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Since 1990, the Texas Music Festival has brought outstanding young, pre-professional musicians together to learn and perform here in Houston. Participants work intensively in orchestras, study privately with experienced faculty, and foster their skills as chamber musicians. One unique feature of the festival is the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Young Artists Competition, in which participants audition to secure a solo performance with the Festival Orchestra. We caught up with this year's winner, clarinetist Juan Esteban Martinez. Hailing from the Dominican Republic, Juan shares how his family shaped his career as a clarinetist, describes his experience at TMF as "inspiring," and finally, graciously performs Donizetti's Studio Primo.
For more information on the Texas Music Festival, please visit www.tmf.uh.edu. You can hear Juan Esteban Martinez live with the Festival Orchestra under the direction of Mei-Ann Chen this Friday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands at 8 p.m. and also at the Moores Opera House on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.