**PLEASE NOTE the updated start time of 7 p.m. for this concert.**

The Hotchkiss Philharmonic Orchestra continues its first season with a concert featuring guest conductor and soloist, Daniel Guedes on Saturday, February 22 at 7 p.m. in Katherine M. Elfers Hall, Esther Eastman Music Center. Hailing from Brazil, Mr. Guedes is a violin virtuoso and conductor who received part of his musical education in the U.S. under the tutelage of Pinchas Zukerman.  For the Feb. 22 program, Mr. Guedes will also be the violin soloist for the performance of Vivaldi’s beloved Four Seasons, and will conduct Jean Sibelius’s Andante Festivo, and Edward Grieg’s Holberg Suite, op. 40.  The concert is free and open to the public; no ticket reservations are necessary. Seating is first come, first served.

The Hotchkiss Philharmonic

The Hotchkiss Philharmonic Orchestra was established in 2018 through the generosity of Barbara Walsh Hostetter '77 and her husband, Amos. The orchestra combines a group of outstanding professional musicians with talented Hotchkiss music students, giving those students the unique opportunity to work and perform alongside world-class artists. Offering free admission to all of its concerts, the orchestra is thrilled to invite the community to its breathtaking concert venue, Katherine M. Elfers Hall, for a season of exciting symphonic music.

Daniel Guedes

Considered one of the most distinguished Brazilian musicians of his generation, Daniel Guedes has appeared as a violinist, violist, chamber music player, teacher and conductor. In 2017 he was appointed Associate Conductor at the Barra Mansa Symphony Orchestra in Barra Mansa, state of Rio de Janeiro.  Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1977, Daniel began to learn the violin when he was seven years old with his father, an amateur violinist, and soon entered the Brazilian Conservatory of Music. In 1992 he moved to London to study with Detlef Hahn at the Guildhall School of Music. Later he pursued his Bachelors and Masters Degrees in New York at the Manhattan School of Music, having studied with Pinchas Zukerman and Patinka Kopec in the “Pinchas Zukerman Performance Program”. He then pursued conducting studies with Zukerman and Mika Eichenholz. Daniel has won prestigious competitions in Brazil, and in New York, played his Carnegie Hall debút in 2000 after winning the Waldo Mayo Memorial Competition.

Beginning at age of ten, Mr. Guedes has appeared as a soloist with the main orchestras in Brazil, and has performed in the U.S. (Carnegie Hall, Jewish Museum of New York, Weill Recital Hall, St. Louis, Ohio, New Jersey, Austin), Canada, Germany, England, Italy, Norway, Central America and South America. As a conductor he has appeared in front of the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Campinas Symphony, Bahia Symphony, Paraíba Symphony and the National Symphony Orchestra of Brazil among others. Since 2012,  he has conducted the “Academia Jovem Concertante”, a project which hosts young musicians to tour around Brazil periodically.

As a chamber musician Daniel has performed with artists such as Shmuel Ashkenasi, Pinchas Zukerman, Leon Spierer, Arianna String Quartet, Ricardo Castro, Catalin Routaru, Hansjörg Schellenberger, Daniel Gortler, Alexander Hülshoff, among others. He has also been playing as the first violinist of “Quarteto da Guanabara” (Guanabara String Quartet)”, which was founded more than half a century ago and has become one of the most traditional chamber groups of Brazil. His duo with the guitarist Mario Ulloa brings a unique repertoire for this ensemble, including “Bossa-Nova”, “Samba”, “Choro”, “Bolero”, among many other styles. They have recorded two albums, “Guitar and Violin” and “Amor em paz” (“Love in Piece”). Mr. Guedes has recorded several other albums including “Brazilian Impressions” (2004), playing works by Brazilian composers, and “Beethoven Sonatas” (2009) with the pianist Ilan Rechtman.

Daniel currently holds a violin teaching position at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). He gives master classes and teaches actively in music festivals in his homeland, such as the Campos do Jordão International Winter Festival and the International Music Festival of Barra Mansa, where he is Artistic Director.

Esther Eastman Music Center 

The Esther Eastman Music Center celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2015. A LEED-certified building adjoining The Hotchkiss School's Main Building and completed in 2005, the Center is home to state-of-the art music facilities and Katherine M. Elfers Hall — a breathtaking concert hall with world-class acoustics. The hall has become one of the area’s main cultural destinations, offering student and guest concerts throughout the year, all free of charge. The guest concert series has welcomed an acclaimed roster of international musicians, including the Fine Arts Quartet, violinists Midori and Glenn Dicterow, cellist Robert deMaine, pianists Boris Berman, Olga Kern, Leon Fleisher, and Guarneri String Quartet, among many others. 

The Hotchkiss School

Founded in 1891, The Hotchkiss School is a coeducational boarding school located at 11 Interlaken Road in Lakeville, Connecticut. Katherine M. Elfers Hall, Esther Eastman Music Center, is situated in the lower level of the Main Building. For more information about this and other arts events at The Hotchkiss School, call (860) 435-4423.