KSC Guitar Orchestra Tours Ecuador
Members of the Keene State College Guitar Orchestra (Colin Isotti, Harold Jones, David Pastore, and Andrew Johnston), with their Director, Dr. Jose Manuel Lezcano, performed May 24-28 at several cultural educational institutions in Quito and Northern Ecuador, including the Casa de la Musica Concert Hall, the Universidad Politecnica del Norte en Ibarra, the Instituto de Musica de Cotacachi, and the Universidad de los Hemisferios.
The program they performed included the world premiere of KSC student Brian Campbell’s Rio for Guitar Ensemble, and the South American premiere of Dr. Lezcano’s Homenaje a Victor Jara, as well as works by Vivaldi, Sor, and Machado. The Office of Undergraduate Conference Travel, the Office of the Dean of Arts & Humanities, the KSC Music Department, and Quito’s La Casa de la Musica assisted them with funding.
In April, the KSC Guitar Orchestra joined forces with the Boston Guitar Orchestra and the Timberlane High School (Plaistow, NH) Guitar Ensemble to perform at the Boston Guitar Society’s Festival 21 in Boston, in the world premiere of Dr. Lezcano’s Homenaje to Victor Jara, conducted by the composer, with narration by Dr. Patricia Pedroza of Modern Languages. Dr. Lezcano was commissioned by Meet the Composer New England and the BCGS to compose this work celebrating the music and life of slain singer-songwriter and Chilean political activist Victor Jara.
