Alvaro Garcia

Alvaro Garcia, native of Spain, began his studies in conducting with Delta David Gier in Brooklyn, New York, and at Yale University with Professors Shinik Ham and Lawrence Leighton Smith. He studied with renowned conducting professor, Gustav Meier. Garcia earned two Master of Music degrees from Yale University in viola and orchestral conducting in 1991 and 2001. Mr. Garcia conducted at the VI Music Festival des Artes "Eleazar Carvalho" en Itu, Sao Paulo and the OK International Mozart Festival in Oklahoma. He has held positions as Assistant Conductor for the Yale Symphony Orchestra, the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra in Connecticut, and as a cover conductor for the Greater Bridgeport Symphony Orchestra. In addition, Mr. Garcia served as guest conductor on several occasions in the "New Music New Haven" series at Yale University School of Music, where he premiered works by Alvin Singleton, Caroline Mallonee, John Kaefer, Gerardo Perez Giusti and Spencer Lambright. He has also collaborated with conductors Ranson Wilson, Jesse Levine, Dante Anzolini, Lawrence Leighton Smith, Gustav Meier and Shinik Hahm.

Mr. Garcia has conducted the Yale Philharmonia, Solisti New York Orchestra, Norwalk Symphony, Racine Symphony, Daejeon Philharmonic (South Korea), and Festival des Artes Orchestra (Brazil). In addition to his conducting, he also performs viola in solo recitals and in chamber groups. As an international musician, Mr. Garcia has performed in Spain, Italy, England, Portugal, South Korea, Brazil, and throughout the United States of America.

The Kenosha and Racine, Wisconsin, communities have actively involved Mr. Garcia as a music educator. He worked as a clinician and educator at the middle, high and college level, and has conducted the Kenosha Unified Orchestra Festival and the Racine Unified Orchestra Festival.

At the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, Mr. Garcia conducted the opera productions of Bastien and Bastienne, Il Impresario, Belle and the Magic Flute and the musical productions of HONK!, My Fair Lady and Cabaret.

Alvaro Garcia is an Associate Professor of Music at UW-Parkside and Director of Orchestral Studies. He is the Music Director of the UW-Parkside Symphony and the UW-Parkside Community Orchestra. Alvaro and his wife Maribel live in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where they enjoy cooking their recipes from Spain.