Berklee in Puerto Rico 30th Anniversary Celebration Culminates in Awarding $3.74 Million in Financial Aid

The Berklee in Puerto Rico music education program’s 30th anniversary celebration culminated with a concert and graduation ceremony for students at the Centro de Bellas Artes in Caguas, where 30 awards and $3.74 million in financial aid were granted to students to pursue studies at Berklee College of Music.

“To the students, you just lived an intense, inspiring, and powerful week. I'm sure you will carry these lessons, the emotions, and the growth from this experience for the rest of your life,” said Hon. William E. Miranda Torres, mayor of Caguas. “Please continue to dream big. Continue to fight for your goals. Keep practicing, keep learning, keep playing and singing. Not just music, but life. Puerto Rico needs your voices, your creativity, and your courage. And Caguas will always welcome you with open arms.”

For the second consecutive year, the Caguas Centro de Bellas Artes served as the stage for participants in the 30th edition of the Berklee in Puerto Rico music education program, produced by the nonprofit organization Make Music Happen(Opens in a new window). This year, 196 participants demonstrated the musical skills they developed and reinforced in front of their families, organizers, and program collaborators. The participants formed 16 musical groups to perform songs and musical arrangements by Ismael Rivera, Bob Marley, and Kenny Garrett, among many others. At the ceremony's close, Damien S. Bracken, dean of admissions at Berklee College of Music, presented financial aid and scholarships to outstanding participants from Berklee in Puerto Rico to study at the college.

“On Thursday, June 5, we celebrated Berklee's 30th anniversary in Puerto Rico at the Centro de Bellas Artes at the Santurce Fine Arts Center with an epic concert. The exceptional musicians who performed on stage that night were sitting right where you are today, at a graduation like this one, at Berklee in Puerto Rico, 30, 20, or 10 years ago," said Luis Álvarez Fiol ’83, president of Make Music Happen and a Berklee College of Music alumnus. "The most important thing for all of you is that, in five or 10 years, those of you who are willing to invest the energy, make the sacrifice, and have the discipline it takes to be a great musician, a great person, and therefore a great citizen, will make it to the Centro de Bellas Artes and any major festival in the world, just like the virtuoso musicians who performed on June 5. The opportunity is yours. This program does not change lives; only you can change your lives. Make Music Happen offers you an opportunity to develop your talents. And for those who want to do so, I assure you that you are on the right track because what happened here today, what we saw on this stage this morning, is truly wonderful."

Eight students received financial aid to participate in Berklee's Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive summer program, worth $5,430 each. They are:

• Ian Trinta

• Damián Tricoche Santiago

• Dylan Segarra Velázquez

• Gala Dale Camacho Santana

• Carlos Malavé Crespo

• Yoedelis López

• Jahdiel Avilés

• Adrián Delgado-Toro

Three students received a partial-tuition scholarship to attend a bachelor's degree program at Berklee College of Music in Boston, worth $25,000 per year, equivalent to $100,000 for four years each. They are:

• Edgardo Cruz

• Sergio Ortiz

• Amanda Perez Figueroa

Four students received a partial-tuition scholarship to attend a bachelor's degree program at Berklee, worth $30,000 per year, equivalent to $120,000 for four years each. They are:

• Yahir Barbosa

• Noelis Berrios

• David García Arocho

• Kevin Rivera Ocasio

Four students received a partial-tuition scholarship to attend a bachelor's degree program at Berklee, worth $35,000 per year, equivalent to $140,000 for four years each. They are:

• Jorge Montes-Irizarry

• Jonathan Picorelli

• Hernán Luis Rivera Cruz

• Mikael Vázquez Feliciano

Two students received a partial-tuition scholarship to attend a bachelor's degree program at Berklee, worth $40,000 per year, equivalent to $160,000 for four years each. They are:

• Enoc Delgado Sánchez

• Dayran Ramos

Finally, nine students received full-tuition scholarships to study at Berklee College of Music, worth $52,400 per year, equivalent to $209,760 for four years each. This is the largest number of this type of scholarship awarded in Berklee's 30-year history in Puerto Rico. The recipients are:

• Gary Acevedo González

• Joseph Báez Velázquez

• Ediel Ramos de Jesús

• Amanda Avilés

• Juan González

• Daliana Soto

• Joseph Vázquez

• Gabriela Guillén

• Daniel Andrades

In addition to the awards mentioned above, Rubén Amador BM ‘01, director of the Conservatorio de Artes del Caribe (CAC) and former student of Berklee in Puerto Rico and Berklee College of Music, presented five participants with full-tuition scholarships to attend one semester of the CAC's pre-university program, worth $1,980 each, for a total of $9,900. They are:

• Yansfel Alemán

• Yadiel Cabán

• Ragdiel González Gutiérrez

• Jensen Quiñones Barreto

• Wesley Canales Vilariño

“It gives us immense joy to know that these students will be able to fulfill their dream of developing their musical talents, which connect us as a country and as a family,” said Secretary of Education Eliezer Ramos Parés. “I encourage them to make the most of this opportunity, continue to spread their talent, and hold the name of Puerto Rico high. At the Department of Education, we continue to support the arts in all areas as a key part of education.”

For the third consecutive year, the Municipality of Caguas hosted the Berklee in Puerto Rico program, which featured a series of workshops for music students offered by professors from the renowned educational institution. These workshops covered various musical topics, including theory, ear training, and improvisation, among others. The program also offered two JazzFest in Caguas concerts, which were free and open to the public. These events were coordinated in partnership with Berklee College of Music, the Puerto Rico Department of Education, the Autonomous Municipality of Caguas, the Antonio Paoli Free School of Music, and Make Music Happen.

Throughout its existence, Berklee in Puerto Rico has received support from several entities that have enabled Make Music Happen to continue its educational mission. These include Fundación Banco Popular, Liberty Foundation, and the Municipality of Caguas. Other collaborators include Delta Air Lines, HUB International, ALFA 2.0, Good Bunny Foundation, AIREKO Foundation, Cedrela Consulting Group, Supermercados Selectos, RIMAS Music, Puerto Rico Department of Education, Bisonte, and PRLinks Communications.

About Make Music Happen

Make Music Happen(Opens in a new window) is a nonprofit organization that aims to cultivate and strengthen the musical talents of Puerto Rican youth. The entity offers a variety of options that provide opportunities to develop the innate musical ability that lies within the island’s young people.