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Community Corner

Framingham Resident Matthew Nicholl is Musical Director for Guinga Meets Berklee, December 12 at the Berklee Performance Center

The 2013-2014 Signature Music Series at Berklee wraps its fall season on December 12 with Guinga Meets Berklee. The acclaimed Brazilian composer and guitarist will perform a dozen of his original songs with the 30-piece Berklee Contemporary Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Francisco Noya, assistant professor of composition. Faculty guest soloists include Eugene Friesen, Greg Hopkins, John Stein, Fernando Brandão, Oscar Stagnaro, and Daniel Ian Smith.

In addition to the orchestra, several student vocalists and percussionists will be featured. The concert will also feature several new arrangements, including five written by Guinga’s own arranger, Paulo Aragão; six by Berklee students; and one by Framingham resident Matthew Nicholl, chair of Berklee's Contemporary Writing and Production department and musical director for the concert.

“Guinga is one of the most important Brazilian composers currently working,” said Nicholl.  “Musical communities all over the world know and respect his work and Brazilian artists strive for the opportunity to record his songs. His influence, while not always direct, has been and remains immense.” 

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Guinga Meets Berklee takes place Thursday, December 12, 8:15 p.m., at the Berklee Performance Center (BPC), 136 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, MA. Reserved seating tickets are on sale now for $8 and $18 in advance, $12 and $24 day of show at berklee.edu/bpc. The venue is wheelchair accessible. For more information, call the BPC at 617-747-2261.

Carlos Althier de Souza Lemos Escobar – known as Guinga – is a Brazilian composer and guitarist known for incorporating many musical styles in his music, including choro, samba, baião, foxtrot, blues, jazz, and classical. Guinga has recorded a dozen CDs and his compositions have been recorded by artists including Sérgio Mendes, Elis Regina, Chico Buarque, Monica Salmaso, Antonio Adolpho, Cauby Peixoto, Leila Pinheiro, and Turíbio Santos. In 2002, journalist Mario Marques published a biography about Guinga, and his songbook, The Music of Guinga, was released the following year. Italian filmmaker Massimo D'Orsi is producing the documentary Guinga: pra que mentir. One of his recordings with Quinteto Villa-Lobos (Rasgando Seda) was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award in 2012.

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Guinga Meets Berklee is produced by Stein and Brandão, and directed by Nicholl and Stagnaro. The Signature Music Series at Berklee embraces the college’s global community and Boston’s diverse musical tastes.  

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