World’s Top Student Guitarists Compete for $10,000 in Prizes

It’s the largest acoustical guitar festival in the United States as 35 of the world’s top student guitarists head to San Antonio to compete for $10,000 in prizes in the Southwest Guitar Festival.

In addition to the competition, the festival also offers an array of concerts by some of the best international acoustical guitar performers. Preliminary rounds begin at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 4.  At 7:30 p.m., the Opening Concert is scheduled in the UTSA Arts Building Recital Hall and features the World Premiere of Triqueta for Guitar, Horn and Chamber Orchestra.  The original piece, composed by UTSA Department of Music Professor James Scott Balentine, will be performed by UTSA Department of Music Assistant Professor Matthew Dunne and conducted by UTSA Department of Music Associate Professor Eugene Dowdy. At 7:30 p.m., on Thursday, Feb. 5, Bosnian guitarist Denis Azabagic, a winner of 11 international competitions, takes the stage in the UTSA Arts Building Recital Hall. On Friday, Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. in the Majestic Theatre, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet and the San Antonio Symphony team up for the World Premiere performance of Sergio Assad’s Interchange for Guitar Quartet and Orchestra. The student competition wraps up at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 7 with the International Competition Finals taking place at Travis Park United Methodist Church.The festival’s final concert performance at 3:15 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 8 features a recital by Brazilians Sergio and Odair Assad, a stunning duo that has captivated audiences around the world for decades. The Southwest Guitar Festival, presented by The University of Texas at San Antonio Department of Music, is cosponsored with Arts! San Antonio, City of San Antonio Office of Cultural Affairs, the San Antonio Chamber Music Society and the San Antonio Symphony. To purchase tickets or find more information, visit http://www.swgf.org/tickets.php

2009 Southwest Guitar Festival Schedule

Opening Concert: Wednesday, Feb. 4; 7:30 p.m. (UTSA Arts Building Recital Hall)
This concert features UTSA faculty member and SWGF Director Matthew Dunne in concert with celebrated guest artist Michael Gast, UTSA music faculty members, musicians from the San Antonio Symphony, and the UTSA Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Dr. Eugene Dowdy. On the program is a world premiere of Triqueta for Guitar, Horn, and Chamber Orchestra by UTSA faculty composer James Scott Balentine. It also combines the world premiere of a new piece with music from Mexico (Manuel Ponce Concierto Del Sur) and music of the Beatles. (A suite of Lennon/McCartney songs arranged by Cuban composer Leo Brouwer)

Denis Azabagic: Thursday, Feb. 5; 7:30 p.m. (UTSA Arts Building Recital Hall)
Denis Azabagic, originally from Bosnia, has won eleven international competitions. He is destined to be considered one of the leading classical guitarists of the late 20th-early 21st centuries. This is a chance to see him perform in the intimate setting of the UTSA Recital Hall before his career gets to the point where he will only be performing in much larger venues. 

Los Angeles Guitar Quartet and San Antonio Symphony’s World Premiere of Interchange by Sergio Assad: Friday, Feb. 6; 8 p.m. (Majestic Theatre)  This is an opportunity to be present at a point of guitar history in the making. Sergio Assad is a multi-GRAMMY winning composer, and currently holds the 2008 Latin GRAMMY for best musical composition, and the LAGQ is the world’s leading guitar quartet. In 1962 the San Antonio Symphony made its mark on the music world by premiering Rodrigo’s Concierto Andaluz with Los Romeros.  This led to thousands of performances of this work throughout the world over the last forty years. With several U.S. orchestras bidding for performance of the new Assad piece even before it was composed, there is little doubt that this premiere will have a similar or greater impact on the development of guitar music. 

“International Competition Finals” Saturday, Feb. 7; 4 p.m. (Travis Park United Methodist Church)
In 2007, the SWGF started the first International Competition for Guitar Students. The result was a thrilling final round with competitors from Australia, France, Nicaragua, and the U.S. Mike Greenberg, then senior critic with the San Antonio Express-News, called the winning performance of the competition by Australian Aleksandr Tsiboulski “The best music in San Antonio this weekend.” This was on a weekend when the symphony and chamber music society presented major artists. The 2009 SWGF Competition Finals are co-sponsored by Arts! San Antonio.“The Assad Duo” Sunday, Feb. 8; 3:15 p.m. (Travis Park United Methodist Church)

Co-presented by the San Antonio Chamber Music society, the hottest ticket in town this weekend will be the recital by Sergio and Odair Assad, fresh from the premiere of Sergio Assad’s concerto in the same weekend. The Assad brothers are a stunning duo that has captivated audiences around the world for decades.