RENE IZQUIERDO AND FRIENDS 

ELINA CHEKAN    ANA RUTH BERMÚDEZ 

Latin Serenade to London   Jorge Morel (b. 1931) 

     Allegretto Moderato        Moderato        Allegro 

North American Premiere Performance 

Sonatina Canonica Op. 196      Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (1895-1968) 

I. Mozzo, grazioso e leggero     II. Tempo di Siciliana (Andantino) 

III. Fandango en Rondeau 

Elina Chekan and Rene Izquierdo, guitars 

Dialogando    Jorge Morel  

     Preludio        Danza        Finale 

World Premiere Performance 

Suite Populaire Espagnole   Manuel de Falla (1876-1946) 

   El Paño moruno     Asturiana     Jota     Nana     Cancion     Polo 

Ana Ruth Bermúdez, cello and Rene Izquierdo, guitar 

Intermission 

DENNIS KOSTER 

Zambra-Granadina   Sabicas (1912-1990) 

Güajira    Paco de Lucía (b. 1947) 

Impetu     Mario Escudero (1928-2004) 

Tres Piezas    Samuel Zyman (b. 1956) 

I. Danza latinamericano     II. Serenata     III. Danze española 

Lamento y Tangos  

At his first solo appearance in 1965, Dennis Koster was introduced to New York’s flamenco aficionados by the master guitarist Mario Escudero. While today’s flamenco has become an art infused with jazz harmony, Latin rhythm, and rock instrumentation, Koster has remained throughout the decades a major proponent of the concert flamenco guitar in the classical style created by don Ramón Montoya and brought to the world by brilliant concert artists Sabicas and Mario Escudero. Dennis Koster is one of the few guitarists ever to have learned flamenco directly from these two legendary masters, and has carried on the tradition with concerts and broadcasts throughout the United States, Spain and Japan. Considered a leading authority on the style, Mr. Koster is the author of the three-volume “Keys to Flamenco Guitar” – a method used by guitar teachers world-wide. Its second edition will be released in 2005 by Mel Bay Publications. Dennis Koster’s early classical guitar recitals in New York received special attention not only for masterful performances of standard repertory but especially because of his original transcriptions of the Kodaly Cello Sonata and solo violin works by Prokofiev and Bartok. Bold challenging transcriptions of significant works have become a special feature of Dennis Koster’s concert appearances, providing remarkable contrast to the flamenco solos. His latest release on the Musical Heritage Society label is a program of original transcriptions of keyboard works by Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann and Brahms. Dennis Koster has worked on new guitar music with several composers and premiered works by Michael White and Samuel Zyman, a brilliant young Julliard-based composer with whom Mr. Koster has had a particularly close and productive working relationship. He is especially proud of his duo work with renowned oud virtuoso George Mgrdichian. Dennis Koster’s notable performances include appearances at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Town Hall and the 92nd St. Y. Mr. Koster has been on the faculty of Long Island University, the American Institute of Guitar, the National Guitar Workshop and the Stetson International Guitar Festival. He has also lectured at Julliard, Yale, the Hartt College of Music, the Peabody Conservatory and the North Carolina School of the Arts. Dennis Koster’s flamenco recordings can be heard on the La Bella Records, AIG Music and Music Masters labels. His releases include Two Sides of Dennis Koster, Masters of the Guitar, Volumes I & II, Flamenco Clásico, and his most recent release Mozart Fantasy on Guitar.

Rene Izquierdo, is currently a professor of classical guitar at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. As a concert artist, Rene has performed throughout North America, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Europe as solo recitalist, chamber musician and soloist with orchestra. He has received wide critical acclaim for his performances, and is recognized as one of America's classical guitar virtuosos. Rene has shared the stage with prestigious guitarists Eliot Fist, Benjamin Verdery and Jorge Morel, renowned flutist Ransom Wilson, soprano Lucy Shelton, Carlo Aonzo, The Quintet of the Americas, David Jolley and recorded with Paquito d’Rivera among others. Composers such as Jorge Morel and Carlos R. Rivera have dedicated works to him. A native from Cuba, Rene graduated from the Guillermo Tomas, Amadeo Roldan Conservatory and Superior Institute of Art in Havana. In the United States, he earned a Master of Music and Artist Diploma degrees from the Yale University School of Music. As one of the leading classical guitarists Mr. Izquierdo is a recipient of numerous awards. He is a winner of JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Competition in 2004, Extremadura International Guitar Competition, Schadt String competition, Stotsenberg International Guitar Competition among others.