Clarinetist Javier Vinasco reinterprets Latin American music

Renowned Colombian clarinetist Javier Vinasco, accompanied by Richard Masters on piano, will perform a recital in the Squires Recital Salon on Nov. 4, at 7:30 p.m. as part of the School of Performing Arts Visiting Artist Series. Faculty member Phillip Paglialonga will also join on clarinet and bass clarinet.

The program will feature "Histoire du Tango" by Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla; works by Columbian composers Luis A. Calvo, Oriol Rangel, and Lucho Bermudez; Mexican composers Aturo Marquez and Max Lifchitz; and Italian composer Luciano Berio. The recital is co-sponsored by Rico Reeds and Buffet Crampon.

Vinasco is considered one of the most distinguished clarinetists in Latin America. He received a nomination for the Latin Grammy Awards for the Best Tango Album in 2008 with Mexican pianist Edith Ruiz, and has dedicated his music career to the clarinet and interpretation of the music of Latin American composers. He works as a full-time music professor at Universidad EAFIT in Medellin, Colombia, and is the principal clarinet in the EAFIT Symphony Orchestra. As artistic director of ClariSax Medellin, an academic and artistic festival, he brings together the sounds of the clarinet and the saxophone as a medium of musical expression. He also serves as the National Chairperson of the International Clarinet Association in Colombia.

Masters, a School of Performing Arts faculty member, is a soloist, opera coach, chamber musician, and orchestral pianist. He plays both traditional and contemporary works as a solo pianist. 

Paglialonga teaches clarinet at Virginia Tech, and maintains an active career as a recitalist, orchestral musician, and educator. He has performed with numerous orchestras and is a founding member of the PEN Trio, which regularly tours throughout the country.

The recital is the fifth in a series of nine visiting artist recitals which include Jennifer Aylmer, soprano, on Nov. 18; Emmanuelle Bertrand, cello, and Pascal Amoyel, piano, on Dec. 10; Nicholas Ross, piano, on Jan. 27; and Dennis Mackrel with the Jazz Ensembles on April 29.

Tickets for the recital are $15 general, $10 senior, and $5 student. Tickets may be purchased at the Student Centers and Activities Ticket Office on the first floor of Squires Student Center or by calling 540-231-5615. Tickets are also available at the box office beginning one hour prior to the performance. Discounted seats are available with the purchase of 5 or more tickets to any combination of performances in the School of Performing Arts 2013-14 season. The season includes the Visiting Artist Series, Ensemble Performance Series, and Mainstage Theatre productions.

Free parking is available in the Squires Lot, located at the corner of College Avenue and Otey Streets, in the Architecture Annex Lot on Otey Street, and the Perry Street/Prices Fork lots. Find more parking information online or call 540-231-3200. Alternative parking is available in the Kent Squire parking garage and the Farmers Market metered parking lot, both located on Draper Road. Additional downtown Blacksburg parking information can be found online.