Pianist, orchestral and choral conductor, Mr. Espinal has been recognized as one of the most talented young conductors, pianists and musicians in his native country of Mexico . Mr. Espinal moved to Los Angeles invited to work with Maestro Esa-Pekka Salonen (conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic) as his Apprentice in 2000.

Jose Antonio Espinal has received many international recognitions, awards and artistic grants. He has been recipient of the most prestigious Conductor's Award by the Mexico 's National Endowment for the Arts and Culture with an Annual Grant in 1996-1997 and for the second time in 2000-2001.

In November 2004, Mr. Espinal was appointed Music Director of the Spanish Choir at the CATHEDRAL OF OUR LADY OF THE ANGELS.

Maestro Espinal has just founded an International Children's Choir Festival in AGUASCALIENTES, MEXICO, in collaboration with the Goverment of AGUASCALIENTES, (Through the Instituto de Cultura de AGUASCALIENTES). The first edition of the Festival will take place in July 2007, with Antonio Espinal as an ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, with the AGUASCALIENTES SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA.

Future engagements include participating as a choir director with HARMONIES GIRLS CHOIR at the prestigious FESTIVAL-DE-SAINT-DENIS, in France (Paris) in June 2007.

During his position as Dean of the St. Thomas School Of Sacred Music, he founded an all-girls choir: HARMONIES OF ST THOMAS. After leaving his position in that church, the choir became an independent non-profit choral group changing the name to HARMONIES GIRLS CHOIR. On December 10 th 2004, Espinal was honored by the City Of Los Angeles, for his work with the community of Los Angeles and his work with children.

This choir has achieved an excellent level of musicality. The choir has toured on Summer 2006 Mexico, Vienna Salzburg and Prage (14 Concerts in total) with rage reviews.The tour included a full GALA CONCERT with orchestra with Mr Espinal as a conductor. Prevoiusly, on summer 2004 the group embarked in its first international trip to Germany participating at the Puericantores Festival.

Mr. Espinal's vision for the group of expanding the girl's minds trough musical excellence and unique experiences trough international trips, was repeated with enormous success in the Summer 2006, when the group toured Mexico (giving 7 successful concerts over there), continuing with a tour to Austria and Prague (for the celebration of Mozart's 250 Anniversary.

Mr Espinal's Girls Choir has been selected for 3 consecutive years by the L.A. COUNTY HOLIDAYS CELEBRATIONS to perform at the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion on DECEMBER 24th.

Mr Espinal is strongly committed to promote music by rarely heard composers, with special attention to Latin American composers, along with high classical music. The quality of the sound of HARMONIES and its repertory has been extensively recognized, in newspapers like La Opinion, Vida Nueva, and Impulso, El Sol De Orizaba (Mexico) Bad Neustadt (Germany) etc.

Previous to his work in USA, Maestro Espinal worked for 12 years at the National Opera Company of Mexico, as vocal coach, Opera Accompanist (Repetiteur), stage Manager, Band and Choir conductor at the National Palace of Fine Arts (Palacio Nacional de las Bellas Artes) from 1991 to 2002, when he resigned to accept his current positions in Los Angeles.

Jose Antonio Espinal has been recipient of the prestigious Conductor's Award by the Mexico 's National Endowment for the Arts and Culture in 1996 and again in 2000.

Mr. Espinal has conducted the most important major orchestras in Mexico , including the Symphony Orchestra of Veracruz , Symphony of Querétaro , the Classical Orchestra of Orizaba and the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico. In USA he has conducted the Carnegie Mellon Orchestra (in Pittsburgh, as an assistant conductor), the Contemporary Ensemble of Mexico (first performing a works by Esa-Pekka Salonen, in Mexico City ) and the members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic ensemble (with HARMONIES). Mr Espinal founded the OPERA COMPANY OF ATIZAPAN fully sponsored by the Government on January 2001.

He was prized with a Grant given by the FONDARTE (National Endowments for the Arts) for recording a CD with works by American and Latin American composers.

Mr. Espinal was as a member of the Piano Faculty at the Mexico 's National Conservatory of Music from 1989 to 1996.

As a Pianist, he has performed Mozart's #21 Piano Concerto with the Teocuicani Symphony Youth Orchestra (Mexico City), the National Conservatory Symphony Orchestra (6/94 and 12/94) and the Veracruz Symphony Orchestra (playing Beethoven's “Choral Fantasy for Piano, Choir, Soloists and Orchestra).

Espinal made his Conducting Debut, with the Carlos Chavez Symphony Orchestra on 1993. His Opera debut took place on 1994, conducting Verdi's “La Traviatta.”

Antonio Espinal holds a Bachelors degree in Piano with Honors from the National University Of Mexico (Unam), and a Bachelor degree in Orchestral Conducting from the National Conservatory of Mexico . He received his Master Degree (MFA) in Orchestral and Choral conducting in year 2000 from Carnegie Mellon University, where he studied under Juan Pablo Izquierdo (Orchestral) and the legendary Dr. Robert Page (Choral Conducting). During these three years He was the recipient of the prestigious Andrew Carnegie Scholarship.