Felipe Sosa (born April 11, 1945) is a Paraguayan musician, guitarist, composer and teacher, from

Caazapá Caazapá () is a city in Paraguay, founded in 1607, by Friar Luis de Bolaños. It is located in the Caazapá District and is the capital of the Caazapá Department. The name Caazapá comes from the Guarani words "Ka'aguy jehasapa" which means "a ...

, a city of the

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

with the same name in

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

. Throughout his career, Sosa recorded 21 albums, 2 of them with orchestras, and the rest as guitar solos. In Paraguay he is considered one of the main promotors of the music of Mangoré.

Childhood and youth

He spent his childhood and adolescence in his hometown. He completed elementary school in

. He later moved to

Asunción Asunción (, , , Guarani: Paraguay) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of ...

, the capital of

, to pursue his high school degree. He later started his musical studies in the Escuela Normal de Música (Normative School of Music). He graduated from there school, and obtaining his professor of guitar diploma with honors for his dedication.

Career

Since 1967, at the age of 22, he began studying abroad to perfect his skills. He traveled several times to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, where he contacted and studied with professor Isaías Sabio. From 1967 to 1969 he was in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

studying music with Professor

Regino Sainz de la Maza Regino Sainz de la Maza y Ruiz (7 September 1896 – 26 November 1981) was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer. Biography Sainz de la Maza was born in Burgos. At ten, he got his first guitar and started his musical studies with Santiago L ...

. In 1971 he traveled to

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

in order to study with Professor

Abel Carlevaro Abel Carlevaro (16 December 1916 – 17 July 2001) was a classical guitar composer and teacher born in Montevideo, Uruguay. He established a new school of instrumental technique, incorporating a fresh approach to seating and playing the guitar, ...

. In 1974 he was hired by the International Society of Guitar to go on a tour and participate in concerts in

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

and part of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 1976 he participated in the 2nd International Seminar of Guitar in

Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

, where he was awarded a gold medal. Also in 1976 he was chosen as Outstanding Young Person by the Junior Camera of Asunción. In 1983 Felipe traveled to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

where he participated in courses of Esthetics of Sound in the

Schola Cantorum The Schola Cantorum de Paris is a private conservatory in Paris. It was founded in 1894 by Charles Bordes, Alexandre Guilmant and Vincent d'Indy as a counterbalance to the Paris Conservatoire's emphasis on opera. History La Schola was founded i ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

with Professor

Alexandre Lagoya Alexandre Lagoya (29 June 1929 – 24 August 1999) was a French classical guitarist and composer. His early career included boxing and guitar, and as he cites on the sleeve of a 1981 Columbia album, his parents hoped he would outgrow his predilecti ...

. In 1988 the Brazilian government awarded him the Medal “Heitor Villalobos” for his work in the dissemination of the songs made by this Brazilian composer. The masters of the guitar

Cayo Sila Godoy Cayo Sila Godoy (4 December 1919 – 2 September 2014) was a classical guitarist from Paraguay. Youth Cayo Sila Godoy was born in Villarrica Paraguay on December 4, 1919. His mother and his uncles were talented musicians who exposed him ...

and Felipe Sosa, along with

Berta Rojas Berta Rojas (born 23 September 1966) is a Paraguayan classical guitarist that won two Latin Grammy Awards on 2022 in its 23rd edition with her latest album entitled "Legado", the first in the "Best Classical Music Album" category, becoming the f ...

and

Luz María Bobadilla Luz ( ''Lūz'') is the name of two places in the Bible. Mentioned in Genesis Luz is the ancient name of a royal Canaanite city, connected with Bethel (Genesis 28:19; 35:6). It is debated among scholarsRashi on 28:17 whether Luz and Bethel repres ...

represent three generations of the best Paraguayan guitar players. Today, Felipe Sosa continues to compose and work to broaden the culture. He began running the project “Promoción de la Guitarra Clásica Paraguaya a Nivel Local e International” (Local and International Promotion of the Paraguayan Classical Guitar), hoping to contribute to further development of the Paraguayan Classical Guitar by organizing events that generate interaction between the musician and the public. Recently, master Felipe Sosa released an album called “La Guitarra Universal de Felipe Sosa” (The Universal Guitar of Felipe Sosa), in which he performs themes from

Agustín Pío Barrios Agustín is a Spanish given name and sometimes a surname. It is related to Augustín. People with the name include: Given name * Agustín (footballer), Spanish footballer * Agustín Calleri (born 1976), Argentine tennis player * Agustín C� ...

and music from the universal guitar repertoire. The goal of the project is to hold an international guitar contest, called “Agustín Pío Barrios – Mangoré” in order to promote the study of the classical guitar. Sosa also composes music for the

Paraguayan harp The Paraguayan harp is the national instrument of Paraguay, and similar instruments are used elsewhere in South America, particularly Venezuela. It is a diatonic harp with 32, 36, 38 or 40, 42 or 46 strings, made from tropical wood, pine and c ...

Teacher of guitar players

Felipe Sosa has been accomplishing an unending labor as a teacher of classical guitar players in Paraguay. Among his most outstanding students are

, Diosnel Hernsdorf, and

Work

Felipe Sosa continues to promote the guitar. The master Felipe has released in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

his book ”La guitarra universal de Felipe Sosa” (The universal guitar of Felipe Sosa). This material was the number 17, who made his first recording at the age of 19 in the RCV Víctor of Buenos Aires. He has more records in

and in

. He recorded “La suite Mangoré” with two guitars and the orchestra of the master

Florentín Giménez Florentín Giménez (14 March 1925 – 11 March 2021) was a Paraguayan pianist and composer. Biography Giménez was born in Ybycuí, Paraguarí Department. In his teens, he learned to play the drums and became a member of the Orchestra of Popula ...

. This suite includes five Agustin Pío Barrios’ compositions. Sosa recorded also Ramón Noble’s “El concierto mexicano” (The Mexican concert) with Mexico Symphonic Orchestra. “La guitarra” (The guitar) is the name of one of Felipe Sosa's most recent records and is sample of his varied repertoire. The material includes the songs Quirino Báez Allende’s “Vals Florinda”, Ampelio Villalba's “La Polca Juana de Lara” and of his own composition, “Villa Alondra”. Felipe Sosa has a radio program that promotes guitar songs and their performers. With this program, Sosa tries to show that

is a place of reference for the guitar where young and new performers can have their music broadcast live.

Compositions

Among his most outstanding compositions are: * Suite paraguaya. * Sonata para la Paz. * Reminiscencia de Ytú. * Villa alondra. * El cuarteto de guitarras. * El amanecer He has also arranged pieces of Paraguayan folklore to music sheets for classical guitar.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sosa, Felipe Living people Paraguayan guitarists Paraguayan composers Male composers Schola Cantorum de Paris alumni 1945 births