Guitar Duo

Sunday
February 21, 2021
3:00 pm EST

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The Duo Con-Trastes is comprised of guitarists Zuleida Suárez and Milena Manganelli founded in 2002. The duo has performed in many concerts at important Festivals and art shows in Mexico, France and Cuba like Havana International Guitar Festival and Contest, Havana International Contemporary Music Festival, Leo Brouwer´s Chamber Music Festival, Zihuatanejo´s International Guitar Festival and Identidades Guitar Festival among others.

The duo pays special attention in the selection and implementation of the works, which has earned the attention of composers who have made works devoted especially to hers. In their efforts to disseminate the most valuable world premiere guitar repertoire interpreted dissimilar works for guitar duo and arrangements for it. Music from different stylistic periods to the most recent works make up their repertoire with a marked interest in Cuban and Latin American music.

During their career they have made important world and Cuban premiere like “Catálogo de Búhos” by the Colombian composer Santiago Barbosa, “ Serenata para dos Guitarras” by the French composer André de Jolivet, “Romance Trunco” by  Edmundo Vásquez from Chile,  “Suite Retratos” and  “Concierto para Dos Guitarras, oboe y Orquesta de Cuerdas” by the Brasilian composer Radamés Gnattali, “Oyún” concert for two guitars and Chamber Orquestra by Carlo Domeniconi from Italy, “Danse D´Avila” by Ida Presti from France among many others.

They recorded their first album “Contrastes” in 2014. The disc comes to be winners Scholarship Creating “The Kingdom of this World” granted by the Saiz Brother´s Association, which presented in a tour of concerts through south of France and in an only concert in Havana. Three years later they recorded their second album “Retratos” with four of the most important and beautiful Latin-American two guitar suites. Also they were part of the Sonantas Habaneras´ double album “Paisaje Cubano con Sonantas”.

Con-Trastes Guitar Duo has joined to other major projects in Cuba as the Four Seasons Quartet, who led the teacher Rosa Matos; the Havana Guitar Quartet directed by Galy Martin and the Guitar Orchestra Sonantas Habaneras conducted by Master Jesus Ortega.
For their strong interest in improving the work of chamber music they have been taught by teachers Eduardo Martin, Jesus Ortega, Rosa Matos, Jorge Triana, Luis Manuel Molina, Jorge Luis Zamora, Hector Angulo, Edmundo Vasquez and Leo Brouwer.