Bautista studied piano and composition at the Madrid Conservatory and later served as professor of harmony there. He moved to Buenos Aires in 1940 and pursued a career in composing film scores. Bautista's serious compositions are written in both Spanish and Argentinian styles. The Spanish works, many of which were lost during the Civil War, are diatonic with colorful decorations and modulating harmonies. His best remembered Argentinian pieces are =Cantar del Mio Cid= and =Sonata concertina a 4 no.=