Tag: classical

A Taste of Latin America

A Taste of Latin America
Crosstown Arts Presents A Taste of Latin America
The Green Room at Crosstown Arts
Friday, August 22, 2025
Doors open at 7 pm | Show begins at 7:30 PM
Tickets: $20 In Advance (plus Fees) | $25 at the Door | $10 Student Rush
purchase TICKETS HERE
Our program will delight you with the sounds and compositions of Latin America. Pianists Natalia Vanegas Escobar and David Cordoba Hernandez, and percussionist Bill Shaltis will perform works that evoke countries such as Colombia and Cuba, and are written by some of the foremost composers of the region. We hope that you won’t want to miss this noche especial de música latinoamericana!

DAVID CÓRDOBA HERNANDEZ

Recognized for his colorful and sensitive performances, Colombian pianist David Córdoba has played at venues throughout South America, Central America, and the United States. Highlight performances include recitals with Vincent Lucas (Principal Flutist – Orchestre de Paris), John-Crawford (Naxos Recording Artist), Amaro Dubois, and the opening of the 2021 season of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Robert Moody. David has garnered awards in several competitions: Beethoven Club Competition – Memphis (1st place); WCM International Piano Competition – Northern Ireland (4th place); Colombian National Vocal Competition – Collaborative Piano Category (1st place); and the Memphis International Piano Competition (Honorable Mention) Guided by Colombian pianist Teresita Gomez, David earned a Bachelor of Music at the University of Antioquia and a Master’s and Doctorate in Piano Performance with Dr. Cathal Breslin and Dr. Jonathan Tsay at the University of Memphis.
NATALIA VANEGAS ESCOBAR
The Colombian pianist Natalia Vanegas is currently building a promising career as a performer. For five years, she served as a class-piano instructor at the University of Memphis. Additionally, she currently works as an accompanist pianist at Arkansas State University and the University of Mississippi. She has excelled in competitions such as the Beethoven Club (Memphis 2019, 3rd place), Teatro Colón Competition (2019, finalist), Costa Rica PianoFest (2020, 1st place), and the Uofm Symphony soloist competition (2021). Some of her solo performances include the CIMA festival in Manizales, the Puerto Rico Center for Collaborative Piano, the Costa Rica Pianist Encounter, the EAFIT Symphony Orchestra, among others. She has also served as a judge in various competitions and is the coordinator of the Memphis International Piano Festival and Competition. Her interests include Colombian and Latin American living composers, and she plans to promote these works in her upcoming performances and in an upcoming recording. Natalia earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Antioquia, where she studied with Dr. Carlos Eduardo Betancur, Dr. Ana María Orduz, and the renowned Colombian pianist Teresita Gómez. She completed her masters and doctorate degrees at the University of Memphis, where she studied with Dr. Cathal Breslin and Dr. Jonathan Tsay.
 BILL SHALTIS
Bill Shaltis is the Associate Professor of Percussion at the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, University of Memphis and Principal Timpanist of the New Hampshire Music Festival Orchestra. Formerly, Shaltis was the Principal Timpanist for the Boise Philharmonic Orchestra, Principal Percussion of the Evansville Philharmonic and Owensboro Symphony, and on faculty at Missouri Southern State University and the University of Evansville. He is a sought-after clinician and performer throughout North America, Europe, and China and has performed and presented at several PASICs, the NAfME and Midwest Conferences, and at state conferences, Day of Percussion events, and universities throughout the country. Shaltis’ debut album, “Essence/Descent,” features premiere recordings of 21st century solo and chamber timpani repertoire and can be found on all major streaming platforms. He is also co-founder of the Two Rivers Timpani Summit. Shaltis is a proud performing artist/clinician for Grover Pro Percussion, JG Percussion, Remo, Yamaha, and Zildjian.

Memphis Symphony Orchestra: SCHUBERT THE GREAT C MAJOR

Paul and Linnea Bert Classic Accents · 1
SCHUBERT THE GREAT C MAJOR
Friday, October 21, 2022 · 6:30pm
Crosstown Theater

Purchase tickets here

Robert Moody, conductor
Jonathan Okseniuk, violin

MONTGOMERY Strum
MOZART Violin Concerto No. 4
SCHUBERT Symphony No. 9 “The Great C Major”

The Vibrancy of Youth – Schubert’s “Great C Major” Symphony would not be heard for another ten years after the young 31 year old’s tragic death. The vibrant contemporary composer, Jessie Montgomery, brings her ecstatic work for string orchestra, “Strum”.
Jonathan Oksenuik garnered 10 million views as a toddler conducting Beethoven
Symphony. Now a young teenager, he joins MSO to perform Mozart’s Fourth Violin Concerto.

Brasilis String Quartet

Doors at 7pm | Performance begins at 7:30pm
Tickets: $10 advance | $15 at the door (students $5)

Purchase tickets here

The Brasilis String Quartet has a mission to share the passion of Latin American music for string quartets and celebrate the living composers. On this concert, they will perform works by Heitor Villa-Lobos, José Elizondo, Dimitri Cervo, Dimitri Shostakovich, and César Guerra Peixe.

Formed by Amaro Dubois on viola, Rebeca Rathlef and Noel Medford on violins, and Roberta Dos Santos on cello, Brasilis String Quartet, has been gathering attention from composers and selected audiences as a diversified and competent group.

“We want to be able to introduce the beauty of Latin American music so that our audience will understand our creative personality and purpose.”

The Brasilis String Quartet also loves to perform works by other composers such as Shostakovich. His famous String quartet No. 8 is the one that is in our next concerts in June/2022.

The Brasilis String Quartet is passionate about understanding the composer’s message behind notes and rhythms. With a varied repertoire mixing Latin American, black and brown, and female composers, the group has performed around the Tennessee area in many recent concerts. Also, Their love for performing compositions that show the varied range of their instruments engages the audience in every concert. Passion and motivation are the keys to the success of their concerts.

“Versatile is a word that defines us, and diversity and inclusion are our power.”

About the Brasilis String Quartet Members:

Praised for his “utmost commitment, and sensitivity to the composers’ diverse voices” (Fanfare Magazine), Brazilian violist Amaro Dubois has become known for expanding and popularizing lesser-known repertoire for the viola through collaborative projects in South and North America. Amaro was awarded the Iris Orchestra Fellowship position under the guidance of music director and conductor Michael Stern for the 19-21 seasons. Recent recordings include the complete Preludes of the Cello Suites by Bach for Breve Classics, and Adoration – Music of The Americas with his Dubois-Yao Duo, where they highlight the music of underrepresented composers. Mr. Dubois is an award-winning violist in many international competitions such London Classical Music Competition, World Classical Music Awards, and King’s Peak International Music Competition.

Violinist Rebeca Rathlef is from Sumaré, Brazil, where she started her violin studies with her grandfather .Rebeca received her undergraduate degree from the University of São Paulo under the tutelage of Professor Eline Tokeshi. In São Paulo, she played at the Orquestra Experimental de Repertório. In the Spring of 2021, Rebeca completed her Master of Music studies at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She is now in the process of earning a D.M.A. at the University of Memphis with Professor Timothy Shiu. Rebeca currently holds the Judith & Sheldon Korones Memorial Fellowship, performing with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. She has also been invited to play with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and the Paducah Symphony Orchestra. After completing her studies, Rebeca intends to teach violin under the Suzuki Method and perform in orchestras and chamber ensembles.

As an active advocate of performing music of all sorts of different styles and genres, Noel Medford, violinist, has performed across the United States and in Europe. Next fall, he will begin pursuing an Artist Diploma at the University of Memphis where he will collaborate with Iris Collective. Mr. Medford enjoys performing regularly in several symphony orchestras across the mid-south and teaching students in his violin studio. He currently holds a degree from the University of Memphis (B.M.)

Currently pursuing her doctoral degree at University of Memphis as a Teaching Assistant, Brazilian cellist Roberta dos Santos is an active chamber musician and a new music enthusiast advocating for social justice in classical music. She holds degrees from Bowling Green State University, Nicholls State University, Federal University of Paraíba (Brazil) and Faculdade Cantareira (Brazil).