Rosie's House Día de los Muertos Concert Celebrates Beloved Mexican Composers

Mariachi Champaña Nevín, Rosie’s House: A Music Academy for Children and the Phoenix Boys Choir celebrate Día de los Muertos with a heartwarming concert on Sunday, November 3, 2013 at 3:30 p.m. at the Herberger Theater Center (222 E. Monroe St.) in downtown Phoenix. Ticket prices are from $20 – $35 and will be available for purchase Aug. 28 at herbergertheater.org.

 Experience one of the world’s most colorful and magical celebrations, Día de los Muertos. This “Day of the Dead” concert honors the music of Mexico’s most beloved singers and composers with mariachi and classical performances. Trumpet virtuoso Jeff Nevin and Mariachi Champaña Nevín will be joined onstage by Mónica Ábrego, the stunningly talented opera and ranchera singer; José Luis Duval, direct from Mexico City by way of the Met in New York; and Rafael Palomar, one of the most famous mariachi musicians in the world.  

 Mariachi Champaña Nevín performs this annual concert in San Diego and other California cities. Presenting this concert in Arizona has been made possible by a collaborative grant from CALA Alliance to Rosie’s House and the Phoenix Boys Choir. Celebración Artística de las Américas (CALA) presents a bi-annual arts and cultural festival that encourages cultural understanding between people of the Americas. This year’s festive takes place Oct. 6 – Nov. 5, 2013 and features programming and performances throughout the valley.

 Ticket sales from the Día de los Muertos concert benefits the Phoenix Boys Choir musical education program and the Rosie’s House Mariachi Training Program.  In addition, students from each organization will be featured in a stunning and spiritually uplifting finale and in highlighted selections throughout the concert.  Rosie’s House and the Phoenix Boys Choir are local youth non-profit performing arts organizations. Together, they impact and uplift the lives of over 500 valley youth each year with the power of music education.   

 “Rosie’s House provides high-quality musical training for students from low-income families. With the grant support of Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, we launched a Mariachi Training Program in 2012. We are delighted to have the support of Mariachi Champaña Nevín, CALA Alliance and our friends in the community to present this special benefit concert” said Rosie’s House Executive Director Becky Bell. “Co-presenting this concert with the Phoenix Boys Choir is thrilling and our goal is to raise funds so both organizations can continue to expand and serve Valley youth with the uplifting gift of music education.”  

 About Rosie’s House

Rosie’s House: A Music Academy for Children was founded in 1996 to give children from low-income families the chance to experience music in their lives. The academy provides free music instruction and loaned instruments to underserved Phoenix students; and is one of the largest tuition-free accredited music programs in the country by serving 360 students annually. Through music, Rosie’s House inspires social change and helps students develop a commitment to personal and academic achievement. For more information about the non-profit organization, visit www.rosieshouse.org.       

 About The Phoenix Boys Choir

Founded in 1947, the Phoenix Boys Choir has programs featuring training in voice, music theory, and performance for boys age 7 to 14. The Phoenix Boys Choir tours nationally and internationally, records CDs and sings with other professional groups.  They have performed for four United States Presidents, and even won a Grammy Award.  Through educating boys in the art of singing and performing the finest music in the boy choir tradition, the Phoenix Boys Choir develops character, discipline, leadership, global awareness, and a strong commitment to excellence, thereby contributing to the greater Phoenix musical life and enhancing Arizona’s cultural reputation nationally and internationally. For more information, visit www.phoenixboyschoir.com or call (602) 264-5328.

 About Mariachi Champaña Nevín

Mariachi Champaña Nevín is a virtuoso ensemble of uncompromising quality with a multicultural aesthetic unique in the world of music. Led by accomplished classical and mariachi trumpeter, composer, professor and author Jeff Nevin, Ph.D., this ensemble’s performances, recordings and workshops have thrilled and inspired mariachi and Classical-music enthusiasts alike. The only mariachi in the world of its kind, Symphonic Mariachi Champaña Nevín boasts current or former members of mariachis Vargas de Tecalitlan, Sol de Mexico, Los Camperos and others along with current or former principal strings and trumpets from orchestras such as the San Diego Symphony, Orquesta Filharmonica de la Ciudad de Mexico, Orquesta de Baja California, New Mexico Symphony, and many others.

Jeff Nevin and Mariachi Champaña Nevín have appeared on television in at least 7 countries, their recordings are programmed on the DMX Satellite Radio network that reaches 80 million daily listeners, and they have become frequent guests of KPBS radio and television in San Diego, both performing live in studio and conducting on-air interviews.

About CALA Alliance

CALA Alliance is an Arizona community-based organization dedicated to educating and inspiring everyone about the richness of our Latino cultural heritage. Through festivals, performances, exhibits, in-school activities, food, and events, we all share in the joy and beauty of the cultural life of the Americas. Anchored by a bi-annual arts and cultural festival, Celebración Artística de las Américas (CALA), creates shared arts experiences that encourage cultural understanding between people of the Americas.