By Kyle Beard
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More than 50 members of the Valencia community gathered at the East Campus Performing Arts Center for a chance to hear their mentors perform on Thursday, Feb. 12.

The faculty recital is an annual event that gives students and members of the Orlando community a chance to get into the music and hear the work of their professors and colleagues.

“Our musical faculty is training the next generation of professional musicians,” said the event organizer and interim dean for Arts and Entertainment Wendy Givoglu. “It’s a really good opportunity for Valencia students and the community to be able to hear the talent of their professors.”

The event showcased five performances consisting of guitar, piano and vocal pieces. Two of the pieces — performed by pianists Omar Surillo and Antonio Brett — were original compositions.

The theme was largely Latin American and Hispanic music, but ranged everywhere from pieces written by Robert Schumann to Andrew Lloyd Webber.

“There’s a lot of hispanic culture in the area and the students love it,” said Brett, a native of Cuba, who performed two original pieces titled ‘Sonatina for Intermediate level based on Latin Rhythm’ and ‘Guajira in G minor.’

“I grew up around this type of music,” said Daniel Chacon, a student here at Valencia, “the theme is very familiar.”

The recital was a portion of the ongoing United Arts of Central Florida Arts Festival and the Valencia Arts and Entertainment Festival.

“I grew up appreciating music and this is really helping to broaden my horizons,” said Andrea Justice, “I’ll definitely be attending more after this.”

The United Arts of Central Florida ArtsFest boasts more than 75 events throughout ake, Osceola, Orange, and Seminole Counties, including a Valencia presentation of William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.”

ArtsFest is designed to create awareness of and drive participation from Central Florida residents and visitors to the wide variety of cultural opportunities available in the area. The even also serves as the kickoff to United Arts’ annual fundraising campaign. More information is avalailable at www. unitedarts.cc.

“The Tempest” opens up its doors for 10 performances from Feb. 18 through March 1 at the East Campus’ Black Box Theatre. Specific dates and times are in the 2009 Valencia events calender.