Benjamín Brea
| Benjamín Brea | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Benjamín Arsenio Brea Constenla |
| Also known as | El Maestro |
| Born |
18 September 1946 Galicia, Spain |
| Died | 23 April 2014 (aged 67) Caracas, Venezuela |
| Genres | Jazz, classical, folk, latin, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Saxophone, flute, oboe, clarinet |
| Years active | 1956–2014 |
| Associated acts | |
| Website | www |
| Notable instruments | |
| Woodwinds | |
Benjamín Brea (18 September 1946 – 23 April 2014) was a Spanish-born Venezuelan musician, arranger and teacher, mostly associated with jazz, even though he had the advantage to play several music genres in various bands as a soloist as well as sideman and conductor.
Born as Benjamín Arsenio Brea Constenla in Galicia, Spain, he moved with his parents to Venezuela in the early 1960s. He received formal music training in Caracas and graduated under Vicente Emilio Sojo in the José Angel Lamas school of music. Brea started his professional career in 1962, becoming an outstanding musician on a great variety of instruments, being able to play all saxophone and flute families, as well as oboe, clarinet and bass clarinet.
After playing with several local dance bands, he remained busy and performed on countless soundtracks and jingles recording sessions. In addition, he became a member of the Radio Caracas Television orchestra and the now defunct Philharmonic Orchestra of Caracas conducted by Aldemaro Romero. Besides, he backed up significant performers as Jeff Berlin, Paquito D'Rivera, Julio Iglesias, Armando Manzanero, Danilo Pérez, Arturo Sandoval, The Jackson Five and The Supremes, while playing in jazz big band formats led by Porfi Jiménez, Alberto Naranjo and Gerry Weil, among others. In between, he performed alongside such local artists as Soledad Bravo, Vytas Brenner, Maria Teresa Chacin, Ilan Chester, Franco de Vita, Simón Díaz, Gualberto Ibarreto, Los Cañoneros, Ricardo Montaner, Alí Primera, María Rivas, Serenata Guayanesa and Cecilia Todd, in recordings or in concert performances.
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