Luca Romanelli began studying classical guitar at the age of eleven, immediately gaining artistic recognition by winning the Città di San Severino Marche National Competition for two years in 2004 and 2005. He attended the Conservatorio G.B. Pergolesi in Fermo and graduated in 2015 from the Conservatorio G. Rossini in Pesaro under the guidance of Maestro Pietro Antinori with top honors, cum laude and honorable mention. After graduation he continued his studies in Germany at the Musikhochschule Münster, obtaining the Zertifikatsstudienjahr in 2017.

He has attended numerous masterclasses and master classes taught by such guitar masters as Marcin Dylla, Arturo Tallini, Reinbert Evers, Claudio Marcotulli, Marco Tamayo, Roman Viazovskiy, Tilman Hoppstock, Rafael Aguirre, Alvaro Pierri and others. He has won numerous guitar music competitions, such as First Prize in the following International competitions: “ A. Segovia” in Pescara 2024, “ Berlin International Guitar Competition 2022”, “Int. Dimitris Fampas Competition” in Athens 2022, “Tblisi Guitar Competition” 2021, “ Tremolo Guitar Competition “ in Skopje 2021, “VI Int. Angel G. Pinero Competition “ 2019.

He collaborates with many contemporary composers such as Angel G Piñero, Kacha Metreveli Dang Ngoc Long, Redi Marku, for the dissemination of their work. He carries out ‘intense concert activity in Italy, Greece, Germany, Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic, North Macedonia and Spain as a soloist, guitar ensemble member, string quintet member and orchestral soloist. He made his debut in 2022 at the prestigious Teatro Real in Madrid as soloist, member of chamber ensembles and with the Orquestra Clàsica Santa Cecilia of Madrid in a tribute concert to Maestro Piñero.

He recorded a Cd with the Da Vinci Publishig label in 2019 “ In Praise: Guitar Works” dedicated entirely to the guitar music of Cuban Maestro Leo Brouwer, on the occasion of his 80th birthday, He was recently awarded by the prestigious Accademia Organistica Elpidiense with the 2023 “Youth in Music” award as the best musician of the year.

He is currently a guitar teacher at the Ic Falcone e Borsellino in Offida. He is taking Master Classes taught by Maestro Paolo Pegoraro at the Segovia Academy in Pordenone and attending the Biennium of Chamber Music at the G.B. Pergolesi Conservatory in Fermo. He plays a guitar by luthier Giochino Giussani and a Cathedral Manuel Adalid from 2023.

Mercedes Barroso Chaves is a highly talented guitarist whose passion for the guitar and her musical approach have led her to stand out on various stages. Throughout her career, she has had the opportunity to study with renowned guitar masters such as Anders Clemens, Alex Garrobé, Pedro Mateo, Marco Smaili, Judicaël Perroy, Jesús Pineda, Pablo Menéndez, Ricardo Gallén, Kevin Loh, Laura Verdugo, and Lazhar Cherouana, which has enriched her
style and allowed her to develop a deep musical sensitivity.

Born in Seville in 2007, Mercedes Barroso Chaves began her guitar training at the Conservatorio Elemental de Música América Martínez, under the guidance of Isabel Martínez Mata. She is currently finishing her studies at the Conservatorio Profesional de Música Francisco Guerrero, where she is in her sixth year with Alberto Plaza Fernández.

Regarding her competitive career, she has been recognized in several prestigious competitions. Notably, she won Category A of the José Antonio Peñalosa Competition and reached the semifinals of the International Competition in Madrid. She also earned third place in the Cadet Category B of the “Ángel Iglesias” International Guitar Competition. Her interpretative skill earned her the First Prize at the XIII José Luis Lopategui Musical Interpretation Competition, along with the Cofiner Award for the best performance of the compulsory piece, which allowed her the opportunity to record the piece “No te molestes más” by Enrique Cofiner.

In chamber music, she is part of a guitar duo that won First Prize at the VII Chamber Music Competition of the Conservatorio Francisco Guerrero and has performed concerts with Juventudes Musicales Sevilla, successfully connecting with her audience through performances filled with emotion and nuances.

With her constant dedication to the guitar, Mercedes continues to seek improvement in her interpretation, always with the intention of sharing music in an honest and approachable way.

José Daniel Salceda Velasco, winner of the 2016 National Youth Award in Artistic Expressions and Popular Arts (Mexico), studied the Master in Classical and Contemporary Music Performance at the Conservatori Liceu de Barcelona under the guidance of Guillem Pérez-Quer, and previously received academic distinctions such as Summa Cum Laude in his Master’s Degree in Alicante and Honorable Mention after completing his Bachelor’s Degree in Music at the Conservatorio de las Rosas under the tutelage of Rodrigo Nefthalí, as well as an outstanding performance in his first years of training with Juan José Barrón.

His career includes concerts in Chile, Uruguay, Spain, Austria, United States and Japan; having recently a constant concert activity in Spain in the guitar festivals of: Ciudad de Mula, Albacete, Estanislao Marco, Ciudad de Elche, Mediterranean, Montanejos, Taller BESM and José Tomás Villa de Petrer.

He has won around 40 national and international awards such as 1st place and Audience Award at the International Competition Emili Pujol (Spain 2023), 1st place at the International Classical Guitar Festival José Tomás Villa de Petrer (Spain, 2022), 2nd Prize and Prize for the best interpretation of the work of Miguel Llobet in the International Competition Miguel Llobet (Barcelona, 2022), 1st Prize and Prize for the best interpretation of Scenes on the Castle of Mula by Javier Salvador at the International Classical Guitar Festival “Ciudad de Mula” (Spain, 2021), 2nd Place in the Senior category of the GFA (USA, 2015) 1st Place in the Festival “Raul Sanchez Clagget” (Uruguay, 2013) , 2nd Prize and Special Prize “Heinz Irmler” of the John Duarte International Guitar Festival (Austria, 2009).   

Salceda’s temperament stands out for the balance he achieves between the rupture with the traditional ways of making music and his respect for the canons.  

Winner of the 50th Franciso Tárrega International Guitar Competition in Benicàssim, Xianji Liu is the first ever Chinese-born guitarist who won the competition over the last half century.

He finished his secondary education in the Music School Affiliated to Shanghai Conservatory of Music. After completing his bachelor’s degree at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, Xianji continued his studies with Roberto Aussel at the Hochschule füer Musik und Tanz Koeln in Cologne,Germany. He completed the Konzertexamen with Ricardo Gallén at the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar.

He has performed as a soloist with orchestras and in recital throughout Europe (Germany, Holland, Portugal, and Spain), China, Korea, and the US. Among these Orchestras are: Spanish RTVE Symphony Orchestra; Valencia Symphony Orchestra; the Symphony Orchestra of the Madrid Academy; Jenaer Philharmonie; and Zhejiang Symphony Orchestra.

A young active classical guitar master, Xianji released two albums in 2017: Latin Guitar Sonatas, and Guitar Recital,via lbs Classical and Naxos respectively, which were reviewed by quite a number of music magazines including Scherzo and Ritmo.In 2020，he released the Rodrigo concerto CD with Spanish RTVE Symphony Orchestra.

Together with the world legendary classical guitarist Angel Romero, Xianji played Joaquin Rodrigo’s concierto with Valencia Symphony Orchestra in November 2016.

In 2018, Television Espanola (TVE) and Radio Television Espanola (RTVE) broadcast live simultaneously Fantasia para un Gentilhombre performed by Xianji and Spanish RTVE Symphony Orchestra.

In the same year, Conservatori Superior de Musica Oscar Espla Alicante listed Fantasia para un Gentilhombre played by Xianji into La Catedral De Las 6 Cuerdas, a historical documentary for classical guitar in Spain.

On 21 September 2019, at Palacio Real de Aranjuez ,Xianji, as the first invited classical guitarist from China, performed Fantasia para un Gentilhombre and Concerto De Aranjuez, again with Spanish RTVE Symphony Orchestra.

Xianji has been teaching in Shanghai Conservatory of Music since September 2018.