International Guitar Festival - José Ángel Pérez Puentes & Rafael Padron
José Angel Perez Puentes is a Cuban musician recognized as an outstanding guitarist, composer, conductor of orchestras, symphonic bands and guitar and chamber ensembles. He is an experienced pedagogue naturalized as an Ecuadorian citizen since December 8, 1991. During the span of his career, he has trained, tutored and taught more than 100 guitarists and musicians who are considered today to have high professional careers.
He studied at the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory with teachers Carlos Molina, Jesús Ortega, Martha Cuervo, Domingo Aragú (percussion), Juan Jorge Junco (clarinet), Alfredo Dieznieto (Harmony and Counterpoint), Justo Díaz (Copy and musical writing), Waldina Cortina and Felix Guerrero among other great Cuban educators who were his teachers.
He graduated in Composition at the Higher Institute of Arts of Cuba (first class 1981) with teachers Roberto Valera, Carlos Fariñas, Harold Gramatges, Sergio Fernández Barroso. He was a pupil of the Spanish teacher and composer Carmelo Bernaola at the Manuel de Falla Conservatory, Granada, Spain. He also received master classes with Venezuelan teachers Antonio Lauro and Alirio Díaz and from teachers Selvio Carrizoza, Ichiro Suzuki (Japan), Eli Kasnner (Canada).
As a teacher, his career has been offset by the success of many of his students. Among the most relevant who today are great performers, composers and directors are Ileana Matos (Canada), Javier Olondo (New Orleans, USA), Boris Díaz (Mexico), Francisco Calle (Ecuador, Spain), Jorge Oviedo, Benito Belduma, Carlos Falconí, Efraín Jaque, Luis Enríquez, Manuel León, Alfredo Galarza, Carlos León, Alfredo Altamirano, Luis Betancourt, Marcos Cañar and many others. He has performed countless concerts, master classes, conferences and interviews on radio and TV in Mexico.
Finally, The National Conservatory of Music of Quito conferred on him the title of Professor Emeritus Add oc Honoris for his collaboration in the training of teachers and examination of students. Today he still performs at different events, concerts and performances around the world.
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Cuban born guitarist, Rafael Padrón, is director of the Guitar Program at the University of Miami Frost School of Music where he is also a lecturer in the Department of Instrumental Performance. Padrón has won top prizes in many national and international competitions and has been featured in many international guitar festivals throughout the world. He has also performed both solo and with orchestras in various cities in Cuba, Chile, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Japan, Spain and in the United States of America. He is the artistic director of the Florida Guitar Foundation.
Padrón began studying the guitar at the age of eleven. In 1986, he was awarded a scholarship to study at the Advanced Institute of Art in Havana where he received the “High Achieving Student” award. He then graduated from the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD, where he completed his Graduate Performance diploma on a full scholarship, under the tutelage of world-renowned guitarist Manuel Barrueco. Padrón attained his Master’s Degree diploma at the University of Miami in December 2005. He has recorded four CDs “Fandango” with Aurora Guitar Quartet, and solo “Noviembre”, “Alhambra” and “Barrios”.
Rafael Padrón has been part of the faculty in music schools and universities such as the University of Costa Rica and National University of Heredia (Costa Rica), and the Calcaño Foundation (Venezuela), Gulf Coast University (Fort Myers, Florida) and Florida International University (Miami, Florida).
