Composer, guitarist, professor of music, record producer and executive. Obtained a bachelor’s degree in Classical Guitar at the Escuela Nacional de Música in Havana, Cuba. At the age of 16, Guerra won the International Competition and Festival of Classical Guitar Award in Krakow, Poland, as well as receiving their Special Prize (1990), thus becoming the youngest Cuban awarded a prize in an international
contest. Additionally, he won in 1991 a full scholarship and studied for two years at the Instituto Superior de Música, Cuba.

In 1993, moved to Spain and obtained a Master Degree in Classical Guitar at the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Madrid. Received private lessons with California State University Emeritus Professor Aurelio de la Vega. In 2015 Guerra obtained his second Master Degree in Music (Film Scoring) from Shepherd University, Los Angeles, and in June 2021, he graduated as Doctor of Philosophy in Music, Composition and Music Theory from University of California, Los Angeles.
His art music catalog includes compositions for orchestra, chamber ensembles and soloists, and have been premiered in around the world.

In 2012, Guerra won the Latin GRAMMY Award in the Best Contemporary Classical Composition category for the work entitled Seducción. In addition, he has been nominated eight times for Latin GRAMMY Awards in the Contemporary Classical Composition and Best Classical Album categories.

Guerra is the former President of the National Association of Composers USA for the Los Angeles Chapter (2016-2018). In 2014, he was the recipient of the Cintas Foundation Fellowship in Music Composition. Awarded the UCLA Eugene V. Cotta Robles Fellowship, the Lalo Schifrin and Family Wise scholarships.

This year Guerra released a new record: Yalil Guerra Piano Music and won the Cuba Disco Award for the album: Cuba: The Legacy, which includes his Symphony No. 1. In 2020 he released two records: Renacimiento. Música de Cámara, and Havana Nights. As a producer, he has worked and publihsed over fifty records. Composed the music for the PBS documentary “Weekend in Havana,” and finished the soundtrack for the movie “The Character,” to be release soon.

He writes articles on musical analysis for prestigious newspapers and magazines such as: Diario las Américas, Miami, Florida; Contacto Magazine.com, Los Angeles; CMBF Radio Musical and Cubaarte, Havana, Cuba.

At the present time he is an Adjunct Faculty at University of La Verne (La Verne) Worked in the past at College of the Canyons, Santa Clarita, Shepherd University, and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

EDUCATION:

Doctor of Philosophy in Music Composition and Music Theory | University of California, Los Angeles
Master of Music. Film Scoring | Shepherd University, Los Angeles
Master of Music. Classical Guitar | Conservatorio Superior de Música de Madrid, Spain
Bachelor of Music. Classical Guitar | Escuela Nacional de Música, Havana, Cuba

RECENT PUBLICATIONS:

• Diario las Américas (9 articles)
• CMBF, Radio Musical Nacional (Cuba)

RECENT ALBUMS:

• Yalil Guerra Piano Music (Classical music)
• Havana Nights (2020) Yamila and Yalil Guerra Orchestra
• Renacimiento, Chamber Music (2020)
• Cuba: The Legacy. National Symphony of Cuba (2019)
• Weekend in Havana. Soundtrack of the PBS Documentary titled “Weekend in Havana” (Movie Soundtrack)

You can find more works published with his music on all digital platforms.

SIMILAR FACULTY