We wish to offer a well-earned tribute to the extraordinary career and legacy of the great teacher, musician, composer and pianist, José Antonio Abreu, who passed last Saturday in Caracas, Venezuela. Maestro Abreu, who was the recipient of the 2009 Latin Recording Academy Trustees Award, created the innovative El Sistema method of musical education, which has reached more than two million young Venezuelan musicians, whom he brought to music with the aim of improving society and intellectual life through the Venezuelan Youth Symphony Orchestra. A musical and cultural icon for Latin America, Abreu was awarded countless other prizes and awards in countries including the United States, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Italy and Spain, among others. Maestro Abreu’s legacy will live on in the hearts of all the young people he inspired, and it will echo across future generations who are committed to keeping his teachings alive.
Gabriel Abaroa Jr.
President/CEO
The Latin Recording Academy
