The Art of the Piano: Alejandro Vela Noche Azul
Friday February 26, 2016 at 8 PM
$25; $20 Seniors and Art Workers; $10 Students
Alejandro Vela Program
Brahms: Intermezzo in E-flat major, Op. 117/1
Rachmaninov: 6 Selections
Lecuona: Noche Azúl, La Comparsa, Córdoba, Gitanerías, Malagueña
Ginastera: Danzas Argentinas
Radiohead: Let Down, Exit Music (For a Film), You arr. by Christopher O' Riley
Biography
Praised for his “elegance, exceptional technique and profound musicality" (Mundo Clásico), Mexican-Canadian pianist Alejandro Vela is rapidly developing an international reputation as a young artist to watch. Recent solo recitals have brought him to prestigious venues in Finland, Estonia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Ukraine, Germany, Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, Taiwan and Japan.
Alejandro Vela has performed as soloist with most of the Mexican orchestras including the Orquesta Filarmónica de la Ciudad de México, the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Xalapa, the Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco, the Filarmónica del Estado de Querétaro, the Orquesta Sinfónica Carlos Chávez, the Camerata de Coahuila and with many American ones, including the Chicago Symphony and the Houston Symphony led by Christoph Eschenbach, as well as orchestras in Israel, Canada and the Dominican Republic. He has appeared at Chicago’s Ravinia Festival, Alice Tully Hall in New York, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Mexico’s National Arts Center, Martin-Gropius-Bau Museum in Berlin, Instituto Italo-Latino Americano of Rome, Kiev’s House of Teachers and in most of the major cities and concert halls throughout Taiwan.
Recently, Vela presented concerts at Nago City Hall in Okinawa, The Concert Hall in Nagoya, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Center, Kaohsiung’s Cultural Center, National Concert Hall in Taipei, Sibelius Academy Concert Hall in Helsinki, Sibelius Museum in Turku, Estonia’s Mederi Hall, Mihail Jora Concert Hall in Bucharest, Óbudai Társaskör in Budapest, Canadian Opera Company Piano Virtuoso Series in Toronto, Mexico City's Sala Nezahualcóyotl, Festival de México, En blanco y negro festival and Coahuila’s Julio Torri International Arts festival. Other recent highlights include television appearances for NHK TV Japan, Canal 22 México and live webcasts for Canada's Classical 96.3FM and Radio Romania.
Born in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Alejandro Vela received his first piano lessons from his mother Hortensia Vela Mante, and later from Robert Avalon. He holds both the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where he was a student of Yoheved Kaplinsky.
