Known for their dynamic performances, the Guevara & Zhelezova Piano Duo creates bravura programs that energize audiences. Praised for their “wonderful sense of dialog and balance,” they have delivered recitals at venues such as the Cervantino Festival (Mexico), Taiwan National Orchestra Hall, the Piano Plus Series (Woodstock, NY), and Conciertos del Este (Uruguay). With repertoire ranging from Mozart and Poulenc to Glass, Marquez, and Price, their programming typically blends new and old works with surprising arrangements, such as Ziegler’s 2-piano transcriptions and Zilber’s unusual mashups.
Bound by 15 years of friendship and music, Guevara and Zhelezova are committed to amplifying the voices of women and modeling equality, strength, and resilience through their collaborative work. Drawing from their Latina and Bulgarian immigrant backgrounds, they uplift often-overlooked voices and highlight the challenges faced by women in their communities. Rejecting traditional ensemble hierarchies, they model equality in action, fluidly exchanging roles within their duo with no fixed first or second piano.
The duo’s debut album, Midnight Conversations, on Centaur Records, was praised for its wide variety of repertoire for piano four hands by Piazzolla, Dvorjak, Ravel, Stravinsky and Rachmaninov. The album was acclaimed as a “brilliant performance that's lots of rollicking fun” (American Record Guide) and noted for the duo’s “sensitive readings” and “velvety touch” (Piano News).
Education and community engagement are central to Guevara and Zhelezova’s mission. They have served as artists-in-residence at Mexico’s University of Zacatecas, La Escuela Superior de Musica, and the University of Veracruz, offering performances, masterclasses, and workshops. In the US, they have engaged with audiences at NYC’s Cornelia Street Cafe and The Harvard Club, and West Palm Beach University. The duo regularly appears with orchestras in Mexico, including the Latin-American premiere of Schnittke’s 4-hand concerto with the Guanajuato Symphony and appearances with Xalapa, Zacatecas, and Michoacan Symphony Orchestras. Beyond performance, Guevara & Zhelezova established the Xalapa International Piano Festival and Academy in 2018, hosting luminaries such as Philippe Entremont and Jorge Federico Osorio. This multifaceted festival provides recitals, orchestral concerts, an international piano competition, and masterclasses, nurturing emerging talent and fostering artistic exchange.