Los Trombonistas
Juan Saldivar Jr., bass trombone
Dr. Juan Saldivar Jr., is Adjunct Professor of Trombone at Texas A&M University - Kingsville. Dr. Saldivar has performed across the country as a soloist, orchestral, and chamber musician and has prioritized performing newly commissioned works for trombone and bass trombone. He has performed with ensembles such as the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, Austin Symphony Orchestra, Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra, and Laredo Theater Guild to name a few.
As an educator, Dr. Saldivar has taught in Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Mexico, and Texas as both a clinician and private instructor. Dr. Saldivar also served as band director at the Montopolis IDEA Public School in Austin, TX where he designed the curriculum for both the district middle and high school band programs. This pilot band program design was eventually used as the model for the Austin IDEA Public School region.
Recently, Dr. Saldivar has partnered with principal trombonist Alex Lopez Velarde of the Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Mexico, renowned American pianist Andreas Han Landstedt, and Mexican guitarist Daniel Monroy Reyes to form the chamber ensemble, Border Bones. The ensemble’s goal is to create a platform for marginalized and underrepresented composers. Border Bones recently released their first album Between Borders in the Spring 2023 on New Branch Records.
A native of Laredo, TX, Dr. Juan Saldivar Jr. received a Bachelor of Music in Performance from Texas A&M University – Kingsville, a Master of Music from the University of New Mexico, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Kentucky. Dr. Saldivar has had the opportunity to study and learn from Dr. Oscar Diaz, Jr., Dr. Christopher Buckholz, Dr. Richard White, Dave Tall, and Professor Bradley Kerns.
Alex López Velarde, tenor trombone
Praised by El Economista as “Mexican pride,” Alex’s goal as a musician is to inspire people from different communities through music and make a positive impact on their lives. He has performed as soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player throughout Mexico, Europe, and the US. Alex holds the position of Principal Trombone in the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico since 2019 and also Principal Trombone in the Orquesta de Cámara de la Escuela Nacional Preparatoria UNAM since 2023. He also served as principal trombone in the “Filarmónica 5 de Mayo” in Puebla, Mexico, from 2015-2017.
Alex was selected to represent Mexico in the Young Euro Classic Festival, performing as principal trombone at the Konzerthaus in Berlin with the “Estanislao Mejía” Youth Orchestra. He received a fellowship with the National Repertory Orchestra in the season of 2018. He was the Winner of the Latin-American Trombone Competition, and was awarded the “Manuel M. Ponce” prize at the Aguascalientes International Chamber Music Festival. Alex has presented recitals at the International Trombone Festival in Georgia in 2021 and in Utah in 2023.
Alex is a founding member of the Trombontepec ensemble and one of the organizers of the festival with the same name in 2022 and 2023, which is now one of the leading brass festivals in Mexico. Concerned about the lack of music for trombone in his home country, he is currently collaborating with young Mexican composers to premiere and promote new works for this instrument.
As soloist, he has performed with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Aguascalientes, the Camerata Palafoxiana de Puebla, the University of New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas.
Alex received his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from the Universidad Veracruzana in Mexico, graduating with honors. He completed his Master of Music degree at the University of New Mexico as a recipient of the Conacyt-FINBA scholarship from the Mexican government. His primary teachers are John Stringer, Christopher Buckholz, Tim Mckeown, John Day, Wayne Groves and Garth Simmons.
Los Músicos
Andreas Han Landstedt, piano
Hailing from Los Lunas, New Mexico, Andreas gave his international debut at the age of 15 and his concerto debut the following year with the New Mexico Philharmonic. He has won and placed in numerous state and national competitions as soloist and collaborative pianist. Festival appearances include the Internationales Klavierfestival Lindlar in Germany and the International Summer Piano Camp of Italy. He has performed in masterclasses with Konstantin Scherbakov, Marc-André Hamelin, Anne-Marie McDermott, and Joyce Yang.
An active accompanist and collaborator, Andreas is a co-founder of the AndEs Piano Duo and has worked with numerous instrumentalists and vocalists, carrying vast experience in musical theater, wind ensembles, and choral and church settings. He has also studied jazz piano under Jim Balagurchik, and is an aspiring composer and arranger in his spare time.
Andreas holds a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory, where he is currently pursuing an Artist Certificate. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance and a Graduate Performance Certificate from the University of New Mexico. His primary teachers are Falko Steinbach and Sean Chen.
Daniel Monroy Reyes, guitar
Daniel Monroy Reyes is a Mexican guitarist from Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, whose musical journey began at the Autonomous University of Ciudad Juárez under Professor Domingo Rodríguez, followed by studies with Dr. Ricardo Saeb. He pursued his Bachelor of Music at the Universidad Veracruzana’s Faculty of Music, studying with Consuelo Bolio and Alfredo Sánchez, and later graduated under the guidance of Mtro. Enrique Salmerón. In May 2023, he earned his Master’s degree from the University of Kentucky, where he studied with Dr. Dieter Hennings and currently continues his doctoral studies as a teaching assistant.
From 2017 to 2021, Daniel taught guitar at the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez (UACJ), where he nurtured the next generation of musicians. His artistic achievements include second-place awards in the 2020 Concurso Nacional Virtual GuitaREDUV and the 2011 Lewis Award Interpretation Competition at the University of Kentucky. He also received an honorable mention in the II Aquiles Valdés Classical Guitar Competition (2015) at UACJ. Notably, in 2017, he was selected to perform Heitor Villa-Lobos’s Concerto for Guitar and Small Orchestra with the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra (OSX) after participating in the Young Soloists Audition.
His extensive performance career includes appearances as a soloist with prestigious orchestras such as the Orquesta Sinfónica Juvenil de la UACJ performing Joaquín Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, the Orquesta Filarmónica de Sonora (2021), and the El Paso Symphony Orchestra (2019), where he performed the Andaluz Concerto for Four Guitars and Orchestra by Rodrigo. He also collaborated with the Orquesta de Guitarra de Xalapa, performing Manuel M. Ponce’s Concierto del Sur and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Concerto No. 1 in D Major, Op. 99.
In addition to his solo career, Daniel is a founding member of the UK New Music Ensemble, led by Juan Trigos, and the binational ensemble Border Bones, which premiered new works for guitar and two trombones at the 2023 International Trombone Festival at the University of Utah. The ensemble as of recent has released their debut album, Between Borders, in February 2024. Daniel was also featured in the 30th International Gitarren Festival in Iserlohn, Germany, as part of the Festival Guitar Orchestra.
Daniel has studied with internationally renowned guitarists such as William Kanengiser, Eliot Fisk, Sharon Isbin, Alessio Nebiolo, and Marcin Dylla, among others. His artistry has been shaped by a diverse range of musical influences, and he currently performs with a guitar crafted by renowned Mexican luthier David Arnoldo Rubio.