Edwin Guevara

Since 2003 the Dúo Villa-Lobos is a stable and consolidated chamber music duo. They started working in the Superior Conservatory of Music of Liceu de Barcelona (Spain) under the guidance of Mr. Guillem Pérez-Quer. The Dúo Villa-Lobos has performed concerts in different festivals, auditoriums, and theaters in Europe, the United States of America, and South America. They have specialized in the original music of repertoire for cello and guitar. Likewise, they have created their works and arrangements from different styles.

Since its creation, the Dúo Villa-Lobos has encouraged composers to write original works for this unconventional chamber format. Besides, several of those works have been dedicated to them by composers such as Leo Brouwer (Cuba),  Atanas  Ourkouzounov,  Blas  Emilio  Atehortua, Jorge Miguel González, Carles Guinovart, Francesc Taverna Bech, Gloria Villanueva, Josep Galeote (Spain), Jaime Zenamon (Bolivia), Arnaldo Freyre (Brazil), Jan Freidlin (Russia), Gerard Drozd (Poland),Ricardo Pauletti  (Brasil),   Leonardo  Le  San (Colombia), José Antonio Guerrero (USA - Mexico), Giorgio Tortora (Italy), and Pedro Sarmiento (Colombia). In the same way, they got the maximum contemporary music prize at the Arjau European interpretation Festival of Barcelona. Also, they received the Octavio Marulanda Morales award granted by the Ruitoqueño Festival of Colombian Music.

In 2017, the Dúo was invited by the Michigan University to perform the opening concert at the festival "En Español: Sounds of the Hispanosphere." This event took place in the Walgreen Drama Center's Stamps Auditorium. As well as to make the central concert of the festival in the mythical Hill auditorium of Ann Arbor premiering the "Great Symphonic Concert La Madre Monte" for Cello, Guitar, and Symphonic Orchestra Op. 198. This piece was written and dedicated to the Duo Villa-Lobos by the Bolivian-German composer Jaime Zenamon. They were accompanied by the University Philharmonia Orchestra of Michigan University and conducted by Oriol Sans Arrufat in February 2017. 

The Dúo Villa-Lobos released their first recording production, "Music for cello and guitar," under the classical music label NAXOS. It opened the cello and guitar chamber music line in  that  record  label  with a repertoire of Eastern Europe and South America. The CD contains pieces by composers such as Dusan Bogdanovic (Serbia), Jaime Zénamon (Bolivia), Sergio Assad (Brazil), Atanas Ourkouzounov (Bulgaria) and Edwin Guevara-Gutiérrez (Colombia). The recording was made at the Luis Angel Arango Concert Hall of the Republic Bank from Colombia in January 2016. It is essential to say that it is the first recording production in Colombia for this world's leading record label in classical music. The CD was also on the bestseller list of the record company during the first month of release.

In May 2018, they made their debut within the programming of the Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo. Likewise, in June 2018, they performed as soloists accompanied by the Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra under the conduction of Robin O'Neil (England). The Duo Villa-Lobos has had an excellent reception among the public and specialized critics with commentaries and reports in various digital and physical media such as The Classical Guitar Magazine, The Violin Channel, Musicalifeiten, Memoirs Classical Guitar Magazine, David's Review Corner, A Tempo, El Tiempo, El Espectator, Arcadia, among others.

They are currently doing a DMA in the Fred Fox School of Music at the University of Arizona in the USA and preparing their new CDs as a duo, solo cello and solo guitar. Cecilia Palma is a cellist of the Bogota Philharmonic Orchestra. Also, she is an associate professor at the National University of Colombia and a Naxos artist, and Edwin Guevara-Gutierrez is a professor at the Sergio Arboleda University. Likewise, he is a Naxos artist, Knobloch Strings artist, and Bergmann Editions artist.

Guitarist, composer, arranger, and conductor.  He began his studies at the age of three under the guidance of his father Roberto Guevara and later at the Colombian National Conservatory under the direction of Ramiro Isaza, Blas Emilio Atehortua, and Gustavo Yepes.  He received nearly 70 national and international awards, such as the Leo Brouwer, Celedonio Romero, Miguel Llobet, Arjau de Música Contemporanea, Juventudes Musicales de España, Chicago Guitar Festival, among others.  Edwin has taken master classes with Abel Carlevaro, Eduardo Fernandez, Alvaro Pierri, Pepe Romero, Thomas Patterson, David Russell, Leo Brouwer, Fernando Rodriguez, Carles Trepat, among others.  

Edwin Guevara has performed as a soloist and accompanied by different orchestras in major theaters in Europe, Asia, and America and is graduated from the Conservatorio Superior de Música Liceo de Barcelona (Spain) under the direction of guitar and chamber music with Guillem Pérez-Quer and on flamenco guitar with Manuel Granados.  Later he obtained his master's degree in symphonic conducting at the National University of Colombia.  His knowledge and versatility have led him to record more than 70 record productions of classic and popular genres. 

As a conductor, he has been in charge of different orchestras and chamber groups in Europe and South America.  He is a permanent guest as a jury in various international competitions and likewise to hold masterclasses and conferences. 

Great composers have dedicated their works to him, such as Roland Dyens, Leo Brouwer, Blas Emilio Atehortua, Atanas Ourkouzounov, Jaime Zenamon, Petr Vit, Clemente Diaz, Jesus Emilio Gonzalez, German Gutierrez, Pedro Sarmiento, Julio Cesar Ramirez, Gustavo Nino, among others. 

He is a Knobloch Strings artist, Bergmann Editions of Denmark edit his compositions, and he is a Naxos artist.  His compositions have been performed by renowned soloists and ensembles in Europe and America.  In 2005 he was considered one of the best Latin American guitarists by the Instituto Cervantes of Spain, making a concert tour and master class in the Middle East. 

Edwin Guevara is currently a professor at the Sergio Arboleda University in Bogota (Colombia) and is recognized as one of the most outstanding guitar teachers in Latin America.  He is guitarist, arranger, and composer of the renowned Duo Villa-Lobos together with the great Venezuelan cellist Cecilia Palma, with whom he recorded the first album with original music for cello and guitar produced by Naxos.  Soon they will record new albums as a duo and as soloists with the same Naxos label.  He is currently pursuing doctoral studies in guitar performance (DMA) with renowned professor Tom Patterson in the Bolton Guitar Studies program at the Fred Fox School of Music at the University of Arizona.