Search - Joaquin Rodrigo, Sergio Assad, David Amado :: Interchange: Concertos

Interchange, Concertos by Rodrigo and Assad featuring the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra & conducted by Maestro David Amado marks the first concerto recording by the GRAMMY®-winning LAGQ, and traces an arc from their instrument's first concerto to its newest one: Joaquín Rodrigo's Concierto Andaluz and Sergio Assad's Interchange. Recorded in May 2009 at the historic Grand Opera House in Wilmington, DE, Interchange marks the Delaware Symphony's debut recording. LAGQ's recording of Rodrigo's Concierto Andaluz is a tribute to their mentors, Los Romeros, for whom the piece was written in 1965. One of the first concertos written expressly for guitar quartet, this quintessentially Spanish work has long been in LAGQ's repertoire, and their relationship with its composer goes back to their student days. They performed in a master class for Rodrigo in 1982 at USC, and have played the Andaluz at venues including such as the Hollywood Bowl, on "Evening at Pops", and at Rodrigo's 100th birthday celebration at the Aranjuez Castle. They first performed it with Amado and the Delaware Symphony in 2007. Also featured on this project is a world-premiere recording of a major new work, Sergio Assad's Interchange for Guitar Quartet and Orchestra. Sergio Assad is a member of the celebrated Assad Brothers duo, and long-time friend of LAGQ. He has written and arranged for artists like Yo-Yo Ma and Nadja Solerno Sonnenberg, and won a Latin GRAMMY® in 2008 for Best Classical Composition. Written by Assad specifically for the LAGQ, it was first performed at the UTSA Southwest Guitar Festival on Feb 6, 2009. "Interchange grew out of my view of the LAGQ's great ability to blend different musical styles into a unique and novel interpretation," says Assad, who first met the quartet at USC in 1982 and whose Uarekena appears on their GRAMMY®-winning Guitar Heroes recording (Telarc). "It was a long-held dream of mine to compose a substantial piece with orchestra for the LAGQ." The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet has been lauded by the Los Angeles Times for its "unrivaled joy, technical élan, and questing spirits." Of a live performance of Interchange, the Santa Barbara Independent praised, "...A smashing job...Festive virtuosity."