Mario was born in Mexico City. After completing his studies at C.I.E.M. in classical guitar, musicology and composition in his country, he travelled to the UK to complete a Master´s degree and a PhD under the supervision of Ricardo Climent at NOVARS Research Centre, The University of Manchester. Mario completed a postdoctoral research fellow in Music and Technology at The National Autonomous University of Mexico and CMMAS under the supervision of Rodrigo Sigal.
He is a composer interested in the crossover between Science, Literature and Pre-Columbian cultures. His music has been played in festivals in Mexico, Spain, Czech Republic, Italy and at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival and New Music North West. He has worked as a producer and scriptwriter of contemporary music broadcasts at Opus 94.5 FM Instituto Mexicano de la Radio (2009) and as a music teacher IB MYP (2011-12). In 2010 he founded the program Comunidades Sonoras - Sound Communities, a social music project that works with urban marginalized and social excluded people in Mexico City.
Mario has been awarded 2nd place of Bienal Internacional de Radio (2023), 3rd place at the National Composition Competition for the 150th anniversary of the Mexican National Conservatoire of Music (2016). Resident composer of the Collaboration program MX-UK for emerging composers CMMAS, the University of Huddersfield and Sound and Music (2015), the second prize at the International Composition Competition Foro Internacional de Música Nueva Manuel Enríquez (2015), 2nd place at the Sound Art Competition Asamblea Legislativa del DF (2014), CONACYT Scholarship for PhD studies, The National Council for Science and Technology (2013) Victor Sayer Award The University of Manchester (2012), FINBA Scholarship for master's degree studies, The National Institute of Fine Arts Foundation (2012), and the 4th place at Janácek–Revueltas First International Composition Competition in Prague, Czech Republic (2008).
His doctoral research concerned the development of a tool for sonification of DNA structures for music composition was listed as one of the Top-ranked Thesis in Arts, Science and Technology in 2019 by LEONARDO Journal, MIT Press.
Mario is a member of Sistema Nacional de Creadores de Arte at the Ministry of Culture of Mexico. Member of SNII Sistema Nacional de Investigadoras e Investigadores of CONAHCYT, The National Council for Science, Humanities and Technology Science. An Associate Professor in Music and Technology at ENES Morelia, The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), and a lecturer of Sound Art and Mixed Media Composition at The University of Arts of Yucatán (UNAY).
https://comunidadessonoras.org/
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3540-6647
https://www.enesmorelia.unam.mx/directorio/dr-mario-alberto-duarte-garcia/