Edwardsville, Ill. -- The Carpe Diem String Quartet, whose recent CD was selected for the 2009 Grammy Award Entry List, and internationally acclaimed bandoneón and concert accordionist Peter Soave will perform the music of the late Aldemaro Romero at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 30, as part of the Arts & Issues series at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

“Aldemaro Romero Sr. was an international recording star with RCA Victor and one of the foremost Latin music orchestra leaders in the world,” said Grant Andree, coordinator of the Arts & Issues series. “We are proud to have his son here to introduce the Arts & Issues audience to the important legacy his father left to the international world of music.”

The composer’s son, Aldemaro Romero Jr., is dean of SIUE’s College of Arts and Sciences and will be conducting during the Jan. 30 concert on stage at the theater in SIUE’s Dunham Hall.

“And, we’re pleased that the fine musicians of the Carpe Diem Quintet and Peter Soave himself will grace our stage to help Dean Romero in this important musical presentation,” Andree said. “This should be an entertaining as well as enlightening evening for our audience.”

The elder Romero’s reputation as a fine arranger-conductor led him to collaborate with popular orchestras and singers such as Dean Martin, big band bandleader Stan Kenton and popular Latin percussionist Tito Puente. Romero was credited with creating a new form of Venezuelan music, known as Onda Nueva (New Wave) that was influenced by Brazilian Bossa Nova rhythms.

He also composed Five Paleontological Mysteries for accordion and string quartet that will be performed that evening by Carpe Diem and Soave, and will be conducted by the composer’s son. The piece, by the way, was dedicated to Soave and named in honor of Dean Romero, who, in his work as a research biologist, discovered the five new fossils.

Carpe Diem, in residence at Ohio Wesleyan University, is a musical group that has captured the imagination of audiences around the world, earning critical acclaim with its electrifying performances. Committed to revitalizing the chamber music concert experience, Carpe Diem is using innovative programming, thematic concerts and popular music for younger generations, cameras and video to assist in the visual presentation, as well as speaking from the stage to better engage the audience.
The quartet continues its project of recording the nine string quartets of Sergey Taneyev on the Naxos label, selected for the aforementioned 51st Grammy Awards Entry List this past year in four categories—best classical album, best chamber music performance, best new artist, and best engineered album–classical.

The hallmark of Peter Soave’s performances is the excitement he generates on stage with his execution and sensitivity of touch while playing the bandoneón or the accordian. A native of Detroit, Soave was a young phenomenon on the international competition circuit by the age of 16. He is the only player to win a gold medal in all four major world championship accordion competitions.

Deeply inspired by the Argentinean composer Astor Piazolla, Soave began including the characteristic bandoneón (also known as the tango accordion) in his performances as well, and now regularly performs on both instruments. He has recorded several CDs, both as a solo artist and with orchestra. He received the 2001 Detroit Music Award for best classical recording and in 2003 the Detroit Music Award for best classical instrumentation.

Tickets for Carpe Diem Quartet and Peter Soave are $27; SIUE students, $13; SIUE employees and retirees, as well as all senior citizens, $25. Ticket information, subscription rates and ticket sales are available on the Web site: artsandissues.com, or by calling (618) 650-5774.

EDITORS: Most of the 2009-10 Arts & Issues photos suitable for print are available at http://www.siue.edu/artsandissues/PhotoIndex.shtml

The next Arts and Issues series appearance will be:
Steve Squyres—“Roving Mars: Spirit, Opportunity and the Exploration of the Red Planet”
Wednesday, February 17, 7:30 p.m., Meridian Ballroom
Sponsored by the Shaw Memorial Fund

“Spirit and Opportunity” have always been prominent in the life of Steve Squyres, best known as the face and voice of NASA’s mission to Mars including the pioneering and spectacular drive across the Red Planet’s surface by two high-tech robotic rovers. He will detail to the Arts & Issues audience how he turned what seemed like an improbable dream into a successful $800 million reality.

Each year, under the guidance of the SIUE College of Arts and Sciences, the Arts & Issues series brings some of the best and brightest performers and speakers from around the world to Southwestern Illinois audiences for entertaining and thought-provoking presentations on the SIUE campus.

The SIUE College of Arts and Sciences combines foundational education with diverse and highly-specialized coursework. Faculty help students explore diversity of ideas, experiences and people while learning to think and live as fulfilled, productive members of a global society. The College offers degree programs in the arts, humanities and social and natural sciences.

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is a nationally recognized public university offering a broad choice of degrees and programs ranging from career-oriented fields of study to the essential, more traditional, liberal arts. At SIUE we offer 44 baccalaureate degrees, 13 post-baccalaureate certificates, 47 master's degrees, 11 post- master's certificates, two first-professional degrees, and one post-first professional certificate. Known for an emphasis in health science education, SIUE offers a nursing school, pharmacy school and dental school. Additionally undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificates are available in engineering programs, business programs, elementary education programs and secondary education programs.

SIUE offers the advantages of a small, liberal arts college with the low tuition rates of a state university. Our emphasis on undergraduate education, complemented by faculty research, creates practical applications for student learning. Located in the second most populated area of the state, this Illinois university draws students from all 102 Illinois counties, 42 states and 50 nations.

One of 12 Illinois colleges and universities, SIUE is located on 2,600 acres of rolling hills and woodlands in Edwardsville, just 25 miles from St. Louis, a major metropolitan area. Proximity to the St. Louis area enhances SIUE’s energy and vitality. The campus is easily accessed from several major interstates, while the city of Edwardsville offers ample opportunity for jobs, entertainment, shopping and fun.