Performing Arts, is a man that is well known for his love of Latin American influenced classical works. Eduardo Mata is the internationally renowned former conductor of the Symphonía Nacional Autonóma de Mexico and Guadalajara Symphony Orchestras.

Born in Mexico City, Mr. Mata studied guitar privately for three years before enrolling in the National Conservatory of music. From 1960 to 1963 he studied composition under Carlos Chávez, and in 1964 he received a Koussevitzky Fellowship and studied at the world renowned Tanglewood University.

Throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s his numerous compositions included three symphonies, chamber works, sonatas, and other works for ballet. In 1965 he became head of the music department at the Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, and in 1972 he began his position as the Head Conductor of the Phoenix Symphony. From 1977 to 1993 Mr. Mata was the Musical Director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Favoring the works of Latin composers such as Silvestre Revueltas, Alberto Ginastera, and Heitor Villa-Lobos, Mr. Mata has played on 50 recordings.