Saturday, February 24, 2024
1:00 pm EST
WPAC Concert Hall
$20 general, $15 senior/FIU faculty, staff, & alumni, $5 student
2024 MIGF Festival Pass
is available to attend all festival events at a single reduced price: $100 general, $70 senior/FIU faculty, staff, & alumni, $30 student
The FIU Miami GuitART Orchestra was founded in 2013 by its current director guitarist/composer Mesut Özgen. The FIUMGO aims to present new ensemble works for guitar, in addition to transcriptions and arrangements of the traditional repertoire. Dr. Özgen commissioned and premiered many works for the guitar orchestra by renowned composers, such as Benjamin Verdery, Jack Vees, Phil Collins, and Christopher Pratorius. Among the orchestra’s repertoire are “Pick and Roll for guitar ensemble, basketball, two violins, and tenor saxophone” by Benjamin Verdery, “Strum” by Phil Collins, “Quaditorio” by Jack Vees, “Snapshots by the Bay” by Chris Pratorius, “Mountain Mission” by Adam Cotton, “Following the Wind” by Mark Aitken, “Twangology” by Mark Houghton, “Segni Meravigliosi Nos. 3-5 for guitar ensemble and flute choir” by Gerald Garcia, “Acerca del cielo, el aire y la sonrisa” by Leo Brouwer, “Tantra” by Carlos Rafael Rivera, and the guitar orchestra arrangement of Giuliani’s “Grand Overture” by Peter Constant. Some of the other repertoire performed by the ensemble include works by Bach, Tchaikovsky, Johanson, Duarte, Ogawa, and Charlton.
The orchestra meets three times a week and presents regular public concerts both on and off campus in the fall and spring, including the Miami International GuitART Festival. All students who are enrolled in guitar lessons at the FIU School of Music Guitar Program are required to enroll in the guitar orchestra. In addition to classical guitarists, other instrumentalists, such as mandolin, banjo, ukulele, bass guitar, double bass, flute, violin, voice, and others, are also welcome to join the orchestra. Players who are not already an enrolled FIU student may also audition and, if accepted, can enroll as a non-degree seeking student or join the rehearsals and concerts without curricular credits.
All guitarists, both professional and amateur, who would like to perform in the FIUMGO concerts with the orchestra, may contact the orchestra director via email for an audition.
