Fernando Ortega is a singer, pianist, songwriter, arranger, and storyteller. Trained as a classical pianist and inspired by the Presbyterian hymns of his childhood, Ortega has been influential in expanding the range of Christian music. He has devoted considerable attention to creating arrangements of early church music and hymns, infusing them with instrumental and vocal character drawn from classical, folk, and world music. His songs and writing often conjure the expansive landscape of the Southwestern United States.

Ortega makes his home in New Mexico, where his ancestors first settled in the early 1600s. Over a rich and varied musical career, he has released 22 records and a book of his bird photography and tales, has traveled around the world as a touring artist, and has received many accolades and awards for his music. He is happiest at home, however, raising his spectacular daughter Ruby, working in the garden, and photographing birds.