He is a French horn player born in Guatemala who was raised in Chicago, Illinois. He studied at DePaul University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree, before going to Northwestern University to earn his master’s degrees in musicology and music performance.
He was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago for two seasons alongside winning positions in both the Cedar Rapids Symphony and Memphis Symphony. He went on to perform with the Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra and South Bend Symphony Orchestra before being appointed a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2000.
As a soloist he performed in the Chicago premiere of Silver Chants the Litanies by Augusta Read Thomas and has worked with the CSO horn section on Konzerstuck for Four Horns by Schumann.
As a guest musician he has been Associate Principal Horn with the Utah Symphony and Principal Horn with the Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Mexico. Other orchestras he has performed with during his career, including summer festival orchestras, include the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Philharmonic, Chicago Sinfonietta, Fort Collins Symphony, Grand Teton Festival Orchestra, Grant Park Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Metropolitana Orchestra of Lisbon in Portugal, Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, Music of the Baroque, the National Orchestral Institute, National Repertory Orchestra and Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra.
As a chamber musician he has performed on the CSO’s MusicNow series and with ensembles that include the Chicago Chamber Musicians and the Millar Brass Ensemble. He has also given a series of recitals in Vancouver, Canada.
Recordings he has performed on include the soundtrack for the film Lincoln by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Live by Chicago Symphony Orchestra Brass, American Spirit, Christmas Song, Christmasville and Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Mannheim Steamroller, Outlaster by Nina Nastasia and Esta Tierra Es Tuya (This Land Is Your Land) by Sones de Mexico Ensemble Chicago.
In the field of musical education he has been a faculty member of DePaul University, being awarded it’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2013, and was on the faculty of the Pacific Regional International Summer Music Academy for 10 years.
His wife, Sarah, is a freelance trumpet player.
Sources:
- https://cso.org/about/performers/cso-musicians/brass/horn/oto-carrillo/
- https://cso.org/experience/people/my-favorite-cso/cso/mfc-011-oto-carrillo/
- https://www.instantencore.com/contributor/bio.aspx?CId=5109534
- https://www.baroque.org/mob-stories/oto-carrillo
- https://fcsymphony.org/blog/oto-carrillo-interview/
- https://www.allmusic.com/artist/oto-carrillo-mn0001427585/credits
- https://www.discogs.com/artist/1614064-Oto-Carrillo
- https://music.depaul.edu/faculty-staff/faculty-a-z/Pages/oto-carrillo.aspx