Tuesday, May 24, 2011

A special thanks...


Our dear friend and great guitarist Esai Saucedo recently completed his junior recital at Cal State Northridge with flying colors! In addition to an exciting program featuring Coste, Piazzolla and Albeniz, we were so pleased to hear two pieces by Almer! Almer wrote a piece called La Nuit avec PK for solo guitar in 1999. It is a very difficult work meant to strengthen the pinky finger in the left hand. Esai worked extremely hard on this piece and played it effortlessly! He also put together Uzeh Djugum i Mastrafu with violin Juliana Katzman. They performed solidly as a duo, adding their own unique musicianship and personalities to the piece, moving us both to tears! There is nothing more satisfying for a composer than to see your works being performed by live musicians!

In addition to classical guitar, Esai explores the music of other cultures through his group, Conquistadores, a three man acoustic group consisting requinto, classical guitar, stand-up bass together with vocals. They perform a traditional serenade style ensemble with repertoire ranging from latin, mexican folk, jazz and pop. Check out their Facebook page and join them for their next gig!

We want to thank our dear friend Esai and all the musicians who performed Almer's compositions! Thank you for keeping our music alive and thriving!

Monday, May 9, 2011

Student Spotlight!


There is nothing more satisfying to an instructor than to see your students thrive! Last week one of my students, Angie, gave a wonderful recital. Her parents are professional musicians in their homeland of Chile and came to the US for a visit. As a way to commemorate their stay in the US they decided to present a program of flute, bassoon and piano music for their family and friends. Angie worked very hard on the repertoire and amazed everyone in attendance. Besides the wonderful music, it was so touching to see a family of musicians performing together! Almer and I realized this was the true power of music...it is something we all can enjoy and appreciate at any age. Angie's parents gave her a beautiful gift when she was a child and she has carried that gift with her into her adulthood....and now SHE is inspiring her own 4 children!

Congratulations Angie!!!!