Mariana Clavijo Ledesma is a Colombian clarinetist and Backun Artist specializing in bass clarinet. In 2024, she received her bachelor’s degree as Maestro in Musical Arts with Emphasis in Interpretation from the Facultad de Artes ASAB, Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas (Bogotá, Colombia). She is currently pursuing her Master of Music degree at Manhattan School of Music as part of the Contemporary Performance Program, studying under the tutelage of international soloist and recognized teacher David Krakauer.
Mariana has achieved several awards and distinctions in her country. She was selected as one of the finalists in the Silverstein International Clarinet Competition 2025 and awarded the distinction of “Brilliant Talent,” and she has performed as a soloist and bass clarinetist with the Bogotá Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bogotá Philharmonic Band, the Valle Departmental Band, and the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia. She has also performed as a soloist in some of the country’s most important venues and on various international stages.
Mariana: The next Tactus concert is definitely the most exciting I can recall since I’ve been in the program, not everyday you have the opportunity to perform your dream piece with the people who have become your family.
Tactus Ensemble, Fall 2025
Mariana: I’m part of two pieces for this program, but there’s one that just goes beyond what I ever expected to get from this program when I came here. The Concerto for Bass Clarinet and Orchestra by the New York composer Lee Hyla, which we bring back to stage after its premiere almost 40 years ago, represents one of the most powerful and challenging adventures I’ve experienced in my entire career.
Mariana: I think the process is almost the same for everyone when we assume the challenge of performing a major piece for our instrument with a large ensemble: you practice as much as you can, and you put your whole energy into creating the best possible version of the piece that you can achieve. I’m incredibly lucky to have the best team one could ask for in the ensemble and to share this experience with the fantastic conductor (and my personal wizard), Matthew Ward. He and Erin Rogers put together this huge group of people, which is basically an extended version of Tactus with very close friends of the program, and managed to make Neidorff-Karpati Hall the perfect stage for bringing this piece to life again.
“Not everyday you have the opportunity to perform your dream piece with the people who have become your family.” Mariana Clavijo Ledesma (MM'26, Contemporary Clarinet)
“Not everyday you have the opportunity to perform your dream piece with the people who have become your family.”
Mariana Clavijo Ledesma (MM'26, Contemporary Clarinet)
Mariana: This concert is a personal one for us; it means a lot to bring together five pieces with such fantastic contrast between them that still give space for a connection that moves forward with the mission of this program: creating a space for the music of our time. This concert is a celebration of those people who have pursued the different and have created the present of our field by building what one day seemed to be impossible.
Mariana: The answer is always people, the family I was born into and the one that I’ve created here, in this place that day after day becomes home for me. You can basically do whatever you imagine if you have the right people around you, so being in this amazing place and having the chance to work on the things you’ve always dreamed about with people you love by your side will always be the biggest source of inspiration.
Mariana: Reconciler, tribute, fire
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