ANDREA PUENTE..........A native of Mexico City, Andrea Puente graduated from the National Conservatory of Music in 1983. During the next two years she did graduate work at the Victoria Conservatory of Music and at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada, with Taka Kling. Ms Puente was awarded the British Columbia Grant for Best Performing Art Student. In 1987 the Polish Government awarded her a Post-graduate Fellowship at the Chopin Academy, where she completed her studies under the direction of Ursula Mazurek.In 1990 she won the position of Principal Harp of the Jalisco Philharmonic, in Mexico. In 1992 she won a scholarship for the Nicanor Zabaleta World Masterclass in Spain. A year later she won the post of Principal Harp in the Orquesta Ciudad de Malaga, Spain, where she performed frequently as soloist in concerts with the Jupiter Quartet throughout the Iberian Peninsula.In 1994 she joined the faculty of the National Conservatory of Mexico and became the harpist of the Carlos Chavez Symphony Orchestra in Mexico City. In 1998 she was Visiting Professor of Harp at the Victoria Conservatory of Music in British Columbia, where she also gave a series of concerts.In 1999 Ms Puente, became Principal Harp of the Orquesta del Teatro de Bellas Artes, Mexico's National Orchestra for all opera and ballet productions.Ms Puente holds a Master's Degree in Music. She graduated with Honors. She also performs with orchestras in Los Angeles area such as Pacific Symphony, New West Symphony, Glendale Symphony, Riverside Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony, etc. She is principal harpist of the Baja California Orchestra in Tijuana, an ensemble that recently made its successful debut at Alice Tully Hall in New York.She is an active chamber music player with the harp and flute duo Arpa y Aulos with flutist Salpi Kerkonian . Ms Puente lives in Los Angeles, California.
