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What drew you to the arts and humanities as your life’s work?
I’ve always had a natural inclination for music. Even as a very young child, my mother tells me I would make up songs with both melodies and lyrics. That early connection to music led me to sing as a soloist in a children’s choir from 1985 to 1987, the Coro de niños de la Universidad para la Paz.
When I became a teenager, I fell in love with the guitar. This was the late 1980s, a time when the guitar—especially the electric guitar—was one of the most prominent instruments in popular culture. It completely captivated me, and soon I was taking weekly lessons, learning chords and strumming patterns, and spending every free moment with the instrument. By my senior year in high school, I knew that guitar music was my one and only path forward.
I went on to study classical guitar at the University of Costa Rica as an undergraduate and later earned my master’s and doctorate at the Jacobs School of Music.
How does your creative or scholarly practice connect with the world beyond the university?
I’ve always believed in giving back to the community. That’s where I find the most passionate and sincere audiences. As a musician, connecting with people through performance is the most essential part of my work. The stage has always felt like home to me. I perform concerts regionally, nationally, and internationally, and those experiences allow me to both represent our university and connect with audiences around the world through music.
What’s a project, performance, or piece of writing you’re especially excited about right now?
I recently formed a guitar quartet with three other guitar professors from Illinois. We call it MAGIQ—a combination of our initials plus the Q for “quartet.” We’ve been performing widely and even premiered a concerto for guitar quartet and orchestra last year. MAGIQ also performs one of my own compositions, Passages, which was published by Guitar Chamber Music Press after being commissioned by the 27th Mid America Guitar Ensemble Festival. It’s become one of the audience’s favorites and a piece that’s especially close to my heart.
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Who or what has been a surprising influence or inspiration in your work?
Heavy metal! It was the main reason that I became interested in the guitar. As a teenager in the late 1980s, I was drawn to the guitar work of the bands I listened to—what we now call “shredding.” That technical intensity inspired my obsession with mastering the instrument. Beyond metal, flamenco and flamenco-related genres have also been major influences. For me, transitioning from the dazzling energy of metal to the elegance and fire of the nylon strings felt like a natural evolution.
What do you hope students (or audiences) experience or take away from your work?
I hope they come away with a sense of passion and discipline. Talent alone will never take you far without those two elements. I always tell my students that to perform at 100% on stage, you need to practice at 120% at home.
What role do you think the arts and humanities play in shaping community and culture today?
I believe that without them, our world would collapse. Just imagine a single day without music—no songs when you walk or run, no background music in videos or movies, no ads, no one singing, humming, or whistling. It would feel wrong because it’s impossible. Music, and the arts more broadly, are woven into every aspect of daily life. They help us express, connect, focus, feel, and understand. Without the arts and humanities, there is no community or culture.
Anything else you’d like to add or emphasize?
I feel truly privileged to be part of the vibrant artistic community in Urbana-Champaign and within the College of Fine and Applied Arts, especially in the School of Music. It’s deeply humbling and continually inspires me to keep pushing my creative boundaries and exploring what’s possible.
