Manuel Barrueco
Manuel Barrueco | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 16, 1952 Santiago de Cuba, Cuba |
| Occupation | Classical guitarist |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Known for | Classical guitar performances and recordings |
Manuel Barrueco (born December 16, 1952) is a Cuban-born classical guitar virtuoso currently residing in the United States.
Biography
Hailing from Santiago de Cuba, Barrueco began his guitar studies at the age of eight. Following the 1959 Cuban revolution, his father removed him from public schooling and arranged for private tutors for him and his siblings. He pursued formal training at the Esteban Salas Conservatory prior to emigrating to the U.S. as a political refugee in 1967. Upon arrival in Miami, he studied under Juan Mercadal and later continued his education with Rey de la Torre in Newark, New Jersey.
Barrueco made his debut at Carnegie Hall in 1974 and that same year joined the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music. He obtained his Bachelor of Music degree from Peabody Conservatory in 1975 and became a faculty member there in 1990.
He has an extensive discography with EMI, including the 2006 release ¡Cuba!, and established his own label, Tonar, during the 2000s. His concerts have been broadcast worldwide on networks such as NHK (Japan), Bayerischer Rundfunk (Germany), and RTVE (Spain). In the United States, Barrueco has appeared in a Lexus advertisement and on television programs including CBS Sunday Morning, A&E's Breakfast with the Arts, and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. The 2006 film Manuel Barrueco: A Gift and a Life showcases both performances and interviews that emphasize his Cuban heritage and political perspectives. In 2012, he was honored as a Fontanals Fellow by United States Artists.
Barrueco has been married twice; his current wife, Asgerdur Sigurdardottir, oversees Tonar and manages his professional affairs.
See also
External links
- Record company Tonar
- All Music page on Manuel Barrueco
- Peabody Institute page on Manuel Barrueco
- Some photos of LP covers (Oviatt Library Digital Collections)
- Interview with UrbanGuitar.com
- Interview with Paul Magnussen for Guitar magazine (Apr 1983)
- Interview with Greg Szeto for Aural States (Dec 2007) alt.
- In Session: Manuel Barrueco Forum GFA "Guitar Foundation of America"
- Leo Brouwer and Manuel Barrueco Interviews by David Reynolds