Federico Moreno Torroba

Federico Moreno Torroba (3 March 1891 – 12 September 1982) was a Spanish composer, conductor, and theatrical impresario. He is especially remembered for his important contributions to the classical guitar repertoire, becoming one of the leading twentieth-century composers for the instrument. He was also one of the foremost composers of zarzuelas, a form of Spanish light opera. His 1932 zarzuela, Luisa Fernanda, has proved to be enduringly popular. In addition, he composed ballets, symphonic works, and piano pieces, as well as one-act operas and one full-length opera, El poeta, which premiere in 1980, starring well-known tenor Plácido Domingo. Moreno Torroba also ran his own zarzuela company, which toured extensively, especially in Latin America.

Biography and career

Over the course of his long career, Moreno Torroba composed many works, both in traditional Spanish forms and for the concert hall. He is often associated with the zarzuela, a traditional Spanish musical form. He achieved his greatest success in the 1930s with the zarzuelas Luisa Fernanda (1932) and La Chulapona (1934). Directing several opera companies, Moreno Torroba helped introduce the zarzuela to international audiences. In 1946 he formed a zarzuela company with singers Plácido Domingo Ferrer and Pepita Embil, the parents of Plácido Domingo and close friends of his. The company toured Latin America for two years, becoming particularly popular in Mexico. Moreno Torroba also composed operas, of which La Virgen de Mayo (1925) and El poeta (1980) with Plácido Domingo in the title role, are his best known. In addition to his vocal works, he is well known for his compositions for the classical guitar, many of which were dedicated to either Maria Angélica Funes or Andrés Segovia. He also frequently conducted.

Federico A. Moreno

Federico A. Moreno (born 1952) is an American lawyer and judge. He is a district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Early life and education

Moreno was born in Caracas, Venezuela to Francisco and Réjane Moreno. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame with an Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974 and from the University of Miami School of Law with a J.D. in 1978. At the University of Miami Law School he met his wife of thirty-seven years, Maria Cristina Morales. On March 11, 2014, Moreno observed in remarks delivered to the Spellman-Hoeveler American Inn of Court (a private lawyers association) that Morales graduated first in their class at the University of Miami Law School. Morales is a prominent transactional attorney in Miami. They have three children: Cristina (32), an assistant United State Attorney in Miami; Rick (30), a private investment professional in Miami; and Vicky-Lou (24), a television news producer who is affectionately know by her friends and family as "baguette."

Álvaro Pierri

Álvaro Pierri (born in Montevideo (Uruguay), in 1953) is a classical guitarist. He is a professor at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna.

He received his early musical education from his mother, Ada Estades, on the piano and his aunt, Olga Pierri, on the guitar. Later he studied with Abel Carlevaro, the composer Guido Santórsola and also at the Uruguayan National Institute of Musicology.

From the age of 11 he was already winning prizes in international guitar competitions, including 1st Prize in the International Guitar Competition in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1st Prize in the International Guitar Competition in Porto Alegre, Brazil, and the Gold Medal at the 18th International Competition by France Musique/Radio France in Paris.

Pierri′s debut in the USA took place in New York and received outstanding reviews: ... ”Mr. Pierri revealed an artistic maturity not commonly encountered” ... ”compared to artists as Segovia, Bream, Williams” ... ”brilliant, sensitive, versatile, breathtaking” (New York Times & Continental Reviews). In 1983 he made his debut in Germany with the string soloists of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and he subsequently appeared on numerous radio and television programmes produced by the German, Austrian, Danish, Spanish, French, Canadian, Korean and Japanese Radios.