Alegria

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Discography - Alegria

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Violin		IOAN HAREA
Romanian, Canadian, Venezuelan Ioan Harea resides in Ottawa, Canada since 1986. He has performed his specialty program "CLASSIC GYPSY" with orchestras in Canada, the United States, Europe and South America, as well as on recital series and tours across Canada. Ioan is on the faculty of the Crane School of Music at the state University of New York, in Potsdam, New York.

Guitar		ANDREW MAH
Canadian guitarist Andrew Mah is a unique and exciting musician, widely regarded for his virtuosity, versatility, and heartfelt musicality. Born in Ottawa into a family of guitarists, he has performed professionally on classical guitar for more than 17 years, carving out an eclectic international career as a solo concert artist, chamber musician, arranger, producer, and adjucator. He is often sought after for his expertise in the translation, arrangement and notation of music from other cultures and styles into readable scores for classical musicians. For more information please visit: www.andrewmah.com

Bass		PAUL MACH
Paul Mach graduated from the University of Ottawa with a Bachelor of Music degree in Double Bass performance in 1994. During his studies he performed with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada and the Utah Chamber Music Festival. He went on to play with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife in Spain followed by the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra in South Africa. Since his return to Canada he performs with various groups including the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, l’Orchestre Symphonique de Gatineau, Opera Lyra Orchestra, the Orchestra of Northern New York, the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. He has also explored other genres of music including Tango, Klezmer and French songs, as well as assisting his father Peter Mach in his luthier shop. www.machonerest.com

Percussion		ALVARO DE MINAYA
Alvaro de Minaya was born in Santiago, Chile, and obtained a Bachelor of Music degree in symphonic percussion from the University of Chile. He was then awarded a scholarship to pursue graduate studies at the Superior Music Conservatory of Barcelona, Spain, under Xavier Joaquim. In Chile and throughout South America, Mr. Minaya performed as a soloist and as a member of the percussion section with numerous orchestras, ensembles and percussion groups. His expertise is not limited to classical music, but includes jazz, pop, folk and ethnic music. Since coming to Canada in 1997, he has performed and recorded with a wide range of groups and styles. www.alvarodem.com

Produced by:		Virtuosi Productions "The Music Makers".
Recorded by:		Michel Legault at Happyrock Studios.
Mastered by:		Scott Anthony at The Viewing Room.
Graphic Design and Layout:		Michel Legault and Christopher Hindshaw

About Alegria

Alegria is the culmination of a very ambitious project conceived in 1999 (wow, 10 years ago already!) when John Dooher offered his expertise and his studio, Sound of One Hand, in Ottawa for me to record 5 cds over a period of 3 years. Between 2001 and 2005, we released Classic Gypsy, Sentimental Strings, Versatility and Unaccompanied. At that time John sold the studio and his career turned in a completely different direction.

I, however, remained committed to the idea of a 5th cd.

I have always been a great admirer of Stéphane Grappelli but I know my limitations and I am not a jaz musician.

While growing up in Romania, tangos were always a part of the popular music culture even though we mistakenly believed that the tango originated in France, not Argentina! That my explain the European influence in my interpretation of tango.

In Venezuela, where I lived from 1980 to 1986, music is everywhere. From cumbia, salsa and merengue to the folk music of the lllanos, the traditional instruments such as the arpa criolla and the cuatro and whithout a doubt the exquisite Venezuelan waltzes.

So what is Alegria?

Is it classical? Definitely not.

Is it jazz? Not quite.

Is it world beat? I wouldn't say that.

Is it Ioan Harea? You betcha!

All arrangements were made by ANDREW MAH (great job Andrew!).