This summer, Throckmorton Theatre introduces its newest concert series, Twilight Concerts, featuring acclaimed local and national musicians. The Thursday night summer concert series will replace the Throckmorton’s popular Wednesday Noon Concerts for the month of July. Performances are free to the public and will take place in the theatre’s intimate Tivoli room.
Twilight Concert with Anthony Blea Afro Cuban Quartet
July 19, 2018 at 6:30pm
Musician Bios
The Anthony Blea Afro Cuban Quartet is comprised of four outstanding, world-class Latin musicians from Havana, Santiago de Cuba, and San Francisco’s Mission District. Featuring Anthony Blea, violin; Saúl Sierra-Alonso, bass; Marco Diaz, piano; and Julio Pérez, percussion.
Anthony Blea
Anthony Blea, master violinist, is a veteran performer, composer, and instructor, whose performances have graced the stages, and enriched the musical community of the San Francisco Bay Area for over four decades. Awarded a full scholarship to attend the San Francisco Conservatory of Music at age 11, He would later travel to New York, and study at the Manhattan School of Music where he received his Bachelor’s degree, and return to the Bay Area, to receive his Master’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
His work in classical and modern music with hallmark musical institutions like The San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and the Bay Chamber Symphony, is made all the more exceptional when viewed alongside his Incredible body of work in the field of Afro Cuban Music, where he has established himself as one of a handful of players in the world, who have actually mastered the subtle and beautiful genre of Charanga music, an amalgam of both European classical music and African rhythms.
Performances with iconic artists like Israel “Cachao” Lopez, Ray Charles, Boz Scaggs and Leonard Bernstein, have garnered him the attention of the press and music lovers alike and earned him a well deserved reputation as the bay area’s best multi-talented violinist
Having spent more than 30 years perfecting his teaching technique in instruction, solo mentoring, and group/solo clinics, Anthony is an involved and caring teacher, instilling in his students not only a love of established musical forms, but also encouraging experimentation, and their own unique voices, on an instrument that requires the highest level of discipline, and instruction. Most of all, Anthony is know for his good humor, warmth, and lifelong love of the instrument that has shaped and defined his life.
The Violin. Instrument of joy.
Marco Diaz
Marco Diaz was born and raised in San Francisco and was introduced to the trumpet in the fourth grade. His formal training in both piano and trumpet began at the age of 14. He earned a scholarship from the Community Music Center in San Francisco, and began playing professionally at the age of 17 throughout the Bay Area with various Latin Jazz, Salsa, Reggae, and R&B bands. Upon graduating from high school, he continued his studies at San Francisco State University pursing a Bachelors of Arts in Popular Music and a minor in Economics.
In addition to his studies, Marco has been influenced by Afro-Cuban music through world renowned musicians, such as, Jesus Diaz, who he played and recorded with for eight years, John Santos, Orestes Vilato, Edgardo Cambon, and Carlos Caro.
Today, Marco is part of the faculty at the Community Music Center in San Francisco. He is an accomplished recording musician who has shared the stage with Grammy Award winning artist, Israel “Cachao” Lopez, Nelson Gonzales, Jimmy Bosch, Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, Ska Cubano (Europe), Tito Rojas, Nino Segarra, Anthony Cruz, Anthony Blea, Jovino Santos Neto, Joe Santiago, and is an integral member of the John Santos sextet, Bobi Cespedes group, and Doug Beavers’ Orquesta Rovida. Marco has participated in the San Francisco Symphony AIM program since 2000 and currently produces records and performs music throughout the country while also co-leading Vission Latina, an Afro-Caribbean dance band.
Saúl Sierra-Alonso
Born and raised in Mexico City, Saul started playing professionally in 1990. In 1995 he graduated from the Berklee College of Music with a major in Performance. Saúl has performed, toured or recorded with Nestor Torres, Jimmy Bosh, Eddie Montalvo, Johny Rodríguez, Orestes Vilató, Bobi Céspedes, Antonio Sánchez, Miles Peña, John Santos, Jesús Díaz, Rebeca Mauleón, Mark Levine and Jackeline Rago to name a few.
For the past 10 years Saúl has been a member of some of the leading bands in the Bay Area, including The John Santos Quintet/Sextet, Bobi Cespedes’ band, Dr. Loco’s Rocking Jalapeño Band, El Tren Trío, and Anthony Blea y su Charanga, among others.
A founding member of Vission Latina, the band that he co-leads with Carlos Caro, percussionist extraordinaire, and Marco Díaz, virtuoso multi-instrumentalist (piano/trumpet ), Saúl keeps himself busy performing, composing, arranging and teaching in the world class musical community of the San Francisco Bay Area.
