Piedmont Piano Company is pleased to present
Roberto Granados
You are invited to enjoy an evening of classical and flamenco guitar with the extraordinary young guitarist Roberto Granados. Joined by 13 year old percussionist Ernesto Granados, and a special guest flamenco singer. Roberto will be playing a variety of classical works, as well as flamenco music from his recently released album Soñador. Roberto describes his compositions as musical portraits meant to evoke certain memories, emotions, places, or people.
Reception to follow
$18 General Admission
$10 18 years old or younger
Sérgio Assad, Latin Grammy Award Winning Guitarist/Composer, has described Roberto as “One of the greatest examples of artistic diversity that I have ever encountered in my life.”
Roberto Granados is a classical and flamenco guitarist and composer from Hayward, California. First inspired at a young age by the music of Jimi Hendrix, Roberto began studying guitar at the age of six with classical guitarist Gyorgy Vass and at the age of eight with flamenco guitar virtuoso Jason McGuire. Since then, Roberto has studied with distinguished guitarists Sérgio Assad and Marc Teicholz of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
At the age of nine, Roberto performed on National Public Radio’s From the Top. In 2009, at ten years old, Roberto was invited to perform for and meet President Barack Obama. That same year, he performed at the 36th Annual Emmy Awards. He made his professional solo debut with the California Symphony at the age of twelve, performing renowned Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo's famous Concierto de Aranjuez.
More recently, Roberto has played in the Bay Area-based professional classical guitar ensemble the San Francisco Guitar Quartet, performed with singer Jon Anderson of the English progressive rock band Yes, and worked with critically acclaimed ukulele extraordinaire Jake Shimabukuro. He has performed in venues throughout the country and internationally. In December 2017, he released his first flamenco album of original compositions, Soñador.
In 2018, Roberto received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from California State University East Bay and will begin his Masters in Music this Fall, at The Yale School of Music. robertogranadosguitar.com
Israel “El Piraña” Suárez, Paco de Lucia’s Percussionist, described Ernesto as having “Beautiful technique and natural rhythm…he is a phenomenon.”
Ernesto Granados is a thirteen year old percussionist from Hayward, CA. He took an interest in percussion at a very young age through attending flamenco shows, listening to his brother play flamenco, and listening to Paco de Lucia, Vicente Amigo, Diego del Morao and Jason “El Rubio” McGuire. He began studying the cajón at the age of six with Jason McGuire, and drums and congas at the age of eight with Bay Area-based percussionist Brian Rice. He has since studied with world renowned Spanish percussionists Israel “El Piraña" Suárez, Luis “Perikin” Carrasco, and Amador Losada.
At the age of 12, Ernesto was featured on percussion on the flamenco album, Soñador, released in December 2017. Recently, Ernesto was invited to participate in Ben Verdery’s ten-day Maui Masterclass in Hawaii, providing percussion for an ensemble of 15 guitarists.
Ernesto has performed with the New Generation of Young Flamencos from Spain; Alex Conde, distinguished jazz/flamenco pianist at the Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco; the Santa Cruz Symphony at the Music in Motion & Classical Spanish Music concerts; blues extraordinaire Augusta Lee Collins; internationally; and with his brother, Roberto.
Ernesto is homeschooled focusing his studies in computer engineering, technology, and music. Watch Ernesto on youtube.com
Pirouz Ebadypour “Pirouz de Caspio” is an internationally recognized Flamenco singer/composer with over 20 years of experience in the art and culture of flamenco. Born into an artistic family in Iran, he began studying classical music at the age of seven. His musical studies covered voice, theory, the violin and piano.
His first introduction to flamenco was as a teenager in Iran where he first heard the music of Paco de Lucia, who is considered by many as the greatest master of the flamenco guitar. As his interest in flamenco grew, he began to focus his efforts in developing his singing skills. He was influenced by the famous flamenco singer Camaron de la Isla.
After moving to Canada in 1988, his admiration for the art form continued to grow, whereby he immersed himself in the sound of flamenco, eventually learning to sing its soulful, wailing songs. As his understanding of the connections between Flamenco and Persian music deepened, he began to explore fusing both musical forms together, creating the unique sound of Flamenco-Persian Fusion.
Pirouz provided the vocals on the flamenco album, Soñador, released in December 2017. He has performed in major festivals throughout British Columbia, the United States, and internationally. He is the founder of the annual Vancouver Jondo Flamenco Festival in Canada.
Special Guest to be announced will include an internationally recognized Flamenco singer/composer with over 20 years of experience in the art and culture of flamenco who has performed in major festivals throughout British Columbia, the United States, and internationally.