23festivalinternacionaldr.alfonsoortiztirado 2007 / Boletín No. 312 / Enero 11, 2007
Luis Carlos Contreras
Luis Carlos Contreras tenor from Hermosillo, will be awarded as Sonora’s Youth Revelation 2006 in the frame of the 23rd International Festival Dr. Alfonso Ortiz Tirado 2007, on Wednesday 24th at Alamos’ City Hall, and will offer a concert accompanied for Alexandre Alcantara, pianist. On Friday 26th at 20:00 hours, will perform at Itson’s Theater “Dr. Oscar Russo Voguel” in Cajeme.
Program
Scarlatti’s “Gia is sole al Gange”, Giordani’s “Caro mio ben”, Bononcini’s “Per la Gloria d’adorarvi”; Paolo Tosti’s “Malia”,”‘Avucchella”, “Ideale” and “L’ultima canzone”; “E la solita storia” from Cilea’s opera L’arlesian; from Puccini’s opera Tosca “E lucevan le stelle” and “La donna e mobile” from Verdi’s opera Rigoletto; “Bella enamorada” from R. Soutullo’s zarzuela El último romántico and “Pajarín, tú que vuelas” de la P. Luna’s zarzuela La Pícara Molinera.
Luis Carlos Contreras, tenor
He was born in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, studied in the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico City. In 1996 he met tenor Jesus Li and entered the Academy of Music of the University of Sonora; after two years of studying with maestro Li, he went back to Mexico City. Since 1997 he is member of SIVAM, International Society of Mexican Artistic Values, the most important opera studio in the country.
In 1998 debuted in the character of Tony Candolino in the theater play ‘Master Class”, next to actress Diana Bracho, and performed in more than 120 presentations that year. Afterwards he was part of the cast of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom of the Opera”.
In 1999 debuted in the opera Don Pasquale in the character of Ernesto, in the National Centre of the Arts in Mexico City. That same year traveled to New York to cast in the prestigious program of young artists of the San Francisco Opera, where he was requested to participate next to a group of 20 singers from different parts of the world. The Opera from Florida invited him to be part of their program for young singers in their season 2001-2002.
Placido Domingo invited him to be resident tenor of Los Angeles Opera, where he sang next to great figures of the international lyric as, Samuel Ramey, Luis Lima and Placido Domingo himself. Luis Carlos Contreras has sung in operas like, Gianni Scchichi, Fausto, Madame Butterfly, Boris Godunov, Nabucco, La Fanciulla del West, Carmen, Los Cuentos de Hoffmann and El Holandés Errante. He has been soloist tenor of Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” and Mozart’s la “Mass in Do mayor”. He has participated in singing recitals in Miami, Los Angeles, La Habana and Mexico City.
Luis Carlos Contreras was a finalist of the National Singing Contest Carlo Morelli, perform at the Palace of the Fine Arts in Mexico; and winner of second place in the Metropolitan Opera of New York Singing Contest, perform in Atlanta, United States; he was the only Latin American in the final of the Operalia Contest, perform in Teatre du Chatelet in Paris, France. Nowadays he lives in Madrid Spain and studies with the Italian baritone Enzo Spatola.
Alexandre Alcantara, pianist
Began his studies in his native Brazil where he graduated from the Bachelor in Piano in the Federal University of Pelotas. Assisted to courses and classes of specialization with Dirce Knijnik, Miguel Proença and Olinda Alessandrini. In piano concerts in Brazil, he obtained the awards of the First Contest Villa-Lobos (first place); Third Contest Sebastian Benda (second place) and First Contest Maurell Feistauer (Honorable Mention).
In 1995 he was admitted in The Mannes College of Music in New York, where he studied composition with David Loeb and collaborated as a pianist in several concerts. Traveled to Spain with a scholarship of the summer courses “Musica en Compostela”, under the guidance of Anton Garcia Abril and arrange his residency in Madrid. Since then Alexandre Alcantara has done an intense work as a pianist soloist and of repertoire with performances in the National Auditorium, Cultural Centre of Las Rozas in Madrid, Ateneo of Madrid, Carlos de Amberes Foundation, House of Brazil, Cultural Centre Count Duke, Auditorium of Alcala de Henares and Galileo Galilei Forum.
As companion pianist, he has performed every where in Spain, in the most important festivals and in recordings for the Spanish Radio and Television. He participated as a companion and as a soloist in the series “International Concerts” organized by the Federal University of Rio Grande del Sur, Brazil.
Since 2001 works as a piano and repertoire for singing, clarinet, bassoon, saxophone and trombone professor in the Conservatory “Montserrat Caballé” in Arganda del Rey, in addition of the coordination of the Piano Department. He has been invited as a companion pianist to the two editions of the International Contest of Singing in Colmenar Viejo, in Madrid.
