Luiz Mantovani, guitarist

Luiz Mantovani's performances have been described by The New York Times as "powerful, beautifully shaped and just practically flawless." A winner of the coveted Pro Musicis International Award, his awards also include the first prize at the Boston Modern Orchestra Concerto Competition (2001) and top prizes at the Schadt String Competition in Pennsylvania (1999) and at the Radio MEC - Ministry of Education and Culture - National Music Competition in Rio de Janeiro (1997).

Mr. Mantovani's has appeared as a soloist and a chamber musician in his native Brazil, the U.S., Europe and Asia. Under the auspices of the Pro Musicis Foundation, he has performed solo recitals at Weill Recital Hall/Carnegie Hall in New York and Salle Cortot in Paris. Highlights of past seasons also include concerts at Jordan Hall and Tsai Performance Center in Boston, Sala Cecília Meireles in Rio de Janeiro and Canning House in London, appearances for WGBH/Boston National Public Radio and performances with the Boston Musica Viva and Alea III ensembles.

With a repertoire spanning five centuries of music, Luiz Mantovani's diverse programs range from his own transcriptions of early music for plucked instruments to works written for him by contemporary composers. Recent commissions and premieres include works by American David Leisner, Israeli Lior Navok and Brazilian Raul do Valle. Mr. Mantovani has made a number of solo and chamber music recordings; his debut solo CD, Appassionata, was released in 1998.

An active chamber musician, in 2003 Luiz Mantovani has joined the Brazilian Guitar Quartet, one of world’s most sought-after guitar ensembles, with which he regularly tours the U.S. and has recently given their Asian debut at the Hong Kong Arts Festival. Past and present collaborations also include the Quadrivium Guitar Quartet in Boston, and duos with flutist Michel de Paula (Lucerne International Music Ensemble) and violinist João Eduardo Titton in Brazil.

Mr. Mantovani is the first and only guitarist to receive the prestigious Artist Diploma from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, the conservatory's highest award for artistic excellence. A recipient of a Saint Botolph Foundation grant and a Rabb Presidential Scholarship from the New England Conservatory, he was also awarded an Apartes Scholarship from the Brazilian government. He holds a Master's degree with honors from NEC and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Rio de Janeiro. His guitar teachers were David Leisner, Nicolas Barros and Antônio Guedes.

In addition to his performance career, Luiz Mantovani teaches at the State University of Santa Catarina, in Florianópolis, Brazil, where his educational, performance and outreach projects have deserved local and national recognition.