Virginia Symphony Orchestra presents Latin Rhythms

HAMPTON ROADS, VA [October 13, 2016] — JoAnn Falletta conducts this exciting program, strongly influenced by Latin traditions, including popular song and Mexican folklore.

Composed in 1939, Revueltas’ Night of the Mayas has often been described as the Latin Rite of Spring, with its pulsating rhythms, unusual percussion components and electrifying dances.

Winner of the 2012 JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Competition, Celil Refik Kaya will lure audiences with Manuel Ponce’s mesmerizing Concierto del Sur, written for Spanish guitar icon Andres Segovia.

Performances are Friday, October 21 at Ferguson Center for the Arts in Newport News and Saturday, October 22 at Chrysler Hall in Norfolk. Both performances begin promptly at 8 p.m.

Tickets start at $25 and can be purchased by calling 757.892.6366, visiting www.virginiasymphony.org or visiting the Virginia Symphony Box Office at 150 Boush Street, Suite 201, Norfolk, VA 23510 from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday. For group sales of 10 or more, call 757.466.3047.

The Norfolk Classics Series is sponsored by Norfolk Southern. Partial support for these concerts has been provided by the Business Consortium for Arts Support, the Newport News Arts Commission, the City of Norfolk and the Virginia Commission for the Arts.

Born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1991, Kaya’s interest in classical guitar was fostered by his father, Dr. Mehmet Refik Kaya, from the age of six. Early instructors included Yusuf Doğan Büyüköğüt, Raffi Arslanyan, and Soner Egesel. Since his concert debut, Celil Refik Kaya has received much recognition and many accolades for his myriad accomplishments at an early age. He has won international guitar competitions in Bulgaria, Greece, Austria, Turkey, and throughout the United States, including the 2012 JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Concerto Competition.

While working on his undergraduate degree at the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, he received the Excellence Scholarship from the Turkish Educational Foundation and studied composition with the famous Turkish composer Mehmet Nemutlu and graduated at the age of 19 with his Bachelor’s Degree of Music and highest honors. Mr. Kaya piqued interest worldwide while pursuing his Master’s Degree of Music in New York City at the Mannes School of Music. As a full-scholarship student, he received many awards and proudly studied in the studio of Michael Newman, as well as with Grammy Award-Winning guitarist, Sharon Isbin. He also studied composition, arrangement, and transcription with renowned guitarist-composer, Frederic Hand. Mr. Kaya is currently a candidate of Doctoral Degree of Musical Arts program at Austin Butler’s School of Music at the University of Texas as a Harrington fellow.

Having toured as an international solo artist around the United States and Europe, he has collaborated with countless professional orchestras through which he has gained great artistic renown. Mr. Kaya has performed in the most prestigious concert halls and festivals around the United States including solo recitals, concerto performances, and master classes on the D’Addario Performance Series at Carnegie Hall, The Frick Collection Museum in NYC Summer Artists series, New York Guitar Seminar Festival at Mannes College, Round Top Festival in Texas, Brevard Music Festival in South Carolina, Raritan River Music Festival, and Nevada County Guitar Festival, as well as numerous radio broadcasts and concert performances throughout United States and Turkey.

On his first album with NAXOS, he recorded the works of Jorge Morel. His upcoming CD will include the works of Italian composer, Carlo Domeniconi. As a performer, Mr. Kaya works closely with our generation’s great composers, including Lowell Liebermann, Jorge Morel, and Roberto Sierra and has premiered concertos by Roberto Sierra, Derwyn Holder, Leonard Handler, and Suleyman Alnitemiz.

Mr. Kaya is also an avid composer whose more than 100 pieces include works for solo guitar, violin, piano, and more. His chamber and instrumental works have been performed throughout the United States, Turkey, South Korea, and Australia at the Sydney Opera House. He also enjoys playing chamber music, playing traditional Turkish music, and training in martial arts during his spare time.

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Under the leadership of GRAMMY-winning music director JoAnn Falletta, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra is Virginia’s preeminent professional symphony orchestra with a mission of inspiring, educating and connecting audiences of all ages.

Founded in 1921, it is ranked in the top ten percent of professional orchestras nationwide and serves the entire Southeastern Virginia region with Classics, Pops and Family concert series in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Newport News and Williamsburg as well as performances in outlying Virginia and North Carolina communities, reaching nearly 150,000 concert-goers every year. Additionally, the orchestra annually reaches 45,000 children, students and lifelong learners with its education and community programs. The Virginia Symphony has performed at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and is the cornerstone of the performing arts in Hampton Roads.