August 8-12, 2023 in Oxford, AL USA
Our Story
RUBATO INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION
- Celebrating both Classical and Jazz music at their finest. -
Oxford, Alabama
USA
August 8 - 13, 2022
The City of Oxford, Alabama, will host its inaugural Rubato International Piano Competition on August 8–13, 2022. This competition will be the first of its kind since it will integrate the categories of classical and jazz music at a single event. The competition will attract young talent, ages 12-26, from prestigious schools and universities, and conservatories throughout the United States and around the globe.
Our competition will be professionally juried by Steinway Hall of Fame artists, experienced judges from the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, and renowned artists and professors from universities including Fullerton College, Berklee College of Music, Texas A&M University-Commerce, University of Georgia, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
The innovative ‘Audience Favorite’ category will let you vote for your favorite artist in each musical style.
The tremendous opportunities provided by this event will open doors for the students traveling from abroad to our great state and for the Oxford community alike. This competition will be a platform which will endure and expand our community’s arts appreciation, enriching the lives of all who participate.
Julio Cesar Barreto
Founder and Director
RUBATO International Piano Competition
Born in Argentina, Julio Barreto proved to have an innate talent for music. He started his formal studies at the early age of five and his professional career at the age of nine, performing a wide repertoire of music including jazz, rock/pop, Latin and Argentine music. His musical tenure includes a wide range of experience as a session musician, composer, arranger, producer, as well as a music educator. His musical specialties in classical, jazz, and pop music have allowed him to work with artists such as Paquito D’Rivera, Atlanta Pops Orchestra, David Phelps, Timothy Miller, Chloë Agnew, Jose Davila (Ray Charles and Marc Anthony’s trombone), John Driskell Hopkins, Sandoval Moreno de Oliveira, Thomas McCutchen, and Nilsinho Amarante.
His undergraduate degree in Classical Piano Performance was earned at Universidad Nacional del Litoral (Argentina), while he studied under the prestigious Argentine pianist Graciela Reca. His next step was to attend Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA) for a Master Certificate in Arranging and Orchestration. While there his academic achievements earned him the Herbie Hancock Celebrity Scholarship. He also studied piano and participated in workshops at Berklee with luminaries such as Neil Olmstead, Russell Hoffmann, Kevin Harris, Robert Christopherson, Utar Artun, Leo Blanco, and Vladan Milenkovic. He also was guided by world-class professionals of today's music industry including Susan Rogers (Prince), John Storyk (Jimi Hendrix), Sean Slade (Lou Reed, Radiohead), and David Bendeth (Paramore). His work at Berklee culminated in 2019 when he graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Master of Music in Music Production.
Barreto served as a piano accompanist for the Choral Institute of Santa Fe School of Music and taught piano at Isidro Maiztegui School of Music (Argentina). In addition, he worked as a full-time professor at UNL teaching Applied and Collaborative Piano, courses in Popular Music, Improvisation, Jazz, Rock, Pop, Arranging and Production, and served as Director of School Extension & Outreach. During this time in Argentina, he wrote and produced music for radio and TV, and was also pianist and arranger of the “Santa Fe Jazz Ensemble” Big Band, and the group “Picante Latin Jazz”.
In 2018 he permanently moved to the United States to serve as Visiting Assistant Professor at Jacksonville State University (JSU), Teaching Classical Piano, Applied Piano, Latin American Musical Styles, and Intro to Music Production. Meanwhile he also served as accompanist for the JSU Civic Chorale, the JSU Chamber Singers, and the JSU Opera Theatre. In 2019 he became faculty at Gadsden State Community College (Gadsden, AL) working as Adjunct Professor of Music. During this time, he also began performing around the US as a solo artist and as a member of different groups and ensembles. Barreto has frequently been invited as a clinician and artist-in-residence in universities and schools of music including University of North Texas, Jacksonville State University (AL), Texas Woman’s University, Universidad Nacional del Litoral (ARG), Texas Christian University, Concordia University (NE), Texas A&M University-Commerce among others. Mr. Barreto has also been repeatedly invited to teach online webinars for the prestigious Frances Clark Center (Piano Magazine) to educators from conservatories, universities, and schools around the world on various topics, including jazz, arranging, and Latin music.
In 2021, Julio Barreto joined the Atlanta Pops Orchestra (Atlanta, GA) as their new Artist-In- Residence, performing, arranging and writing original music for the orchestra. That year he became Director of Music Education for the Oxford Performing Arts Center (OPAC) in Oxford, AL. He also began touring with Irish pop singer/songwriter Chloë Agnew (Celtic Woman) as her pianist and arranger.
Julio Barreto is an active member of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), the College Music Society (CMS) the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and the National Association for Music Education (NAfME).
In 2022, with the support of the City of Oxford and OPAC, he became the Founder and Director of the Rubato International Piano Competition. Uniquely including both classical and jazz music, this remarkable event is designed to provide talented young pianists from around the world with the opportunity to develop a professional and artistic career. As Director, Barreto has secured a special arrangement with Steinway & Sons as the official piano for the competition.