Sérgio and Odair Assad: The Farewell Tour Comes to UNLV PAC

For the last guitar concert of the 49th season, the UNLV Performing Arts Center (UNLV PAC) will welcome brothers Sérgio and Odair Assad who return to Las Vegas in their final tour together. The Brazilian-born duo will perform at the Artemus W. Ham Concert on Wednesday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m.

The Assad Brothers began playing together at an early age and their international career began with a major prize at the 1979 Young Artists Competition in Bratislava. Their touring programs are a compelling blend of styles, periods and cultures stemming from a diverse repertoire. This includes folk, jazz and various styles of Latin music along with classical repertoire such as transcriptions of the great Baroque keyboard literature of Bach, Rameau, and Scarlatti and adaptations of works by Gershwin, Ginastera, and Debussy. 

Sérgio Assad premiered his concerto Phases with the Seattle Symphony. They have also collaborated with such notable orchestras as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, São Paulo Symphony Orchestra, and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.  

In 2004, Sérgio and Odair arranged a special tour featuring three generations of the Assad family including their father, Jorge Assad [1924-2011], on the mandolin and the voice of their mother, Angelina Assad. GHA Records released a live recording and a DVD of the Assad family live at Brussels' Palais des Beaux-Arts. Other highlights include being featured performers on James Newton Howard's soundtrack to the movie Duplicity; a touring project entitled De Volta as Raizes (Back to Our Roots) with Lebanese-American singer Christiane Karam, percussionist Jamey Haddad, and composer/pianist Clarice Assad; a tour and recording with Paquito D'Rivera called Dances from the New World; a tour with  jazz guitarist Romero Lubambo; and tours with Yo-Yo Ma and other musicians from the Silkroad Ensemble. 

The Assads have made several recordings on Nonesuch and GHA including Sérgio and Odair Assad Play Piazzolla and Jardim Abandonado, which both received Latin Grammys. They recorded Obrigado Brazil with Yo-Yo Ma with Sérgio arranging several of the works and were featured on Yo-Yo Ma's chart-topping release, Songs of Joy & Peace, alongside other guests James Taylor and Dave Brubeck. Both recordings won Grammy awards. Sérgio Assad was also nominated for two Latin Classical Grammys as a composer for his works Interchange and Maraeaipe.