Celebrated Guitarist Daniel Salazar to Perform on November 18

Connecticut Virtuosi presents Musica Latina with celebrated Guitarist Daniel Salazar and Flutist Gonzalo Cortes at First Presbyterian Church of Hartford on November 18

HARTFORD - Connecticut Virtuosi will present Musica Latina with celebrated guitarist Daniel Salazar and Flutist Gonzalo Cortes at First Presbyterian Church of Hartford on Thursday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m.

The concert is part of Connecticut Virtuosi Music Academy’s The Small Stage at First chamber music series, which debuted online last fall. This year, in-person concerts are held twice monthly, on the first and third Thursday, in partnership with the First Presbyterian Church of Hartford.

Daniel Salazar possesses one of the most distinctive sounds in the world of the classical guitar, expanding the boundaries of the instrument with traditional repertoire and original works that fuse Spanish, Latin American, world music and orchestral elements.

Praised internationally for his warm and virtuosic playing, his solo, chamber and orchestral performances have been enjoyed by international audiences on stage, television and radio.

Throughout his adventurous and versatile career, Daniel Salazar has re-imagined the concert experience, creating new programs that relentlessly redefine the Spanish classical guitar’s limits. In 1993 he conceived and founded Guitar Under the Stars, a large-scale outdoor concert production with the goal of sharing his musical vision with large audiences. Since then, Guitar Under the Stars has become a one of a kind guitar event that draws an audience of thousands to hear his original music and brilliant orchestral arrangements of classical, Latin American and Spanish works.

Salazar also performs with The Daniel Salazar Ensemble, a group of international musicians in a program that has been described as “a spectacular fusion of Spanish classical guitar with Latin and World rhythms”.

Gonzalo Cortés, a native of Chile, has performed throughout Chile, Colombia and the USA, including the premiere of the triple concerto Danzas Peregrinas by the Chilean composer Horacio Salinas with the Symphony of Southeast Texas under the conduction of Christopher Zimmerman. He has also toured South America with the Classical Orchestra of Santiago, the Chamber Orchestra of Chile and the Chamber Orchestra of the Catholic University of Chile. Mr. Cortés has performed at numerous festivals in both the United States and South America.

In addition to his classical training pursuits, Mr. Cortes is a proponent of South American folklore music. He performs regularly as a soloist on sikus and quena and with the Atacama Ensemble, Duo Del Sur and Latin Spirits. Mr. Cortés has collaborated with the Church Street Singers of Hartford, the Val Ramos Flamenco ensemble and with renowned guitarist Daniel Salazar in Guitar under the Stars in Hartford, Connecticut.

Musica Latina will be performed on Thursday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church of Hartford, 136 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at https://from-the-small-stage.ticketleap.com/.

Upcoming Small Stage at First performances include Violin Showcase with Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra Maestro Adrian Sylveen, accompanied by pianist Nathaniel Baker, on Thursday, December 2, at 7:30 p.m., and Christmas Jazz Medley with pianist Alex Nakhimovsky with guest narrator Jodette Bentley on Thursday, December 16, at 7:30 p.m. All performances are held at the First Presbyterian Church of Hartford.

For more information about The Small Stage at First, visit www.thevirtuosi.org.