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Guitar Virtuoso Berta Rojas in concert
with a Prelude performance by Lukas Lin
DIRECTIONS: St. Francis Episcopal Church, 1205 Pine Ave., San Jose
With the 2025 release of The Journey of the Strings, an ambitious multimedia exploration of the guitar's rich history in the Americas, Latin Grammy winner Berta Rojas reaffirms her status as not only one of today's foremost classical guitarists but also an influential force in the music world.
Hailed as a “guitarist extraordinaire” by The Washington Post, she is a global ambassador for the classical guitar, seeking to stretch boundaries and bridge cultural divides. In The Journey of the Strings, a soul-touching tale of musical transformation presented across multiple formats—vinyl, streaming, videos, app and augmented reality book—Berta continues that mission.
She earned a Latin Grammy in 2022 for her album Legado, and one of the pieces she performed on the recording—Anido's Portrait—won its composer Sergio Assad the award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
Berta has received three other Latin Grammy nominations as well: Best Tango Album for History of Tango (2015), recorded with the Camerata Bariloche; Best Classical Album for Salsa Roja (2014); and Best Instrumental Album for Día y Medio (A Day and a Half), a collaboration with clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera (2012). In 2025, she was appointed to the Latin Recording Academy's prestigious Board of Directors.
Berta's electrifying technique, warmth and musical artistry have won audiences' hearts worldwide, including at such major venues as the 92nd Street Y, Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, Lincoln Center's Frederick P. Rose Hall of Jazz in New York; the South Bank Centre and Shakespeare's Globe as a guest of the grand master John Williams in London; the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; and Flagey Studio 4 in Brussels, performing with the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra for Belgian National Television.
In 2011, Berta with D’Rivera initiated the four-year tour “In the Footsteps of Mangoré," following the travels of Paraguay's Agustín Barrios, pioneer of the classical guitar in the Americas. The duo performed in 20 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, concluding at the National Theater of San Salvador, the final resting place of the celebrated composer.
Wherever she performs, Berta transports listeners, taking them on a colorful voyage of sound, often embracing new works by composers in diverse genres.
In addition to continually expanding her own artistic career with frequent international concert tours and master classes, Berta is passionately committed to encouraging and furthering the study and playing of the classical guitar. A particular focus is on promoting the music of her country Paraguay as well as Latin American music more widely. Providing ongoing support for the careers of young upcoming guitarists is an area dear to her heart, with projects in formats such as the Barrios WorldWideWeb Competition, the Ensemble Pu Rory (in the Guaraní language, Festive Sounds), Instrumentoteca and Jeporeka, among others.
After initial studies in Paraguay under masters Felipe Sosa and Violeta de Mestral, Berta continued her musical education in Uruguay as a student of Abel Carlevaro, Eduardo Fernández and Mario Payseé. She went on to earn a master's in music at the Peabody Institute under Manuel Barrueco, Ray Chester, and Julian Gray. In 2017, Berta joined the faculty of Berklee College of Music as an Associate Professor, sharing her knowledge and love of music with a select group of young guitarists from around the world.
She was named a Fellow of the Americas of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for her artistic excellence, and honored by her country with the title, Illustrious Ambassador of Musical Arts, granted by the Senate. In 2015, the Chamber of Deputies awarded her the National Order of Merit of the Comuneros, and the Cabildo of the capital, Asunción, the title of Master of the Arts. The Autonomous University of Encarnación granted her an Honorary Doctorate in 2016, as did the Universidad Americana. The Foreign Ministry of Paraguay gave her the National Order of Merit Don José Falcón in 2017 in acknowledgement for her outstanding contribution to culture. The Carlos Colombino Award bestowed by the National Secretariat of Culture followed suit. In 2019, the National University of Asunción also granted her an Honorary Doctorate. In 2022, Berta received the Golden Guitar Award: A Life Dedicated to the Guitar, bestowed by the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory of Milan. More recently in 2023, she was awarded the National Order of Merit in the Grade of “Grand Cross," the highest degree of recognition granted by Paraguay.
Prelude performer Lukas Lin, student of Yuri Liberzon
