A nigth of Venezuelan rhythms with Arcano
November 14, 2003
Bolívar Hall, 54 Grafton Way, London W1T 5DL
Tel. 020 7388 57 88
7:30 pm
Free Admission

Arcano is a sextet of oboe, piano, violin, guitar, cuatro and double bass. Its repertoire stems from Venezuelan traditional music, which the six members played at an early age before engaging in classical music studies. This ensemble is a direct result of the Venezuelan revolutionary youth orchestra system as the musicians have combined the technical resources of the orchestral instrument they play with the rhythms and beats of Venezuelan music as in joropo, waltzes, merenges and danzas. All of Arcano´s pieces are composed and arranged by its own musicians. The result of this mixture is a completely new repertoire, the Arcano repertoire, full of the humour and flavour of things Venezuelan. Four of Arcano's members have developed a solid career as classical musicians in Venezuela for the last ten years, mainly as part of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.

Eddy Marcano (violin) Eddy Marcano's elegant musicianship is tinged with the mischievous sound typical of the music from Eastern Venezuela; his cadence to the Pajarillo has acquired special renown as a virtuoso piece. At an early age, Marcano began to study the violin but also the cuatro and the mandolin. He has been a member of three Venezuelan ensembles: Solo 3, Opus 4 and the group Onkora. He has been first violin in the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra since 1988 and is currently artistic director and violin professor of the orchestra of the Conservatorio Superior de Música Simón Bolívar, teaches at the Emil Friedmann School and is President of the Foundation Symphony Orchestra of Nueva Esparta.

Andrés Eloy Medina (oboe) The sound of Andrés Eloy Medina´s oboe develops in lines of exquisite flexibility and changing colours. He studied at the Instituto Universitario de Estudios Musicales (IUDEM) and took a master's degree at the Simon Bolívar University. Since 1981, he has been first oboe of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra. He has taught the instrument in the Youth Orchestra Systems of Central and South America, the Conservatorio Superior de Música Simón Bolívar and the Children's National Orchestra of Venezuela. He has also been part of Venezuelan musical groups, namely with Paul Desenne and Onkora.

David Carpio (double bass) David Carpio leads the group from the bass, often intermingling with the solo lines of the other instruments. He is also a talented conductor and a composer of symphonic pieces whose works have been performed by the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra and other orchestras from Venezuela. He is currently part of the international project to fund youth orchestras abroad, teaching and doing workshops in several countries of Latin America. He performs in the double bass line of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, as bass in the Cameratas Barroca y Renacentista de Caracas. He was musical director of the Youth Orchestra Rafael Suárez of the Conservatorio Superior de Música Simón Bolívar, for which he composed several pieces, and a member of the group Onkora. He also plays the Venezuelan harp, the bandola, the cuatro and the mandolin. He was awarded First Prize in Composition at "The Venezuelan Piano Competition" of 2002.

Rafael Brito (cuatro) Rafael Brito's cuatro playing has been described as "tasty, innovative and sparkling". He belongs to the New Cuatro Movement of Venezuela. His musicianship stands out by the limitless use he makes of the rhythmic and harmonic possibilities of this traditional instrument. His intuitive and stylish performance, his ability to understand and express musical situations, has turned Brito into one of Venezuela´s most sought after cuatro players. He is also a composer and a singer in his own right. He has been a member of Pabellón sin Baranda, Trova Gaitera and Todos Estrellas and currently sings, arranges and produces Happy Gaita. He also belongs to the Saúl Vera Ensemble, Piano Llanero with Claudia Calderón and Tocata Criolla with Paul Desenne. He participated in the making of Alzheimer, Desenne's and Alonso Toro´s latest CD. Brito has a parallel career as an oboist in the Orchestras Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho and Sinfónica de Los Teques.

Pedro Colombet (guitar) Colombet´s guitar brings together poetry and humour. He is also a composer and singer. He was funding member of Onkora where he performed for nine years. With maestro José Antonio Naranjo, he formed the duet Flauta y Guitarra. Colombet has composed music for eight theatrical productions under Virgina Aponte and is the guitarist, composer and producer of the group Quinta Esencia. Colombet acted as composer and co-ordinator of the Youth Symphony Orchestra Rafael Suárez and currently teaches music at the Bolivarian School Armando Zuloaga Blanco.

Adela Barreto (piano) The most recent acquisition of Arcano, she began musical studies at the Core of the National Youth Orchestra of Trujillo, as violinist. She has studied piano under Gabriela Popescu, Giomar Narváez, Alexander Pochekin, Judith Jaimes and Serguei Pilenkov. She plays the harpsichord at the prestigious orchestra Jóvenes Arcos de Venezuela, accompanies at the piano in Conservatorio Superior de Música Simón Bolívar and has performed with several Venezuelan orchestras. She played the harpsichord in Arcano´s last CD.