Wichita Guitar Society

"Raphaella Smits' playing is hypnotic,
virtuosic and captivating."

http://www.rsmits.com

“Soulful and virtually flawless.”

http://bustosguitarist.com

Isaac Bustos, (Nicaragua), Born in Managua, Nicaragua. By age 12, he was accepted into the Conservatorio Nacional De Musica in Managua where he received top honors in guitar performance. Isaac immigrated to the United States in 1988 and continued his studies with the late Cuban guitar virtuoso Juan Mercadal. He has gained internatrional critical acclaim and is quickly becoming recognized as one of the top young guitarists of his generation. He holds an impressive array of first prizes including the: 2005 Texas International Solo Guitar Competition, Dallas TX; 2004  Lachine International Guitar Competition, Lachine, QC, Canada; 2004 St. Joseph International Solo Guitar Competition, St. Joseph, MO; 2004 Portland Solo Guitar Competition, Portland, OR; 2004 East Carolina University Solo Guitar Competition, Greenville, NC; 2002 University of New Hampshire Concerto Competition, Durham, NH; 2003 Appalachian State University Solo Guitar Competition, Boone, NC; He was also a Semi-finalist in the 2000, 2001 and 2004 Guitar Foundation of America International Solo Guitar Competitions.

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Carlos Perez (Chile), Internationaly known guitarist from Santiago. He graduated with top honors from the Arts Faculty of the University of Chile where he studied under Ernesto Quezada.He has won first prize in many major international competitions in Europe and America, including the: X “Alirio Díaz”, Venezuela 1996; XX “René Bartoli”, France 1997; VI “Printemps de La Guitare”, Belgium 1998; III “Forum Gitarre”, Austria 2000; and XIV “Fundacion Guerrero” Spain 2000.

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http://www.carlosperez.cl

Dimitri Illarionov (Russia), began classical guitar studies at the age of seven. In 1993 Dimitri graduated from music school "cum laude" and entered the Academic Musical College of the Moscow State Conservatory "P. I. Tchaikovsky." He finished the Academic College with honors and continued his education at the Russian Gnesins´s Academy of Music with Alexander Frauchi. Dimitri has won numerous top prizes around the world. We will list, but a few. In 1997, he became the winner of "Guitar Moscow" Competition and the laureate of the Second Prize (First Prize was not awarded) at the International Competition "Classic Heritage". In 1999, he was given title: "The Greatest Hope" of the "X Gdansk Meeting of Guitarists.” In the fall of 2002, he won, possibly his the most prestigious: “The Twentieth International Guitar Foundation of America Solo Guitar Competition. As a result his tour brought him to Wichita where he wowed audiences in March of 2004.His most recent victory ids for winning the International Guitar Competition in Coria, Spain in August 2004.

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http://www.illarionov.com

Lily Afshar (Iran). Born in Tehran, Lily was 10 years old when she began learning the guitar. She graduated with a BA from the Boston Conservatory and a MA in guitar performance from the New England Conservatory. At Florida State University, Lily became the first woman in the world to earn a Doctorate of Music in guitar performance. In 1986, Lily was among twelve international guitarists selected to play for Maestro Andres Segovia at the University of Southern California, at which time Maestro Segovia predicted that "she will be a beautiful celebrity.". She has since been hailed by the Washington Post as "remarkable, impeccable," and is the winner of the 2000 Orville H. Gibson Award for Best Female Classical Guitarist, chosen as "Artistic Ambassador" for the United States Information Agency to Africa, is the winner of the Tenth, Eleventh, and the Twelfth Annual "Premier Guitarist" awards, conducted by the Memphis Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc.  She has also won the Tennessee Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship Award in Music, the National Endowment for the Arts Recording Award, Grand Prize in the Aspen Music Festival Guitar Competition, and First Prizes in both the Music Teachers' National Association and the American String Teachers' Association Guitar Competitions. She was also the second prize winner at the 1988 GFA guitar competition.Lily is currently the Head of the Guitar Program at the University of Memphis where she was awarded the 2000 Eminent Faculty Award. She maintains an very active touring schedule.

$10.00 for WGS Members / Quantity:

$12:00 for General Public / Quantity:

Duo Similia: Nadia and Annie Labrie (Quebec, Canada), Passionate, dynamic, and gifted: these are the qualities that define Similia. Formed in 1998, the duo unites identical twins Nadia Labrie on flute and Annie Labrie on guitar. They began their musical studies at the Québec Music Conservatory where they obtained their diplomas with high honours (Supérieur I in guitar with Paul-André Gagnon and Prix avec grande distinction in flute with Richard Lapointe). They then completed their master’s degree in performance at Université de Montréal with Lise Daoust in flûte and Université Laval with Alvaro Pierri in guitar. Similia also worked under the direction of the distinguished flautist Patrick Gallois. The members of the duo have received advanced tuition in France, Austria, Canada, the United States, and Spain with such masters as Alain Marion, Emmanuel Pahud, Abel Carlevaro, Hubert Käppel, Roberto Aussel, and Robert Langevin.

Nadia has been soloist with the Orchestre symphonique de l’Estuaire and obtained the Medal of the Governor General of Canada in 1998. She has also been a member of the Orchestre Mondial des Jeunesses Musicales with which she toured in America, Europe, and Asia with renowned soloists such as Anne-Sophie Mutter and James Ehnes, under the baton of such great conductors as Kurt Masur, Yoav Talmi, and Franz-Paul Decker. For her part, Annie performed as a soloist with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra conducted by André Moisan.

Similia has received grants from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, from the FCAR Fund, from the Beaulieu-Langis Foundation, the Solange Charest bursary, the Domaine Forget bursary for excellence, and the Bourse de la Savoyane. Annie and Nadia were also winners of the Canadian Music Competition.

"You will find yourself rejuvenated. Similia will give you a new lease on life."      - Classical-Music.ws