Leonela Alejandro
Winner of the Rose Augustine Grand Prize in the 2024 Guitar Foundation of America International Concert Artist Competition, Leonela Alejandro is a classical guitarist from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. She has garnered attention as a soloist, captivating audiences with her powerful and energetic performance style. She has been invited to perform in numerous venues in the United States and Europe, including the Latino Arts Guitar Festival, Northern Illinois University International Guitar Concert Series, Southern Guitar Festival, Florida Guitar Festival, Marlow Guitar Series, Louisville Guitar Society, Orange County Guitar Circle, and José Tomás Villa de Petrer Guitar Festival.
Leonela has also placed in over a dozen competitions in the United States, with more than ten first-prize placements including the Louisville Guitar Festival, Appalachian State Guitar Festival, Columbus State University Guitar Symposium, Indiana Guitar Festival, and Chicago Guitar Festival, among others. She has also succeeded abroad as an international competitor, receiving prizes from the le Domaine Forget de Charlevoix guitar Competition, Ciudad de Coria International Guitar Competition, and the Iserlohn International Guitar Competition.
Leonela formally began her musical education when she was seven years old. Following her work with various Puerto Rican teachers including Jomel Rivera, Julio Reyes, and Rey Nieves, she decided to dedicate her professional life to this passion. In 2016, she was accepted into the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico at just 16 years old, studying with world-renowned performer Maestro Iván Rijos. After two fruitful years in the Conservatory, she transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and completed her undergraduate degree with Cuban virtuoso René Izquierdo in 2020. Leonela recently completed her graduate studies with Dr. Andrew Zohn at Columbus State University in 2023.
Apart from her celebrated resume in competition settings, Leonela has established herself as a soloist in orchestral settings. She has performed multiple concerti with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Roselín Pabón including Antonio Vivaldi’s Lute Concerto in D major, RV 93, and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Guitar Concerto No.1 in D Major, Op.99. She was the soloist in the recent premiere of Atanas Ourkouzounov’s Concertino for Guitar, Percussion and Strings under the direction of Paul Hostetter. She also has appeared as a solo mandolinist with the Schwob School of Music Wind Ensemble as a soloist in Ottorino Respighi’s Roman Festivals under the direction of Jamie L. Nix.
Leonela is an Augustine Strings Ambassador and her string of choice are Paragon Reds. She performs on guitars built by luthiers Stephan Connor and Martin Blackwell.
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Michael Partington
Michael Partington is one of the most engaging concert players of his generation. Praised by Classical Guitar Magazine for his “lyricism, intensity and clear technical command,” this award-winning British guitarist has performed to unanimous critical praise. Audiences are put at ease by his charming stage manner and captivated by his interpretations. An innate rhythmic understanding and sense for tonal colour combine to form some of the most memorable phrasing to be heard on the guitar. He has appeared throughout North America, Europe, Russia and Scandinavia as a soloist and with ensembles, and live radio performances include BBC Radio 3’s In Tune, BBC Wales, and St. Paul Sunday on National Public Radio. He has released ten solo CD’s for Rosewood Recordings, and can be heard on the Cadenza and Present Sounds labels. An advocate of new music he has commissioned and premiered works by Stephen Goss, Bryan Johanson, Toshio Hosokawa, Angelo Gilardino, Tom Baker, Kevin Callahan and others. Partington is currently Artist in Residence and director of the guitar program at the University of Washington in Seattle. He has given classes and workshops at festivals and institutions around the world, including the Royal College of Music in London, the Royal Conservatory in Gothenburg, Sweden, the San Francisco Conservatory, the Guitar Foundation of America, the Canadian National Confederation of Music Societies, and the International Guitar Research Centre. His students have won prizes in regional, national and international competitions, and scholarships and awards to study all over the world. Michael Partington is a Savarez Strings artist.
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Robert Wang
Robert Wang aspires to challenge the traditional representation of classical guitar while
juxtaposing music of the early and the contemporary. As a classical guitarist and composer, his
extensive repertoire features works from the Renaissance to the 21st century, often appearing in adventurous and multi-sensory pairings. His versatility was showcased in the premiere of Alexander Dunn’s arrangement of George Crumb’s Sonata for Solo Violoncello, as well as his collaboration with Nmon Ford on Ian Krouse’s Villançicos. He has performed in Bridges Hall of Music, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, The Getty, Jordan Hall, and Phillip T. Young Recital Hall, and has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning.
Robert is a historically informed performer, versed in playing basso continuo and solo on
theorbo, lute, and baroque guitar. He is primarily devoted to ensemble playing and has
performed with ASU Music Theatre and Opera (L’Orfeo), Bach Collegium San Diego, Early
Music Vancouver (Vespers of 1610), Ensemble Flame (O Mother What Shall I Do), The Golden
Bridge, OperaNEO (Ariodante), Shunske Sato, Sibelius Academy Baroque Orchestra (King
Arthur), Tesserae Baroque, USC Thornton Baroque Sinfonia, and the USC Thornton Opera
(Actéon).
Robert earned his MM and BM in Classical Guitar Performance at the University of Southern
California’s Thornton School of Music, receiving the 2025 Outstanding Graduate Award in the Master of Music category. He studies classical guitar with William Kanengiser, Scott Tennant, and Pepe Romero, historical plucked instruments with Jason Yoshida, composition with Veronika Krausas, harpsichord with Ian Pritchard, and conducting with Jacob Sustaita. His past teachers include established guitarists Alexander Dunn and Eliot Fisk. Robert is a prize winner of several prestigious international competitions, including the first prize in the 2018 Montreal International Classical Guitar Festival Youth Competition.
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Marsello Avilez
Marsello Avilez is a distinguished classical guitarist, composer, and cultural manager with more than 24 years of dedication to music. With a degree in Music specializing in Classical Guitar, Marsello plays the six and ten-string guitar, combining technical precision with an expressive and audience-centered artistry.
Marsello’s passion began at an early age, leading him to composition and the ten-string guitar. At age 22, he wrote a suite dedicated to the Mapuche people, reflecting a deep connection to cultural heritage. Family and tradition inspire works such as Don’t Forget Me, Dan, and the Life Suite: Water, Wind, Earth. His discography, Contemporary Virtue, includes works by Tárrega, Albéniz, Villa-Lobos, and Turina, as well as his own compositions.
Marsello has shared his music in various municipal theaters in Chile, Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Paraguay, and other countries, notably at the Entrecuerdas International Festival (2006-2010), the Paraguay String Festival (2020), and the Colombia Guitar Festival (2022). He was a semifinalist in Guitarras sin Fronteras (Temuco, 2015).
Beyond performing, Marsello was director of the Araucanía Conservatory of Music and the Hernán Avilés González Foundation, where he carried out high-impact sociocultural projects. In 2024, he helped found the first Edmonton Guitar Seminar, where he shares his experience through master classes and solo concerts in the world of classical guitar in Canada.
With 18 years as a teacher and cultural manager, Marsello promotes music as a tool for education and enrichment. His strategic vision and commitment to learning influence both the artistic and organizational spheres, inspiring communities through the universal language of music.
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March 20-22, 2026 