Coro Sinfónico de Puerto Rico
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Piano Competition History
In 1982, the Puerto Rican pianist Jesús María Sanromá performed Beethoven's Fantasy for Piano, Orchestra and Chorus, Opus 80, to culminate the inaugural concert of Coro Sinfónico de Puerto Rico. Soon after, in 1983, Maestro Sanromá collaborated with El Sinfónico to celebrate his 81stbirthday with repeat performances of the Choral Fantasy at Interamerican University in San Germán and San Juan. The chorus and the members of the Puerto Rico Chamber Orchestra were charmed by his friendly manner and his usual barrage of keyboard jokes.
Sanromá's death in 1984, which saddened the entire musical community, prompted James Rawie, the founder
and music director of Coro Sinfónico, to search for a way in which he and the chorus could honor this great
Puerto Rican musician. With the help and financial assistance of Sanromá's great friend, don Luis A. Ferré, the
first annual Jesús María Sanromá Memorial Concert was presented in 1985. November was chosen as the
month of the concert to commemorate maestro Sanromá birthday which falls on November 7th. Coro Sinfónico
and the Orquesta de Cámara de Puerto Rico performed the Mozart Requiem in the San José Church of Old San
Juan, the San José Church of Caparra, and the Santa María Reina Church of Ponce. The third concert of the
series was presented with the assistance of the Office of the Bishop of Ponce and the Catholic University, in
memory of the flood victims that died in October 1985 during the passage of Tropical Storm Isabel.
In 1986 the Jesús María Sanromá Piano Competition for Young Artists was founded by Coro Sinfónico; and in
October of that year, Luis Gustavo Prado became the first winner of the competition. A sixteen-year-old student
of piano at the Hato Rey Free School of Music under the tutelege of Héctor Ledoux, Luis Gustavo won not only
a monetary award, but also the priceless opportunity to play his first piano concerto with the Puerto Rico
Chamber Orchestra. Young Prado consequently performed Mozart's Piano Concerto in A major KV 488 in the
second Sanromá Memorial Concert in November of 1986. Coro Sinfónico presented the Fauré Requiem with
the children's choirs of Colegio Rosa Bell and Academia María Reina,with soloists Zoraida López and Ramón
González at the Ponce Art Museum and Union Church.. Both presentations were honored by the presence of the
Sanromá family and Luis A. Ferré, who delivered a short homage to Jesús María Sanromá.
The second Piano Competition for Young Artists was held in May of 1987. The panel of judges, again headed
by Prof. José Daniel Martínez, included María del Carmen Gil, Mildred Bou, Mónica Rivera, and doña Cecelia
Talavera. Fé1ix Rivera, a 22-year-old graduate of the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music, and student of
Georgy Sandor at the Julliard School of Music, won the first prize of $500 donated by Luis A. Ferré. The
second prize of $300, donated by the R. . Reynolds Tobacco Company, was awarded to Pedro Jiménez
Chacón, a 19-year-old student from the Conservatory of Music. The previous winner, Luis Gustavo Prado,
placed third and received a $50 motivation prize donated by Destilería Serrallés. Honorable mention was given
to 12-year-old Claudia Pérez Rodríguez, a participant in a special program at the Hato Rey Free School of
Music. All prize winners were congratulated by Don Luis A. Ferré and Maestro Sanromá 's widow, Mercedes.
The 1987 competition winner, Félix Rivera, performed the Mozart Piano Concerto in C major, KV 467 as the opening piece of the annual Memorial Concert. The second portion of the program, the Mass in A flat major, D. 678 by Schubert was a choral masterpiece not performed in Puerto Rico in nearly twenty years. Coro Sinfónico was joined by the Antillian College Choir prepared by Carl Anderson. Maestro Rawie conducted all performances with the Puerto Rico Chamber Orchestra and a cast of fine local soloists. Concerts were presented in the Ponce Art Museum, the San Juan Fine Arts Center, and in the Candelaria Cathedral of Mayagiiez.
In, May of 1988 the competition judges; José Daniel Martínez, Alberto Hernández, Mildred Bou, Héctor
Ledoux and Mónica Rivera faced a difficult task, as the finalists, Adlan Cruz Cabrera and María Antonia García
received final scores that differed by only .09 points! Both talented youths performed with orchestra in the fourth
Memorial Concert in the Fine Arts Center, Ponce Art Museum, and at Interamerican University at San Germán.
Angeles Pérez Escobar, the winner of the 4th Piano Competion at UPR performed Mozart's Piano Concerto
No. 22 in E flat major KV 482 for the 1989 Memorial Concerts. The choral selection, a Puerto Rican premiere,
was Dvorák's Mass in D major, Opus 86. The 5th Competition, in 1991, had winners Michelle Muriente and
Marcos Flores. Mr. Flores performed Bach's Concerto for piano and strings in D minor in the 6th Memorial
Concerts. In 1992 the Competition was held for the first time in the Museo de Arte de Ponce. Winners in 1992
were Elena Hammel, who performed the Mozart A major Concerto K.488 and Angel Mattos, Jr., who
performed Mozart's Concerto in C major K.467. The 8th competition observed the first time a winner of the
competition came from Mayagiiez. Trained at Antillian College, Ludim Pedroza performed the Mozart Concerto
in D minor, K.466, and Pedro Juan Jiménez, a very close second place, performed the Mozart K.467.
In 1994 the 9th piano competition was invited to be held in the newly dedicated Luis A. Ferré Fine Arts Center.
The competition was held in the Experimental Theater to a capacity crowd, who applauded winners Edgar Vélez
Montes and David Canals. The 9th competition also marked an unusual record, being won for the second
consecutive year by a performer from Mayagüez. Runner up was Freddie Feliciano, who received a motivation
prize from Interamerican University, Ponce. The concert presenting the winners was held only two weeks later in
the Drama Hall at the Ferré Center.
The Competition and concert series, now given in the name of the great statesman and patron of the arts, don Luis A. Ferré, is sponsored annually by the Ferré Foundation, Puerto Rican Cement Co., the Angel Ramos Foundation and Ponce Art Museum, and has a home at the Luis A. Ferré Fine Arts Center.
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For more information about the Coro Sinfónico de Puerto Rico, call 787-268-1768
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