Guanajuato Music: Trejo and Barajas Go for Baroque at the Gene Byron

In front of an intent spectator, the duo gets ready for the encore

Early this week, I was sitting on the terrace of my first floor apartment on a quiet side street in Pastita when I heard beautiful flute and cello playing. Must be a CD, I thought, although I had often heard my neighbor Luis Barajas practicing his cello. Two days later, when I saw Luis in the street, I mentioned hearing the music. He laughed and told me he and Cuautemoc Trejo, the first flautist of the UG Symphony Orchestra (OSUG), had been preparing for their concert at the Gene Byron on Sunday.

The two played works by Telemann, Bach, Handel and the 18th Century French flautist and composer, Michel Blavet. Born 20 years later than Telemann, Blavet played in the quartet that premiered Telemann's Paris Quartets for flute, violin, viola de gamba and cello in the City of Light. He was the preeminent French flautist of his day but, most of the music he composed for the instrument has not survived as only the easiest pieces were published for his students to perform.

The small but appreciative audience kept clapping for an encore and were rewarded with one movement by Bach. Not for the first time, a Guanajuato audience had the chance to expand its listening repertoire with an old-but-new work.

Guanajuato Art: Bats & Other Strange Animals

Just one of the exhibit's fantastic animals

The artist Vanessa Salas and poet Lirio Garduno combined forces for this exhibit. I went to the little gallery under the Compania church two days before it was taken down.Because the gallery was dark, my photo doesn't do justice to the work.

'Alas de paraguas . . ."

I don't know which came first, the witty poems or the prints, but it doesn't matter.I hope to see a book of this high-quality scary combination of wordplay and the printmaker's craft.                                                                                                .

Guanajuato-born Artist Feted for her First Book

The Museo Dieguino proved to be a perfect place to honor Isaura Izquierdo's first illustrated book, Manisa y las alas magicas / Manisa and the Magic Wings. 

Among my favorites

Isaura's collage illustrations were on view in the galleries at each end of the museum, with many Guanajuatenses joining Isaura and Martha Romero, the author, in the  large interior space, including her proud artist mother Loreta. Her equally proud father, the artist Raul Izquierdo, besides being up-to-date by congratulating  her on Facebook, was on hand for the presentation of the book a few days later   

Serious business for the illustrator, a pleasure for her audience

"A good beginning"

The book illustrations showed Isaura's imaginative perspectives as well as her patient dexterity in shaping the wings from doilies. After finishing at the University of Guanajuato, Isaura studied illustration at the San Carlos Museum in Mexico City.