Paquito D’Rivera and Berta Rojas Meet Berklee: The Music of Agustín Barrios Mangoré

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Grammy Award–winning Cuban musician and composer Paquito D’Rivera and acclaimed Paraguayan guitarist Berta Rojas will perform duets from their Latin Grammy-nominated album Día y Medio at this Berklee Signature Series concert. The concert will also feature D’Rivera and Rojas playing a number of tunes with a large Berklee student ensemble composed of a five-piece rhythm section, seven-piece string section, and seven horns. Student arrangers Aida De Moya and Pablo Mirete Godoy will put their stamp on songs by D’Rivera and celebrated Paraguayan composer Agustín Barrios Mangoré.

D’Rivera and Rojas will also pay tribute to Barrios Mangoré, a pioneer of the classical guitar in the Americas. “He contributed greatly to the recognition of the guitar as a concert instrument, performing in 20 countries in the Americas,” said Rojas. “Paquito and I retraced Barrios’s steps, performing his music as a duo in 16 of the 20 countries, and I completed the itinerary in the remaining four. A plaque with an inscription about our journey was placed at his grave in El Salvador, which is an immense honor for us.” The concert is produced by bass professor Oscar Stagnaro, who performs with D’Rivera regularly; and Matthew Nicholl, associate vice president for Global Initiatives.