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February 14, 2017, New Orleans, LA—The Bishop Perry Center will kick-off its annual musical series, “A Musical Prelude to the Celebration of Easter,” at 6 p. m. on Thursday, March 2, 2017 (the day after Ash Wednesday) at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 1100 Chartres Street. The 2017 series will feature “Hispanic Music of the Americas,” ranging from Baroque classical to contemporary Latin Jazz. The series is presented by the Center in cooperation with St. Louis Cathedral and the Archdiocese of New Orleans and is partially funded by grants from the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, New Orleans Hispanic Heritage Foundation, and The Faulkner Society/Words & Music. Each concert is free and open to the public. In addition to March 2, concerts are scheduled for the five Thursdays following, each at St. Mary’s, each beginning at 6 p. m. The opening concert on March 2 will begin with a brief talk by historian and music scholar Alfred E. Lemmon, who will discuss Spain’s influence on the music of the Americas. Following his talk the renowned Cuban guitarist Javier Olondo and his popular AsheSon ensemble will perform with an eclectic program of music with roots in the Hispanic cultures of the Americas.

Alfred Lemmon, director of The Williams Research Center of The Historic New Orleans Collection, is a recognized authority on the music of Spain and the Spanish Americas. Lemmon has published and lectured throughout the United States, Europe, and Latin America on the topic. His modern editions of 18th century Spanish music have been widely performed. Hehas served as a regional director for the Diccionario de la Música Española e Hispanoamerica, a

2017 Lenten Concert Series Opens March 2 With Music of Hispanic Inspiration

Performed by Javier Olondo and AsheSon

Page Two, Bishop Perry Center Concert Series12-volume work published by the Sociedad General de Autores Españoles and currently serves as a Contributing Editor to the Handbook of Latin American Studies. In recognition of his efforts on behalf of Spanish cultural history, he was awarded the Order of Isabel the Catholic, a civil order granted by the King of Spain to individuals whose work has been of exceptional benefit to Spain.

Javier Olondo, shown here Center, with his AsheSon ensemble, will kick-off the Bishop Perry Center’s annual Lenten concert series, this year dedicated to Hispanic inspired music, on Thursday, March 2.

Javier Adrian Olondo, born in Houston, TX, began his musical studies with Rosa Puertas in Barcelona, Spain in 1977. In 1980 he moved to Havana, Cuba where he continued his studies in guitar at the Conservatory Manuel Saumell. At the age of 13, he debuted as a soloist in a special concert in Havana’s First International Guitar Festival. In 1988 he graduated top of his class from the Escuela Nacional de Musica and was the recipient of the Titulo de Oro (Golden Title Award). Upon completion of his higher level studies in 1991 from Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, he moved to Europe where followed an intense schedule of concerts and was awarded a scholarship to attend the Hochscule Fur Musik and Darstellende Kunst Monzarteum, in Salzburg, Austria. There he studied under the tutelage of Eliot Fisk, Joaquin Clerch, and harpsichordist Anthony Spiri. In 1998 he obtained the title of Magister in Arts specializing in guitar. Among other teachers, he has been taught by Manuel Barrueco, David Rusell, Flavio Cucci, and Wolfgang Lendle. His recordings for radio and television, along with his participation in important festivals and concerts throughout Europe, North, and South America date began in his younger years. In addition to various composers dedicating works to him, he has recorded three critically acclaimed albums. Olondo teaches classical guitar at Tulane University in New Orleans, and tours the United States and Eu-rope with his popular concert series. He also is director of the Cuban band AsheSon and host of the popular TV show Que Pasa New Orleans. And he also happens to be among the most expert salsa dance performers in the United States.

The remaining concerts are: March 9, Mariachi Jalisco; March 16, concert pianist Peter Col-lins; March 23, Brazilian jazz musicians, the Eduardo Tozzato quartet from Rio de Janiero; March 30, classical guitarist Jay Kacherski; and April 6, Peter Weber and his Krewe de Voix Chamber chorale group perforing Baroque Spanish music.

Page Three, Bishop Perry Center Concert Series

March 9: Mariachi JaliscoMariachi Jalisco, shown, here at Jazz Fest on the Folklife Stage, will peform traditional mariachi mu-sic of Mexico on March 9. This folk ensemble was created in 2011 by Eider Martinez and Ricardo Matos in Baton Rouge with a mission of promoting Mexican culture and supplying the increased demand for entertainment in Louisiana’s Hispanic heritage community. The band is composed of trumpet, violins, vihuela, guitar, and guitarron, led by Matos, artistic director. All band members are graduates of prestigious music schools, the musicians write their own compositions for the band. Other band members include Miguel Barrera, Francisco Matos, and Angel Esquival.

March 16:Peter CollinsPeter Collins is Professor of Music—Piano and Coordinator of the Keyboard Area—at Missouri State University. A New Orleans native, he began formal piano studies with Melvin Alford and received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Peabody Conservatory under Lillian Freundlich. He is winner of the Washington International Piano Competition, University of Maryland International Piano Competition, American Chopin Competition, and American Beethoven Foundation Competition. His Doctorate in Musical Arts is from The University of Michigan where he studied with Louis Nagel. He has taught at the Interlochen Arts Academy, Missouri Fine Arts Academy, and the Bösendorfer International Piano Academy in Vienna.

His extensive performance repertoire includes the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven and Mozart as well as contemporary music.He originated the Missouri Chamber Players and

toured Scandinavia with the ensemble in concerts of American music. European appearances also include solo performances at the Chopin Academy of Music (Warsaw) and the Liszt Academy of Music (Budapest). As a concerto soloist he has collaborated with Polish State Orchestra (Jelenia Góra), Florida State Orchestra, New Orleans Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Springfield Symphony and Chamber Orchestra of the Ozarks. He has nine CD albums whichfeature works of living American composers, women composers, original arrangements and transcriptions, and 19th Century New Orleans piano music.

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March 23:Eduardo Tozatto QuartetEduardo Tozzato, a Brazilian import from Rio de Janiero, is a pianist, keyboardist, organist, marimba player, and vocalist, who now makes his home in New Orleans. He has appeared on such prestigious stages as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Que Pasa Fest, as well as at numerous local clubs, as both a soloist and as an integral member of groups which produce a fusion of New Orleans rhythms and those of Brazil, groups such as BrasiNOLA,; Chegadão, Otra, Gov’t Majik, Mas Mamones, Ritmo Calypso, and Vivaz. Eduardo came to New Orleans to study at the University of New Orleans, where he graduated with a degree in music. In addition to his career as a performance artist, he teaches music. With three other musicians, he will present a program of traditional Brazilian music, contemporary piecespieces , and fusion music blending the rhythms of Brazil with those of New Orleans.

March 30: Classical Guitarist Jay Katcherski“Virtuosismo” and “technical dominance” are the words used by the press to describe the American guitarist, Jay Kacherski. A native of New York, Kacherski has given solo and ensemble performances throughout the United States and Mexico.

In 2008, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to re-search, perform, and promote contemporary classical guitar music of Mexico and has since been premiering many new works in the United States. Kacherski completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Classical Guitar Performance from the University of Texas at Austin, a Master’s Degree in Guitar Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music in New York, and undergrad degrees from Florida Southern College. Currently, he is an Associate Editor for Soundboard Magazine, a reviewer for the American String Teacher Journal, Assistant Artistic Director of the Classical Minds International Guitar Festival in Houston, TX, and a Visiting Lecturer of Music Theory at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA. For more information, please visit his website: www.kacherskiguitar.com.

Page Five, Bishop Perry Center Concert Series

April 6: Paul Weber & The Krewe de Voix Chamber ChoirPaul Weber is a conductor, organist, and composer living in New Orleans, where he is Interim Organist & Choirmaster at Trinity Epis-copal Church. As a concert organist, he has been heard throughout the United States and in Europe and holds prizes from national and international competitions, including the Erfurt (Germany) Inter-national Organ Competition and the Arthur Poister National Organ Competition. Recent performances include concerts at the national conventions of the Organ Historical Society and the Church Music Association of America; at the cathedrals of St. Paul in Pittsburgh and St. Paul, MN; and on the L’Organo concert series at the Piccolo-Spo-leto Festival. Dr. Weber has also appeared as a conductor, lecturer, and composer at the National Colloquium of the CMAA, and sacred music conferences at Duquesne University and Nova Northeastern University of Florida. His articles have been published in Sacred Music and The American Organist. His choral works are published by Choralife (click here). Previously he was Associate Professor of music at Franciscan University of Steubenville, where he found-ed the Bachelor of Arts Program in Sacred Music and directed the university ensembles. Dr. Weber is a graduate of Lawrence University and Yale University. Upon moving to New Orleans, he founded the highly acclaimed Krewe de Voix Chamber Choir, which he will lead in concert at St. Mary’s at 6 p. m. on Thursday,

For more on Paul Weber and the Krewe de Voix, visit: www.kreweduvoix.com