Throughout my career as a musician and guitarist, I’ve gone through different stages: training, specialised refinement, educational and performance work, cultural management… And now, returning from the Miami International GuitART Festival, where I was invited, I feel another one is beginning.
This festival is held annually in the USA, in the city of Miami, and hosts many initiatives centred around classical guitar. In fact, it is part of the cultural programme organised by the University of Florida. And among the many activities they have organised, highlights include the luthiers’ fair, where guitar makers showcase their instruments and innovations; the concerts, which bring together leading figures connected to the guitar; and the masterclasses, attended by young students who will be the future of the instrument.
I received the invitation at the beginning of this school year; if I accepted, I would have to give a concert and teach masterclasses. I didn’t have to think twice: I confirmed my attendance and prepared the programme for my recital, which included works from the Brisas project, preludes and tientos for classical guitar.
For the festival concert I put together a set of 20th- and 21st-century pieces with a distinctly Spanish flavour, and alongside the well-known Joaquín Rodrigo, Federico Moreno Torroba and Isaac Albéniz, I included composers Eduardo Martín, Juan Erena and David del Puerto. I think this programme is well balanced in terms of difficulty for the performer and ease of listening for the audience, and it lasts about an hour, which is a very good length for a solo concert.
Once I arrived at the Festival, in the huge hall where I played, and felt the warm welcome from the audience, so many years of effort and study made sense (as they do every time I perform live). The music came to life through my fingers and through me, and I flowed with it.
After the concert, and with a night’s rest, the classes arrived—an activity that is part of the working life of almost all musicians; receiving them and teaching them accompanies us throughout our professional careers. My participation in the Miami International GuitART Festival was no exception in this respect, and after the concert, a day with students awaited me to teach the masterclasses. Their level was exceptional, comparable to the European professional level, which in the USA is taught at universities. I worked on technical and expressive aspects of beautiful and very demanding pieces, such as Antonio Lauro’s Venezuelan Waltz No. 2 and Moreno Torroba’s Sonatina. This music, so well known to audiences, can cause many headaches for the performer, since any mistake will be noticed by the listener; that’s why it is studied in great depth.
But it wasn’t all work in Miami; I also had the chance to visit the city and explore some of its most iconic places. This allowed me to see, once again, Americans’ interest in and commitment to classical music and the guitar. As I walked around, I came across the advertising posters that decorate walls and public spaces in every city, but this time there was a huge difference compared with those in, for example, Madrid.
In this case, the posters were advertising GuitART: concerts, competition… and there, on one of the digital panels, they were promoting my concert! The 2023 Miami International GuitART Festival presents virtuoso Spanish guitarist: Laura Verdugo del Rey in concert.
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