Leonardo García - Classical Guitarist
Originally from Maracaibo, Venezuela, award-winning guitarist Leonardo García has performed in North America, South America, and Europe. Spanning a full range of centuries and styles, García’s concert programs are highlighted by his rich South American repertoire, which includes neo-romantic music by Paraguayan guitarist Agustín Barrios Mangoré, Venezuelan waltzes by Antonio Lauro, Venezuelan songs arranged by Alirio Díaz, Segovian repertoire by Mexican composer Manuel Ponce, and 20th Century music by Cuban Leo Brouwer, Argentinian Astor Piazzolla, Brazilian composers Heitor Villa-Lobos, Radames Gnattali, Sergio Assad, among others. In addition to his solo performances, García has collaborated with other musicians to perform music by Astor Piazzolla, Ravi Shankar, David Leisner, Frederic Hand, and Roberto Sierra in flute/guitar ensembles, Roberto Sierra’s quintet Tríptico, duo guitar pieces, and the world premier of Van Stiefel’s baubles, carpets, and knives for guitar, alto flute, and vibraphone at the Yale Guitar Extravaganza.
As a young student at Phillips Exeter Academy, García became the first guitarist to win both the Eli Loranger Prize for Musical Excellence and the Exeter Concerto Competition leading to the first performance of a guitar concerto by a student at the Academy. García went on to Yale University where he studied music, Spanish literature, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics in 1993. Afterwards, García was awarded a scholarship to study at the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters in Music in 1995 and an Artist Diploma in 1996. Upon receiving the prestigious Artist Diploma, García was the first recipient of the coveted Eliot Fisk Prize for his accomplishments. After Yale, García was invited to continue his studies with Eliot Fisk at the New England Conservatory.
García studied primarily under Benjamin Verdery and Eliot Fisk, and has benefited from the continual advice and critiques of American guitarist Marc Teicholz and Cuban guitarist Marco Tamayo. During formative years, García performed in masterclasses with Venezuelan guitarist Alirio Díaz at the Festival Antonio Lauro, as well as for David Russell, David Leisner, Carlos Barbosa-Lima, Ricardo Iznaola, Rodrigo Riera, harpsichordist Anthony Newman and John Gibbons, among many others.
In 2001 García founded KinderGuitar, a music education program dedicated entirely to educating very young children through the guitar. Garcia’s popular program currently works with over 80 children and their families to make guitar part of their lives. When he isn’t teaching or practicing, García enjoys cooking, hiking, and reading with his wonderful wife, Maya, and their sons, Max and Charlie, in Northern California.