The University of Wyoming (UW) Symphony Orchestra’s opening night on Thursday, Oct. 9, will feature a Brazilian classical guitarist.
Eduardo Meirinhos is a professor at the Escola de Música e Artes Cênicas at the Universidade Federal de Goias, Brazil where he teaches guitar, guitar literature and chamber music. He’s an expert on the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Meirinhos met UW Symphony Orchestra Director Michael Griffith when Griffith was guest conducting in Brazil.
“ I remember we talked about Villa-Lobos” said Meirinhos. “I worked all my master's degree and doctoral degree working with the music of Villa-Lobos. That was when Michael told me, ‘Okay, you should get together sometime in Wyoming to play the Villa-Lobos concerto.”
Griffith said he wanted Wyomingites to experience classical guitar.
“Many people in our audience might think that the guitar is a rock and roll instrument, and actually it goes back hundreds and hundreds of years as a classical instrument. Writing for a guitar with orchestra in a perfect classical setting is not all that unusual,” said Griffith.
Meirinhos said Villa-Lobos' guitar concerto was the last piece the composer wrote. It was written for the Spanish guitarist, Andrés Segovia.
“In a concerto, it's a soloist playing with the orchestra, doing the accompaniment, but then there often comes a point where the orchestra completely stops and they can just listen and the soloist keeps playing,” explained Griffith.
Meirinhos will play Villa-Lobos’ guitar concerto on Oct. 9 for the symphony’s opening night. The orchestra will play three other works the same night.
Meirinhos will also play Prelúdios de Villa Lobos on Sunday afternoon.
The symphony will play six other concerts for the 2025-26 season.
Head over to UW Symphony Orchestra for more information on these concerts.
