GONZALO ALONSO RAMOS
Biography
Gonzalo A. Ramos is a Houston native who holds a Master of Sacred Music degree from the University of St. Thomas and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston. He also earned a minor in Marketing and Business from the C. T. Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston.
Mr. Ramos serves as Artistic Director of Houston Cecilia Chamber Choir, Artistic Director of the Bravura Concert Series, and Director of Music and Liturgy at All Saints Catholic Church in Houston, Texas.
He is a member of the executive boards of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, Galveston-Houston Chapter, and the Hispanic Pastoral Musicians Conference, Houston Chapter. In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors of Catholic Literary Arts, where he is also Director of Marketing, and as Director of the Hispanic Division for Simply Liturgical. He is also a presenter for Instituto OCP, providing liturgical formation and musical education that enrich and empower Catholic music ministries.
Recent conducting engagements include performances of John Rutter's Requiem, Gabriel Fauré's Requiem, Ola Gjeilo's Sunrise Mass, and Igor Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms with Houston Cecilia Chamber Choir, alongside a broad range of sacred and secular choral repertoire. Through his work as a conductor, educator, and church musician, Mr. Ramos is committed to fostering artistic excellence, enriching liturgical worship, and building vibrant musical communities.
In June 2024, Mr. Ramos conducted an ecumenical choir of more than 150 singers and a professional orchestra in a performance of John Rutter's Requiem as part of the Summer Sacred Choral Festival. Choristers representing numerous Christian traditions gathered for a weekend of fellowship, formation, and rehearsal in preparation for the performance.
As a composer, Mr. Ramos was commissioned in 2022 to compose the score for the premiere of Right Angles, a Polish Christmas comedy in two acts written by Fr. Nicholas Divine, C.P. His choral works include Remember (Memorare), commissioned by the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem for the Southwestern Lieutenancy of the United States. His Ave Verum Corpus was performed by the Archdiocesan Choir of Galveston-Houston during a pilgrimage to Italy, including a performance at the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola in Rome. His work Pax received its international premiere in La Rochelle, France, in 2017, while Houston Cecilia Chamber Choir premiered O Nome Glorioso in 2019. His Ave Maria for solo voice, premiered by Angelo Ferrari in 2016, continues to be performed. Mr. Ramos remains active as a composer, writing for choral ensembles, solo voice, and instrumental forces.
Mr. Ramos made his compositional debut in 2005 with the Foundation for Modern Music in Zilkha Hall at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. In 2019, he was recognized with a Motif Award for Humanity and Fine Arts in acknowledgment of his artistic leadership and community engagement. He accepted the award on behalf of Houston Cecilia Chamber Choir.
In 2008, Mr. Ramos was awarded the International Study Program for Globalization Scholarship, which enabled advanced studies in Salzburg, Austria, at Schloss Leopoldskron.
Mr. Ramos also served as Assistant Music Director and Assistant Accompanist at Houston Community College Central Campus under the direction of Kathleen Knight. His theatrical credits include Camelot, The World Goes Round, Tintypes, All Roads Lead to Oz, The 1940s Radio Hour, Smokey Joe's Cafe, Gershwin and Friends, Schoolhouse Rock, I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change!, West Side Story (concert production), Baby, and numerous other productions.
An active tenor soloist, Mr. Ramos regularly appears in both concert and liturgical settings. Recent solo engagements include Ralph Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music, J.S. Bach's Magnificat, Howard Goodall's Requiem, and Mozart's Missa Brevis. He frequently serves as cantor for major liturgical celebrations within the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, including the Chrism Mass, Ordinations to the Priesthood and Diaconate, and Jubilee Masses at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. He also served on the 2018–2019 Southwest Liturgical Conference Committee and continues to lead music formation workshops throughout Texas and beyond.