TEXAS PERFORMING ARTS PRESENTS
SÉRGIO AND ODAIR ASSAD
PERFORMING
DE VOLTA AS RAIZES (BACK TO OUR ROOTS)

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2011, 8:00PM
IN HOGG MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM

PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE AUSTIN CLASSICAL GUITAR SOCIETY AND THE TERESA LOZANO INSTITUTE OF LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES

It doesn’t get better than the Assads. It’s no wonder that they are, far and away, the leading classical guitar duo in the world.” – Dr. Matthew Hinsley | Executive Director, Austin Classical Guitar Society

Texas Performing Arts welcomes 2010 Grammy Award-winning Brazilian guitar virtuosos Sérgio and Odair Assad for an evening devoted to their Lebanese musical roots, aptly titled De Volta As Raizes (Back To Our Roots).

Brothers Sérgio and Odair Assad have set the benchmark for all other guitarists by creating a new standard of guitar innovation, ingenuity and expression. Their exceptional artistry and uncanny ensemble playing come from both a family rich in Brazilian musical tradition and from studies with the best guitarists in South America. In addition to setting new performance standards, the Assads have played a major role in creating and introducing new music for two guitars. Their virtuosity has inspired a wide range of composers to write for them including Astor Piazzolla, Terry Riley, Radamés Gnattali, Marlos Nobre, Nikita Koshkin, Roland Dyens, Jorge Morel, Edino Krieger and Francisco Mignone. Now Sérgio Assad is adding to their repertoire by composing music for the duo and for various musical partners both with Symphony Orchestra and in recitals. They have worked extensively with such renowned artists as Yo-Yo Ma, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Fernando Suarez Paz, Paquito D’Rivera, Gidon Kremer and Dawn Upshaw.

Joining the Assad brothers for this program are pianist/singer and composer Clarice Assad, percussionist Jamey Haddad, and the hypnotic Lebanese singer Christiane Karam. This unique program is an exploration of the rhythmic similarities that tie Middle Eastern music with the music of Brazil. Sérgio and Clarice Assad have composed new music specifically for this project and Karam has set modern and ancient Lebanese texts to new works. With her exquisite voice and the Assad Brothers’ beloved virtuosity and awe-inspiring ensemble work, this evening promises to raise the bar of Middle Eastern music.

Sérgio and Odair Assad are presented by Texas Performing Arts’ ArtesAméricas program. In partnership with the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies, ArtesAméricas promotes cultural dialogue in the Americas through the performing arts. For more information, please visit www.artesamericas.org.

CALENDAR LISTING

Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 8:00 pm –Texas Performing Arts presents Sergio and Odair Assad at Hogg Memorial Auditorium (2300 Whitis Ave). A map of the campus: TexasPerformingArts.org/visit/maps_directions. Tickets ($28 / Limited $10 student tickets / discounted tickets available for UT faculty & staff, seniors and Military) are on sale now at authorized ticket outlets, which include the Bass Concert Hall Box Office, most H-E-B stores and all Texas Box Office outlets, online at TexasPerformingArts.org, or by calling (512) 477-6060 or (800) 982-BEVO (2386).

PRESS CONTACT:
Gene Bartholomew
512.471.0632
gbartholomew@TexasPerformingArts.org