• Twenty-one concerts, five conferences, and three exhibitions will take place during the Cartagena International Music Festival.
• Robert McDuffie, Ensamble Sinsonte, and the premiere of an original composition by Colombian composer Diego Vega, will be featured along with three Colombian soloists

Bogotá, Colombia – The picturesque city of Cartagena will once again open its doors to the third Cartagena International Music Festival to be held January 10th and 17th, 2009 in some of the city’s most historic venues, among them, the Teatro Heredia, the chapels of the Sofitel Santa Clara and Charleston Cartagena hotels, and the San Petro Claver Square. World-renowned artists, under the direction of American pianist and Festival Artistic Director, Charles Wadsworth and Associate Director and pianist, Stephen Prutsman, will perform twenty-one concerts during the weeklong event. In addition, a concert performed by gifted young Colombian students will take place at the School of Fines Arts in Cartagena. Festival artists will also perform three concerts in the large neighborhoods of Cartagena: Las Palmeras, El Pozón, and María Auxiliadora.

"An important part of our mission is to extend the outreach of the Festival to wider audiences," says Julia Salvi, president, Salvi Foundation – Colombia. "Throughout the Festival week guest artists teach masterclasses to gifted young musicians and their teachers, we bring concerts into the neighborhoods of the city under the auspices of Formando Musica, a program we have established in cooperation with Colombian corporations and the generosity of public-spirited individuals and during the year we sponsor workshops to provide training for artisans who repair and restore musical instruments used by musicians throughout the country. It is very gratifying to see how the Cartagena International Music Festival has touched the lives of so many and given our young artists and others encouragement to dream big dreams."

The 2009 program will include, among others, works by Beethoven, Grieg, Hayden, Mozart, Mendehlsson, and Ravel. In addition, an original chamber ensemble piece created by Colombian composer, Diego Vega and commissioned by Fundación Salvi Colombia, will be performed for the first time. "We are pleased that so many gifted and talented Colombian artists will be participating in the program this year; it is a tribute to the enormous talent available in this country." says Associated Director Stephen Prutsman.

Founder Director Charles Wadsworth first gained international attention in 1960 at the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy, where he originated the Festival’s famed "Midday Concerts." In 1977, he started the chamber concert series of the Spoleto USA Festival in Charleston, South Carolina, which he continues to direct, perform in as pianist and introduce as its acclaimed host. In 1969, he organized and performed in the opening concerts of Alice Tully Hall. As founding artistic director of the Chamber Society of Lincoln Center, he then led 20 seasons of concerts with wit and originality, invoking considerable enthusiasm and introducing chamber music to new audiences. He has been recognized worldwide for his enormous contributions to the music world.

Pianist, composer and arranger Stephen Prutsman is considered one of the most versatile and innovative musicians of his generation, shifting easily from classical music to jazz, and to world music styles, in his quest to explore and seek common ground in the music of all cultures. Prutsman, medal winner at the Tchaikovsky and Queen Elizabeth piano competitions, received the Avery Fischer Career Grant, which allowed him to establish himself as a concert pianist. This led to performances in the most prestigious venues and with leading orchestras in the United States and Europe. As a composer, his collaboration with the Kronos Quartet has resulted in over 40 arrangements for them. From 2004-2007, Prutsman was an Artistic Partner with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, where he acted as composer, arranger, program host and pianist conducting concerti from the keyboard. 

In 2007, Stephen was appointed Associated Artistic Director of the Cartagena International Festival of Music in Colombia.

2009 Festival Roster of Guest Artists

Charles Wadsworth	Artistic Director / Pianist	U.S.A.
Stephen Prutsman	Associate Artistic Director / Pianist	U.S.A.
Scott Yoo	Guest Conductor	U.S.A.
City of London Sinfonia	Orchestra	England
José Franch-Ballester	Clarinet	Spain
Emmanuel Ceysson	Harp	France
Anne Akiko Meyer	Violin	U.S.A.
Robert McDuffie	Violin	U.S.A.
Angélica Gámez	Violin	Colombia
Hsin-Yun Huang	Viola	Taiwan
Andrés Díaz	Cello	Chile
Kristina Reiko Cooper	Cello	U.S.A.
Erika Nickrenz	Piano	U.S.A.
Ana María Fonseca	Harpsichord	Colombia
Antonio Arnedo	Saxophone	Colombia
Ensamble Sinsonte		Colombia
St. Lawrence String Quartet		Canada

Harpsichordist Ana María Fonseca, sax player Antonio Arnedo, and 12 musicians from Colombian orchestras, will perform with the City of London Sinfonia

In addition to musical performances, the Festival will include a series of lectures and art exhibitions, which will be held at the School of Fines Arts of Cartagena. The exhibitions: "Espíritu y Materia", will feature high technical quality craftwork organized by Galería Deimos, and an exhibition of instruments organized by the Colombian Association of Luthiers and the Ministry of Culture. A retrospective collection of 2009 Festival poster artist, Juan Cardena, will be held at the Museum of Modern Art in Cartagena.

"We look forward to returning to the warm and appreciative audiences in Cartagena," says Prutsman. "During the past two years the people of Cartagena have opened their hearts to us, proving why this is the perfect venue for this Festival."

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For further information on the Cartagena International Music Festival 2009 program, visit: www.cartagenamusicfestival.com

Editor’s note: Digital images of the artists and the venues of the Festival are available at the request of the interested party.

Click here to download a copy of the III Cartagena International Music Festival brochure.