Quinteto Latino
Quinteto Latino is a San Francisco Bay Area based classical wind ensemble with a mission to disrupt racial and economic disparities within the classical music field by championing past, present, and future contributions by Latino composers and musicians.
In addition to the quintet’s performance, Quinteto Latino mentors Latino musicians in their biennial Seminario and partners with local schools to bring culturally competent musical education to students of all ages.
"[Quinteto Latino] succeeded in offering a concert to be understood on its own terms, where the judgements of identity fall away, leaving audiences to relish in the music itself."
- Julia Kuhlman, American Composers Forum; I Care if you Listen
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About Quinteto Latino
Quinteto Latino is a San Francisco Bay Area classical wind quintet melding the vibrant colors and vigorous rhythms of Latin American music with the sumptuous voices of the wind quintet. Founded in 2004, the ensemble is devoted to expanding the boundaries of classical music through performance and advocacy of work exclusively created by Latinx composers. Their commissioning, mentoring, and educational initiatives are focused on accessibility & relevancy of BIPOC classical music in pursuit of inspiring audiences across cultural, class, and ethnic lines.
Commissioning new work by Latinx artists is integral to Quinteto Latino's effort in diversifying the wind quintet repertoire. Their 2020/21 season featured online premieres of Mitos: Suite Dramatica para Quinteto de Vientos (y actores) by Gabriela Lena Frank, (Creative Work Fund) and C U Z A – four nocturnes for wind quintet by Felipe Nieto-Sáchicaan (American Composers Forum). Previously commissioned composers include Guillermo Galindo, Chris Pratorius Gómez, José-Luis Hurtado, and Paul Desenne.
The quintet’s members have trained in the nation’s top conservatories and are committed assembly and teaching artists, having worked with students of all ages and abilities in both English and Spanish. Starting in 2018, the quintet launched their annual Quinteto Latino Seminario, convening a cohort of BIPOC classical artists from around the U.S. for rehearsals, workshops, facilitated discussions, and public performances. On tour, the group has been in residence at Chamber Music at Napa Valley, San Rafael’s Enriching Lives through Music Program (Chamber Music America), and Spanish language immersion residency at San Jose’s River Glen, among others. Their 2013 Festival of Latin American Chamber Music brought concerts and community events in four Bay Area cities with participation of over 100 students and 17 professional chamber musicians, composers and musicologists.
Their debut CD, 100 Years of Mexican Music for Wind Quintet, was released by Con Brio Recordings in 2011 and is regarded as “...an important disc for lovers of contemporary Latin American music to have in their collections...allowing [Quinteto Latino to] demonstrate their consummate virtuosity." (Maria Nockin, Fanfare)
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