Beth Reed, cellist, completed her Master of Music degree in Music Education at the Eastman School of Music in 2003. In 2001 she received her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education with a Performance Certificate in cello from the University of South Carolina. As a cellist she has performed with the Pan American Symphony Orchestra, Friends and Family Chamber Orchestra of Fairfax County, Signature String Quartet, Quartet Program at Bucknell University, Il Grazioso Piano Trio at the Orford Center of the Arts in Quebec, South Carolina Governor’s School of the Arts Resident String Quartet, Eastman Bartok String Quartet Seminar, and on broadcasts for SCETV, South Carolina Public Radio, and WVIA in Pennsylvania. Her teachers include David Ying of the Ying Quartet, Robert Jesselson, and Jacqueline Taylor.

Currently Ms. Reed is an Orchestra director at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Fairfax County, Virginia. This summer she will accompany high school students on a European tour through the American Music Abroad program. Former teaching positions include the Hochstein School of Music, University of South Carolina String Project, St. Peter’s Catholic School, Lexington County School District Five, and the South Carolina School for the Art’s and Humanities.

Octavio Brunetti was born in Rosario, Argentina in 1975. He started his musical studies at the Municipal Music School in Rosario and graduated from both The National School of Music and the Pedagogical Institute of  Music, preparing him to become a piano teacher. He also studied piano and chamber music in Buenos Aires with Alicia Belleville. In 2004, he won the New York City International Tango Competition Award for Best Solo Pianist and Best Duo (Brunetti – Monk).   From 2001 – 200, he was the pianist and conductor of the Provincial Orchestra of Popular Music in Cordoba, Argentina. In 2003, when the famous bandoneón player, Osvaldo Piro, became the conductor, Octavio remained as the assistant conductor and principal arranger.  He has recorded tangos, among which the most notable are “Inquietudes” (Omar Torres Quintet), “Saludos” (Domingo Federico’s Orchestra), and “Tierra y Asfalto” (Brunetti – Carballo). In 2000, he was the pianist with the World Tango Orchestra, conducted by Rodolfo Mederos. He has played at such notable venues, such as the Teatro Colon (Mozarteum Series 1995), Teatro San Martin in Cordoba, “El Circulo” theater in Rosario, Auditorio Astengo in Rosario, Lincoln Center in New York City, at the Tango and Malambo Festival in Santa Barbara,California, the Granada Festival in Spain, the World Music Festival in Providence, Rhode Island, and the Boston Tango Festival.  He has toured in Germany, Holland, Switzerland.

Pianist Jeffery  Watson has appeared as soloist with the Honduran National Symphony, the Pan American Symphony , the Rosario (Argentina) Chamber Orchestra, and the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra with the Kirov Ballet. Dr. Watson was Associate Professor of piano at DePauw University,  a teaching fellow at the University of Maryland and on the faculty of the Levine School of Music in Washington, DC.   He was pianist with the internationally acclaimed tango quintet, QuinTango, including performances with the Wichita Symphony,  Orquesta Sinfonica Sinaloa de las Artes  (Mexico), as well as at Lincoln Center, the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence in Buenos Aires and at the International Tango Festival in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.    Dr. Watson was associate conductor for the Kennedy Center’s award-winning production of Sunday in the Park with George as part of the Center's 2002 Sondheim Festival. Currently a faculty member of the Washington Conservatory of Music,  he also is a music director and coach for the Maryland Opera Studio at the University of Maryland where he has directed productions of Fatal Song, Tale of Two Cities and Noel & Cole.  He holds degrees in piano performance from DePauw University, the Eastman School of Music and the University of Maryland.

From Bahia Blanca, Argentina, Mr. De Leon started his singing career at the Conservatory “Albeniz” in Buenos Aires, where he studied music and guitar.  By age 16, he was performing with Miguel Saravia, one of Argentina’s most popular folklore musicians.  He performed regularly on radio and television in Argentina, and appeared in “café concerts” at some of Buenos Aires’ finest nightclubs, alongside such notable singers as Vinicius de Moraes, Toquinho and Maria Creuza, among others.  In New York City, he sang regularly at Café Latinoamericano, and by 1978, had performed at Carnegie Hall in a recital show conducted by Oscar Britos.  He later performed at the Village Gate with Rodolfo Alchounon’s orchestra. In 1982, he completed a successful tour of 29 U.S. cities, and his rendition of “No Me Llames Extranjero” gained such popularity among tango enthusiasts that he was invited to sing at the Astrodome and the Coliseum in Houston, Texas, and at the World Trade Center in New York City. He has also toured Japan, many U.S. universities and concert halls, and appeared on various U.S. television shows. 

Notably, de Leon has shared the stage with Tito Puente and Eddie Palmieri, and in a special tribute to Astor Piazzolla, along with Raul Jaurena and the New York Buenos Aires Connection, he appeared with Al DiMeola, Dino Saluzzi, and Gerry Mulligan.  In 1997, he received accolades from the press for his performance with Ruben Juarez, Alba Solis, and Raul Lavie at the famous Café Homero in Argentina. He most recently sang with the stage performance of “Tango Dreams.”  The New York Post has described de Leon as one of today’s most prominent tango voices, while the Washington Post has found him to have “quite simply one of the finest voices” for tango (Sept. 1996).  This is Mr. De Leon’s third performance with the Pan American Symphony Orchestra. 

Julio Almeida is a critically acclaimed and internationally respected guitar soloist and chamber musician. The German newspaper Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger described the Ecuadorian musician, a long-time resident of Cologne, as "a first-class guitarist". His recitals throughout Europe, North America and South America have been enthusiastically recieved by the public and the international press alike.

           His frequent performances as a soloist and in chamber music collaborations have taken place in prestigious concert halls such as the Beethoven Hall of Bonn, the Chiesa della Pontificia di Sant' Anna in the Vatican, the Basilica de Lourdes in France, the Marble Hall of the Hungarian National Radio in Budapest, the Concert Hall of V. V. Mayakovskiy National Museum in Moscow, the Teatro Colón of Buenos Aires, the Sala Figari, Palacio Santos in Montevideo, the Teatro Prometeo in Quito, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and Hepburn Hall in New Jersey, among others.

           His discography includes two solo albums and a disc of music for violin and guitar with Duo Paganini. He has made various recordings for radio and television in partnership with broadcasters such as WDR (West German Radio), SFB (Radio Berlin), Radio Bartók of Budapest, National Radio of Buenos Aires, and Sí TV of Ecuador.

           Almeida has won prizes in several national and international competitions, including:

1982    First prize in the National Competition for Classical Guitar in Quito/Ecuador

1996    Third prize in the Competition for the Scholarship for Cultural Promotion, given by the   Association of Business and Industry, Münster/Germany

1998    Second prize in the Chamber Music Competition of Wuppertal with the Duo Encuentro for      flute and guitar, with flutist Thomas Brögger

1999    Diploma al Mèrito in the Torneo Internazionale di Música in Rome/Italy

            Almeida first studied classical guitar with Riuhey Kobayashi at the "Conservatorio Antonio Neumane" in his hometown, where he was later awarded the position "Professor of Classical Guitar" by the Ministry of Education at the young age of 21.

             The support of various grants including the KAAD-Grant of Bonn, the Gopfelstiftung of Munich, and the Paul and Maria Kremer-Stiftung of Cologne, enabled him to further pursue his career in Germany. He studied with Tadashi Sasaki at the College of Music in Aachen and with Reinbert Evers at the College of Music in Münster, completing his studies with the highest distinction. This was followed by the Soloist-Degree "Konzertexamen" within the programme of the International Chain Study in Enschede/Netherlands, Gent/Belgium, and Essen/Germany.

             He has participated in masterclasses offered by many outstanding artists, among them Wolfgang Lendle, Abel Carlevaro, Olivier Chassin, Antonio Ruiz Pipó, Ida Polk, Luis Ignatius Gall, Hubert Käppel, Dieter Kreidler, Roberto Aussel and Aniello Desiderio.

             Almeida currently resides in Cologne and is Instructor of Classical Guitar at the Music Academies of Neuss and Meerbusch

  Carolina Sarmiento was born in Bogotá, Colombia in 1974.  She began her studies in piano at the age of eight in the Conservatory of Music at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia.  Her teachers where Rosario López and Angela Rodríguez.  At the age of fifteen, Miss Sarmiento received her diploma in Basic Music Studies from the same university.  At the same time, she performed in many music halls around Bogotá, and as a soloist with the university's youth symphony orchestra. 

In 1991, she won the Jóvenes Talentos (Young Artist) Scholarship which was sponsored by the Colombian Republic Bank.  The scholarship is awarded every two years and has afforded Carolina the honor of traveling to the United States to study towards a Bachelor's degree in Music with an emphasis in Piano Performance.  She is now in her last year of study at the Peabody Conservatory of Music at the John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.  Her piano instructor is the North-American pianist Julian Martin.  In 1992, Miss Sarmiento won a competition which was sponsored by the Colombian Symphony Orchestra.  With this orchestra she gave her debut performance of Beethoven's second piano concerto in the Auditorio León de Greiff and the Teatro Colón de Bogotá, under the direction of the Uruguayan conductor Federico García Vigil.

Miss Sarmiento has participated in master classes with the Colombian maestra Blanca Uribe, the Austrian pianist Alexander Jenner, the North-American pianist Lee Luvisi, and the Canadian maestro Marc Durand.  She has had a number of opportunities to perform in the Luis-Angel Arango Concert Hall in Bogotá and has been the subject of several interviews on Colombian radio, television, and newspapers.  Recently, she performed in a series of concerts organized by the Colombian Republic Bank in different cities and auditoriums in her country.

Carolina Sarmiento also shows great interest in Baroque music.  She currently studies harpsichord and Baroque studies with maestro Webb Wiggins at the Peabody Conservatory.

Founded in 1991 by Diana Saez, Coral Cantigas is the only chorus in the Washington, D.C. area that specializes in the performance of music from Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean. Through performances and workshops, Coral Cantigas shares the artistic and cultural diversity of the Spanish-speaking world and serves as a bridge between the Spanish-speaking and non-Spanish-speaking communities. The choir performs in Spanish, Portuguese, and a variety of American languages and dialects such as Nahuatl, Quechua and Creole, with bilingual concert program notes and texts.

Coral Cantigas has appeared at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Mexican Cultural Institute, Strathmore Hall, Washington National Cathedral, Capital Children's Museum, and performed under the auspices of the Washington Performing Arts Society, the In Series, the National Council of La Raza, the American Choral Directors Association and the American Guild of Organists. Coral Cantigas has also performed in collaboration with the Pan American Orchestra, The Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, the Cathedral Choral Society, New Century Singers, VOCE Chamber Choir, Tepuy folk ensemble, and The Chamber Singers of Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges. In addition, the choir has hosted area performances by "Coral del Banco Industrial de Venezuela," the Argentinean group "Opus Cuatro," and "Cantaré", a local Latin American ensemble for children. Guest artists for the 2003-2004 season  include Tina Chancey and Scot Reiss of the early music group Hesperus, and the Children's Chorus of Silver Spring, among others. Coral Cantigas also hosts a workshop led by outstanding Latin American scholars and performers, who teach and demonstrate performance styles from Latin America, Spain, and the Caribbean.

  Jorge Saade, born in Guayaquil, Ecuador is considered Ecuador’s most outstanding violinist. Mr. Saade has captivated audiences all over the world with his enormous sound, compelling virtuoso performances and charismatic personality. Mark Holston, music critic for the “AMERICAS“ magazine in Washington DC wrote about him: “…one of the best young classical musicians of the Americas…his reputation as Ecuador’s violin virtuoso is reinforced by this haunting, richly rewarding selection”.

Mr. Saade is a "Gold Medal" graduated from the “Antonio Neumane” National Conservatory of Music. He is a “Cum Laude” graduate from the University of Miami where he recieved his Bachelors Degree in Music and holds a Master of Music Degree from The Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., where he studied with famous violinist and pedagogue Robert Gerle. As of 1995, he was the only Ecuadorian and Latin American accepted at the Mozarteum Institute in Salzburg, Austria, to study with violin virtuoso Ruggiero Ricci.

During his distinguished career, Mr. Saade has been the recipient of many awards and decorations, among the most important are: the 1994 “Light of America” award from the Ecuadorian Foundation for Arts and Culture in Miami, Florida, the “Keys to the City of Miami” presented to him by the Dade County Commissioner. In 2000, he was decorated by the President of the Ecuadorian Congress with the “Congressional Award for Cultural Merit”. For his work in favor of the Ecuadorian Arts and Culture the President of Ecuador honored him as a "Commander" of the National Merit Order, proclaiming him "Ecuador's Cultural Ambassador", this is the highest decoration given by the Ecuadorian Government. For his work and support for it’s creation, the Youth Symphony Orchestra of the Americas in Washington D.C. decorated him with the “Special Recognition Medal”. In 2004 , the Ecuadorian Congress honored him with the highest cultural decoration, the "Dr. Vicente Rocafuerte" Medal for Cultural Merit and the Minister of Culture and Education of Ecuador decorated him with the highest cultural decoration given by the Ministry, the Medal for Cultural and Artistic Merit in First Degree. Most recently, the Guayaquil Journalist Association honored him with the "Angelo Negri" Medal for Cultural Merit.

In 1993 Mr. Saade became the first Ecuadorian violinist to release a compact disc recording ”Recital” together with renowned Canadian pianist, Adam Wegrzynek. His second compact disc, “Danza Ecuatoriana” together with virtuoso Ecuadorian pianist Boris Cepeda was recorded live at the Hanover World Expo 2000 in Germany

In 2002 together with renowned Ecuadorian guitarist Julio Almeida, Jorge Saade formed the “Duo Paganini”. About the “Duo Paganini” debut recital in Cologne, Germany on October 3, 2002, Daniel Reits, music critic for the “KOELNER STADT ANZEIGER” wrote: “...two Ecuadorian virtuosos.... with the rich and varied program “From Paganini to the Andes” the artists captivated the audience......the duo impress the audience with a perfect ensemble and artistry.....”. The first compact disc of the Paganini Duo “From Paganini to the Andes” was released during their acclaimed performance at the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In 2005, the Guayaquil Symphony Orchestra released their first compact disc recording entitled "Música Académica Ecuatoriana", recorded live at the Guayaquil Teatro Centro de Arte on June 30, 2004, featuring Mr. Saade as a guest soloist. The second recording with the Guayaquil Symphony Orchestra under the direction of acclaimed conductor and composer Jose Serebrier was done live at the Guayaquil Teatro Centro de Arte on May 13, 2005, featuring Mr. Saade as a guest soloist with Mozart´s Violin Concerto No. 3. Most recently under the sponsorship of Mastercard-Pacificard of Ecuador he released “Tango, Danzon y Pasillo”, recorded live with the Pan-American Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Sergio Buslje in Washington DC.

He has been a professor of violin and viola at the “Antonio Neumane” National Conservatory of Music in Guayaquil, where he was also the Head of the String Department, General Manager and founder of the Ecuadorian Youth Symphony Orchestra Foundation (FOSJE), President of the Ibero-American Cultural Attachés Association in Washington D.C., Artistic Director and Professor of Violin at the Institute of Musical Arts at the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, Vice-president of the Washington Symphony Orchestra and Concertmaster of the Pan American Symphony Orchestra in Washington DC.

Mr. Saade served as the Cultural and Press Attaché of the Ecuadorian Embassy and Cultural Representative of Ecuador to the Organization of the American States in Washington DC from June 1997 to February 2003.

Her solo appearances have been in such prestigious venues as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the French Embassy, and the Lisner Auditorium, in Washington, D.C. Among many recital engagements, she has frequently appeared at the Arts Club of Washington D.C., and the Renwick National Gallery of American Art. Her operatic roles include Adele in Die Fledermaus, Marie in La Fille du Regiment, and Carolina in Luisa Fernanda. She was a featured soloist in the 1997 Maryland Handel Festival, and released the recording "Amore e gelosia: Italian Duets of G. F. Handel ," and can also be heard on a recording for the 1999 Handel Festival in Halle, Germany. Together with guitarist Gustavo Them, Catherine Verrilli presents programs of Latin American and Spanish music to critical acclaim. Dr. Verrilli performs annual solo faculty recitals and is a member of the department's Faculty Baroque Ensemble.

Gustavo Them is making his mark as an impassioned and charismatic soloist and chamber musician. His “ fluid phrasing and balanced, natural tone” were praised by the Washington Post.  He has recentlly been chosen by Marvin Hamlisch to perform in his Pops Concert Series at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore with his violin duo partner Christian Colberg. An Artist’s Diploma recipient of the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University, he has been recognized with the Susan W. Rose Fund for Music Career Grant.  He is the winner of the 1996 Baltimore Chamber Music Competition and holds the Honors Award from the Barcelona Conservatory in Spain.

He has been featured as soloist with the Pan American, the Gettysburg and the Trujillo (Perú) Symphony Orchestras. Recently he has released the CD “The Lyric Guitar”, with music by Villa-Lobos, Barrios, Antonio José and Piazzolla for solo guitar.  “Spanish and Latin American Music for Guitar and Violin/Viola,” a CD recorded with Christian Colberg and sponsored by Música

de Cámara Inc. in N.Y., will  be released soon. He has performed with musicians such as soprano Catherine Verrilli, bandoneonist Raul Jaurena,, violinist José Cueto, and the Grupo Ama.  Radio appearances include Radio Barcelona -FM and Catalunya Radio, Barcelona, Spain, WBJC in Baltimore, MD and Stereo Lima, Perú.

Born in Barcelona, Spain, Gustavo holds a Teacher’s Degree from the Barcelona Conservatory and a Higher Teacher’s Degree from the Oscar Esplá Conservatory in Alicante. He also earned a Graduate Performance Diploma and an Artist Diploma from the Peabody Conservatory where he studied with Manuel Barrueco. Currently he is a faculty member at St. Mary’s College of Maryland and the Baltimore School for the Arts. He has taught master-classes and has

given lectures about  classical guitar technique, practicing and memorization methods.

He regularly performs in music festivals in the U.S., Spain, Portugal, Puerto Rico and Perú. Highlighted appearances include the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.; ARTSCAPE ’96 in Baltimore; the Sala Eduard Toldrá of the Barcelona Conservatory in Spain; the Second International Guitar Festival in Aveiro, Portugal and the “Museo de la Nación”, Lima, Perú.

        Universally acclaimed for her powerful and expressive voice and for her electric stage presence, Cristina Nassif is quickly establishing herself as one of the finest singing actresses on the American operatic stage. She made her Washington National Opera debut last May, bringing her bold soprano and fiery temperament to the role of Vitellia in Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito.  Audiences and critics alike have praised her recent performances as Bizet’s Carmen, and Verdi’s Violetta.  Her varied repertoire also includes Nedda, Tatiana, Zemfira, Musetta, Rosina, Alice Ford, Donna Elvira, Pamina and Despina. This February, Ms. Nassif made her Carnegie Hall debut in an evening of Operatic Highlights at Weill Recital Hall sponsored by the Italian Academy Foundation and in cooperation with the International Opera Alliance (IOA). 

        She has performed with Virginia Opera, the Virginia Symphony, the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Chamber Soloists of Philadelphia, Wichita Grand Opera, Central City Opera, and the Opera Theater of Pittsburgh among others.  Equally at home on the concert stage, Ms. Nassif has been hailed for the distinct quality of her voice, for her charismatic stage presence and for her innate ability to sincerely communicate both music and text. Concert appearances include the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra's "Concert of Operatic Highlights", the Ocean City Pops' July 4th "Patriotic Salute", “Duende!” (an all-Spanish solo recital) sponsored by the International Poetry Forum in Pittsburgh, “Opera on the Square” in Philadelphia, the “AIDS Marathon Opera Gala” in Washington, D.C. and her Embassy Series debut at the Austrian Embassy in a concert devoted to the works of Korngold. Other works include Mendelssohn’s Elijah and Lobgesang.                 

          Upcoming engagements include a Benefit Concert at Carnegie Lecture Hall in Pittsburgh, Penn. and May performances of Carmen with both Shreveport Opera and The West Virginia Symphony Orchestra.

Mr. Rodelas' performance credits include principal roles in Carmen, Tosca, Madame Butterfly, La Traviata, Gianni Schicchi, Faust, The Merry Widow, I Pagliacci, The Magic Flute, Il Tabarro, Macbeth, The Return of Ulysses, Idomeneo, Fatal Song, Naughty Marietta, The Bartered Bride, Yeomen of the Guard, West Side Story, and Die Fledermaus.

He has also been featured in concert performances of Mozart's Requiem, Handel's Messiah, Granados' Goyescas, Torroba's Luisa Fernanda, and numerous opera galas and benefits.

In addition to his operatic repertoire, Mr. Rodelas has an avid interest in the traditional music of Latin America, including zarzuela, mariachi, and tango. In 2000, he was honored with the Disco de Oro at the Festival de la Canción National Competition in San Francisco where he received the first place award and standing ovation for his interpretation of "Granada" by Agustin Lara.

This year marks Mr. Rodelas' debut performances as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Boheme and Dick Johnson in La Fanciulla del West. .

Mr. Rodelas holds a Master of Vocal Performance degree from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from the University of California, Berkeley

This quintet from Rosario, Argentina was formed in 1975, when members of the symphony orchestra of the municipality of Rosario decided they wanted to present a variety of musical styles to the public, outside of those normally offered by a symphony. Covering the musical periods starting with Rosendo Mendizabal (1868-1913) and ending with Astor Piazzola (1921-1992), the Quintet, under the musical direction of Pedro Mario Garcia, strives to maintain the distinct melodic line of the pieces it chooses to interpret, but offers its own fresh take on many selections. The members of the Quintet are also members of the Rosario Symphony Orchestra and of the Chamber Orchestra of the Municipality of Rosario.  The Quintet has an ambitious touring schedule, having performed in Japan, Israel, Germany, and Brazil. This is their first performance in Washington, DC. 

Ms. Rider has performed as a featured soloist for the Chesapeake Chamber Orchestra, the Pan-American Symphony, and as a guest artist with Quintango.  She performs frequently in recitals throughout the country and locally with numerous orchestras, including the National Philharmonic.  She is also involved in numerous chamber music ensembles and will be featured on several chamber music series in the 2004-05 season.

Aron Rider currently has an extensive private teaching studio composed of students of all ages, and was instructor of cello at Georgetown University prior to serving on the faculty of St. Mary’s College of Maryland.  In her spare time, Ms. Rider enjoys studying viola da gamba and playing a variety of genres of music, including tango, folk music, and new compositions.  She enjoys working with young musicians. She has been on the faculty of summer music programs in Arlington and Prince William counties as well as one sponsored by the National Philharmonic. She has served on judging panels for a number of solo competitions.

Anna Menendez is a flamenco dancer based out of the Washington DC area. She has worked as a performer, teacher and choreographer since 1996. Her credits include performances at the Spanish and Mexican Embassies, the Kennedy Center, Lisner Auditorium, and the Smithsonian Institution. Anna has danced in many Washington Opera productions such as Dona Francisquita and El Gato Montes. In the summer of 2001, Anna was invited to dance with the company La Truco Flamenco at the Albeniz theater in Madrid, Spain, as they participated in the annual choreography competition, the Certamen. Anna looks forward to many upcoming projects