About me

Ester F. Mata (b. 1979, Córdoba, Spain) is a composer, conductor, and trumpet player active in the Dutch contemporary jazz scene. Her work combines bold creativity with a distinctive artistic voice, drawing on influences from modern jazz, contemporary classical music, and big band traditions. The result is a genre-blending musical language that connects instruments and styles in unexpected ways while continuously pushing artistic boundaries.

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Her primary creative outlet is 13 Ensemble, a collective of thirteen musicians she founded during her Master’s studies in composition at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. The ensemble recently released its debut album, Traffic Is the New Silence (Honolulu Records, 2026).

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As a composer and arranger, Ester has received commissions from several Dutch ensembles, including Stageband, Band of Brothers (a Quincy Jones tribute project), and Stichting Ensemble, for which she composed a work for string orchestra. She also co-leads the Janus Jazz Orchestra, an emerging big band project with strings that is currently recording its debut album.

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Her eclectic musical language reflects a wide range of influences, from hard bop figures such as Kenny Dorham and Thelonious Monk to 20th-century composers like Steve Reich and Arvo Pärt, as well as contemporary big band leaders including Maria Schneider and Guillermo Klein. Her artistic vision is further enriched by a deep interest in literature and cinema.