On November 20 at the Auditorio de Galicia, Pacho Flores and Manuel Hernández-Silva will present, together with the Royal Galician Philharmonia, Cantos y Revueltas, Pacho Flores’ new album for Deutsche Grammophon with the Galician orchestra conducted by Hernández-Silva that includes, among other works and as a centerpiece, the homonymous concert for trumpet and Venezuelan cuatro by Pacho Flores himself.
Cantos y Revueltas
Cantos y Revueltas is a fantasia concertante for trumpet, Venezuelan cuatro and strings, premiered last January 2018 in Santiago, Vigo and A Coruña by the Royal Galician Philharmonia under Hernández-Silva, together with cuatro player Leo Rondón and, of course, Pacho Flores’ trumpets. It is a work rooted in old work songs and popular Venezuelan tunes, but also in modern Caribbean-like rhythms. The album begins with the Concerto para corno da caccia by Johann Baptist Georg Neruda, continues with the Aria from Bachiana Brasileira No. 5 by Villa-Lobos, Cantos y Revueltas, El Diablo suelto by Heraclio Fernández and Piazolla’s Winter in Buenos Aires, and was recorded live at the Palacio de la Ópera in A Coruña on January 13, 2018.
This is a double CD-DVD that includes a video recording of the concert and various extras, including interviews revealing the origin of Pacho’s work as well as curiosities about the process that led to its premiere in Santiago and its recording. Cantos y Revueltas is the fourth recording for Pacho Flores with Deutsche Grammophon after Cantar, with the Konzerthausorchester in Berlin conducted Christian Vásquez, Entropía, with guitar player Jesús ‘Pingüino’ González, and Fractales, with the Arctic Philharmonic conducted by Christian Lindberg. These concerts also counted on Pablo Barreiro for the audio recording and Antonio Cid and Joaquín Calderón for the video recording and production, which allowed to obtain a result that met Deutsche Grammophon’s highest artistic and technical standards.
Pacho Flores
Every so often, sometimes after several generations, some artists appear who are a milestone in their respective disciplines. This is the case with Pacho Flores, the great trumpet player of the 21st century so far, who is improving the performance technique and the expressive possibilities of the instrument to unknown levels. In collaboration with his brand, his STOMVI team, he is carrying out a formidable development and technical improvement of the trumpet, with new instruments in different keys and with four pistons that expand its register and palette. Many of these instruments are prototypes only available to Pacho, and only some, once tested, get produced for the market sale.
Pacho is also actively promoting an unprecedented expansion of the repertoire for solo trumpet and orchestra. After releasing some works dedicated to him by composers such as Efraín Oscher (Concierto Mestizo, 2010; Soledad, 2013, included in the album CANTAR; Barroqueana Venezolana nº 2, 2017; and Apex, double concert for trumpet and clarinet, 2018), Giancarlo Castro (Stunning trumpet, 2017), Alain Trudel (Preach pour trumpet et orchestre), etc., Pacho decided to take over and launch a project of shared commissions to some of the most relevant composers nowadays such as Arturo Márquez, Roberto Sierra, Paquito D’Rivera, Efraín Oscher, Christian Lindberg or Daniel Freiberg, which allows a systematic and scheduled update of new works with technical and musical requirements according to the possibilities offered by the new instruments. This program has already begun to bear fruit: Arturo Márquez and Paquito D’Rivera’s works have already been premiered, and the concerts by Roberto Sierra and Efraín Oscher’s will be presented this season. In addition, and in collaboration with his label, Deutsche Grammophon, Pacho is producing the most complete discography on the trumpet performed by the same artist, recording reference versions of the repertoire classics, as well as the new works that, by his own efforts, are joining the literature for this instrument.
Pacho Flores will make his debut with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic in two concerts with its principal conductor, Spanish Josep Caballé-Doménech. The concerts will take place on November 16 and 17 at the Pikes Peak Center with a program entitled “Free Spirit”, consisting of works by Gershwin and Ginastera, Concierto de Otoño by Arturo Márquez, the Aria de the Bachiana No. 5 by Villalobos, Morocota, a Venezuelan waltz by Pacho Flores himself, and Invierno, from the Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas by Astor Piazzolla.
Colorado Springs is already Pacho’s third visit to the US so far since the beginning of this intense season, which started with the premiere in Mexico of Concierto Venezolano by Paquito D’Rivera, with the Orquesta de Minería and Carlos Miguel Prieto, a historic evening during which Pacho played four trumpet concerts in the same program: Márquez’s Concierto de Otoño, which had been premiered a year earlier in the same country and with the same conductor but with the National Orchestra; the afore mentioned concert by D’Rivera; Crónicas Latinoamericanas by Daniel Freiberg; and Efraín Oscher’s Concierto Mestizo, a preamble of the album recorded with this same repertoire the following week.
Arturo Márquez, Paquito D’Rivera, Roberto Sierra, Christian Lindberg, Efraín Oscher and Daniel Freiberg
Pacho traveled afterwards to New Orleans to play with the Louisiana Philharmonic before visiting Poland to perform with the Beethoven Academy Orchestra, then to Switzerland to play with the Strasbourg Philharmonique and Kirill Karabits at the KKL in Lucerne, and then returned to the US to participate in the Latin American Festival of Fort Worth, Texas. After some master classes in Zurich, Pacho will travel to Bogota to perform with the Philharmonic Orchestra led by his friend, maestro Christian Vásquez, and from there he will head to Colorado Springs.
Pacho Flores and Paquito D’Rivera recording D’Rivera’s Concerto Venezolano
Pacho will after this return to the Royal Galician Philharmonia with Manuel Hernández-Silva for a double event, in which he will present Cantos y Revueltas, his fourth album for Deutsche Grammophon recorded live with this same orchestra and conductor, and also premiere Danzas Latinas, Efraín Oscher’s new concert dedicated to Pacho himself and which is part of the project of shared commissions for new trumpet concerts that Pacho is promoting.
Arturo Sandoval. Foto: Ocesa
From there on await Brazil, France, Spain and the Liverpool Philharmonic for the premiere of Salseando by Roberto Sierra; Spain, a new visit to the United States, Mexico and the San Diego Symphony for a new premiere by Paquito D’Rivera; afterwards Tokyo, again Poland to perform with the National Radio Symphony of Poland and back to the US; then the ADDA orchestra in Spain to play Un Sueño Morisco, double concert for trumpet and trombone that Christian Lindberg wrote for Pacho and Ximo Vicedo, premiered this 2019 with the RTVE Orchestra; Argentina and Chile; a return to Spain for the European premiere of Arturo Sandoval’s Concert No. 1 with the Oquesta Sinfónica de Galicia and the absolute premiere of the ConciertoMambí by Igmar Alderete with the Orchestra of Cordoba; and from there to Canada before returning to Spain again for the European premiere of Concierto venezolano by D’Rivera with the Orchestra of Valencia under Vicent Alberola. Finally, Pacho will premiere next summer in Brazil Roberto Sierra’s Salseando, with the Orquetra Simfònica do Estado de São Paulo and Giancarlo Guerrero.
Christian Vásquez and Pacho Flores are working together again, this time with the Bogota Philharmonic Orchestra, on November 8 and 9 at the Auditorio León de Greiff. The program includes the following works: Gershwin: Cuban Overture; Márquez: Concierto de Otoño; Villalobos: Aria de la Bachiana nº 5; Flores: Morocota; Piazzolla: Invierno Porteño (from Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas); and Ginastera: Suite from ballet Estancia.
Christian Vásquez and Pacho Flores have known each other since their infancy, when they were together at EL SISTEMA in Venezuela. After developing an international career and being both based in Europe, they have had the chance to collaborate on different occasions with orchestras such as the Philharmonic of Turku in Finland, the Stavanger Symphony in Norway or the Het Gelders Orkest in the Netherlands, in addition to Pacho Flores’ record debut for Deutshe Grammophon with CANTAR, which they recorded with the Funkhausorchester in Berlin in 2013.
If Christian Vásquez and Pacho Flores recorded what was Pacho’s first record for the yellow label, this program includes two works, Aria de la Bachiana nº 5 by Villalobos and Invierno Porteño by Piazzolla, which are part of CANTOS Y REVUELTAS, his fourth record for the German label that will be launched very soon. This new album was conducted by Manuel Hernández-Silva with the participation of Venezuelan cuatro player Leo Rondón and the Royal Galician Philharmonia. In between these two were published the albums ENTROPÍA, in 2017, with guitarist Jesús ‘Pingüino’ González, and FRACTALES, in 2018, with the Arctic Philharmonic and Christian Lindberg. This program also includes Arturo Márquez’s Concierto de Otoño, which is part of a large and ambitious project of shared commissions for new trumpet concerts that Pacho himself is promoting and that includes composers such as Roberto Sierra, Paquito D’Rivera, Efraín Oscher, Christian Lindberg and Daniel Freiberg. The main target of this project is to expand and improve the repertoire for solo trumpet with orchestra.
Pacho Flores debuts with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg next Friday, September the 27th, at the KKL of Lucerne, with the Concerto for trumpet and orchestra by Henri Tomasi, conducted by Kirill Karabits. Pacho has just arrived from Cracow, where he played works by Lindberg, Piazzolla and Arturo Márquez with the Beethoven Academy Orchestra conducted by Lee Reynolds; and after Lucerne Pacho is going to Fort Worth, Texas, to participate in the Latin American Music Festival, organised by the Texas Christian University, where Pacho will teach, play recitals, chamber music and concert con orchestra .
Pacho Flores is a first-prize winner of the Maurice André International Competition, the world’s most important trumpet contest, as well as the first prize at the International Competition Philip Jones and First Prize at the International Competition Citta di Porcia. Recently he was awarded with the Gold Medal by the Global Music Awards for ENTROPÍA, his last recording for Deutsche Grammophon with guitar player Jesús ‘Pingüino’ González. A product of the ground-breaking ‘El Sistema’, he is becoming increasingly recognized for his outstanding performing and recording activity that spans the solo, chamber, and orchestral media. Equally at home in the classical and folk styles, Pacho captivates audiences with his energetic delivery and colourful tone.
D. Freiberg, A. Márquez, P. D’Rivera, P. Flores and C. M. Prieto during the recording of Mestizo for Deutsche Grammophon
His solo performances include appearances with orchestras such as Turku Philharmonic, Arctic Philharmonic, Norrköping Symphony, Norddeutschen Philharmonie Rostock, Salzburger Philharmoniker, Kiev Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Camerata, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, NHK Symphony, Tokyo Symphony, Osaka Philharmonic, Kymi Sinfonietta, Het Gelders Orchestra, Tucson Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, , Orquesta de RTVE, Hyogo PAC Orchestra, Sinfónica Nacional de México, Sinfónica Nacional de Puerto Rico, Filarmónica de Málaga, Sinfónica de Baleares, Real Filharmonía de Galicia, Sinfónica de Bilbao, Sinfónica de Tenerife, Stavanger Orchestra, Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, Orquesta del Teatro Colón de Buenos Aires, Oviedo Filarmonía or Simón Bolívar Orchestra of Venezuela. In recital, he has performed in venues such as the New York Carnegie Hall, the Paris Salle Pleyel and the Tokyo Opera City. Next engagements include the, Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, Basel Symphonieorchester, Orchestre National de Lille, Sinfónica de Navarra, San Diego Symphony, National Orchestra of the Polish Radio, Sinfónica do Estado de São Paulo or Swedish Chamber Orchestra.
Pacho Flores and Paquito D’Rivera recording D’Rivera’s Concerto Venezolano
A founding member of the Venezuelan Simón Bolívar Brass Quintet, he has toured with the quintet extensively in Europe, South America, the United States, and Japan. An experienced orchestral musician, Mr. Flores has played first trumpet in the Simón Bolívar Orchestra of Venezuela, the Saito Kinen Orchestra, and the Miami Symphony, under the direction of Claudio Abbado, Sir Simon Rattle, Seiji Ozawa, Giusseppe Sinopoli, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, and Gustavo Dudamel, among others. A founding director of the Latin American Trumpet Academy in Caracas, he mentors a promising generation of budding musicians and is a frequent guest at conservatories in Finland, Spain, France, Japan, and Latin America, as permanent jury member in prestigious international competitions. Pacho Flores is an avid champion of new music and is bringing about important innovations to trumpet performance and fabrication. His repertoire includes commissions and premieres of works by composers such as Roger Boutry, Efraín Oscher, Giancarlo Castro, Santiago Báez, Juan Carlos Nuñez, Sergio Bernal, Arturo Márquez, Roberto Sierra or Paquito D’Rivera. His first album La trompeta Venezolana has been released by the label GUATACA Producciones.
A Stomvi artist, he performs with instruments tailored specially for him by this prestigious firm and actively participates in the development and innovation of their instruments. Pacho Flores is a Deutsche Grammophon exclusive artist with already three recordings, Cantar, with Konzerthaus Orchester Berlin and Christian Vásquez; Entropía, Gold Medal of the Global Music Awards 2017 and Melómano de Oro; and Fractales, with the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra and Christian Lindberg, Gold Medal of the Global Music Awards 2019. Next releases are Cantos y Revueltas, with the Real Filharmonía de Galicia and Manuel Hernández-Silva, and Mestizo, with the Sinfónica de Minería and Carlos MIguel Prieto.
Ira Levin has been named as the new ‘Maestro Titular’ (Music Director) of the Teatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro, effective immediately. This happens after a hugely successful production of Gounod’s Faust and concerts with tenors Vittorio Grigolo and Michael Fabiano. The TMRJ is the largest opera house in Brazil and the second largest in South America after the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, where Levin was the principal guest conductor from 2011 to 2015. He was also the artistic and music director of the Teatro Municipal in Sao Paulo from 2002 to 2005 and the National Theater of Brazil from 2007 to 2009, making him the only foreigner to have had leading positions in most of the leading opera houses in South America. He will conduct at least three opera productions and several concerts each year in Rio.
Ira Levin had major conducting positions in Bremen, Kassel and the Deutsche Oper am Rhein and guest conducted in several houses including Leipzig, Dresden, Frankfurt, Hannover, Linz, Geneva, Oslo, Cape Town and New York City Opera. Ira Levin has conducted over 90 operas and his concert activity has been equally intense, encompassing a huge repertoire, and he has several CDs to his credit with the London Symphony, Scottish National Orchestra and other orchestras.
Ira Levin is also still active as a concert pianist and has published several piano transcriptions as well as seven large orchestrations. His first Naxos CD, to be released in the Fall of 2019 will be of works by Max Reger and includes his orchestration of the monumental Bach Variations opus 81, originally for piano.
Ira Levin is also still active as a concert pianist and has published several piano transcriptions as well as seven large orchestrations. His first Naxos CD, to be released in the Fall of 2019, will be of works by Max Reger and includes his orchestration of the monumental Bach Variations opus 81, originally for piano. He lives in Berlin and Rio de Janeiro. He lives in Berlin and Rio de Janeiro. For more information about Ira Levin seewww.iralevin.net.
