Spotlight on Disney and Pixar’s COCO in Concert Guitarists Tim Berens and David Ferrara 

When the MSO presents Disney and Pixar’s Coco in Concert LIve to Film on Sunday, February 22nd, the guitar will be showcased by two classical guitarists, Tim Berens and David Ferrara. They both earned their Bachelor degrees from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and have performed the solos in Coco with many different orchestras.

First In the Spotlight, Tim Berens: Tim Berens , guitarist with the Cincinnati Pops from 1983-2021, is a versatile musician, performing on the mandolin, banjo, bouzouki, as well as on electric, classical and steel string guitars. He is also an accomplished jazz guitarist who has performed in jazz clubs for many years. With the Pops, he was featured on concerts, recordings, television programs, and on tour in Japan, Taiwan, China, Singapore, and at Carnegie Hall. In addition to the Pops, Tim has played with many major orchestras including the National Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Hong Kong Philharmonic. Tim is also an orchestrator and conductor, having earned a Masters of Music in Orchestral Conducting from Ohio State. His orchestral arrangements are performed hundreds of times per year in venues from Carnegie Hall to the Kennedy Center to the Hollywood Bowl. The Mason Symphony Orchestra has collaborated with Tim over the past few years performing several of his arrangements. During our first season, we played the world premier of his new edition of ”Rhapsody in Blue” with Steinway Artist Frank Huang at the piano. Tim also narrated his own underdog baseball musical story, “Fernie’s Up” at our summer concert in 2024 as a warmup act to Livingston Taylor. He has performed the Guitar One part in Disney and Pixar’s Coco in Concert 14 times in seven cities and we are excited that he will be playing it next with us! When not making music, he enjoys playing chess and golf.

David Ferrara, an award-winning classical guitarist, holds a B.M in guitar performance from the University of Cincinnati CCM where he studied with Clare Callahan and a M.M. in guitar from Southern Methodist University, having studied with Robert Guthrie. Mr. Ferrara has performed concerts in Dayton, Cincinnati, Dallas, Indianapolis, Ft. Worth, Lexington, Evansville, among others, and has performed live on several radio stations. He has performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Pops, and was also a featured artist with the Cincinnati Classical Guitar Society. He was twice awarded a Master’s Fellowship in grants directed from the National Endowment for the Arts. He is also a recording artist ( “Songs Without Words”, “Diabolico and Friends”) and has taught privately and at the college level for many years. He performs year round and has been a featured soloist in Disney and Pixar’s Coco in Concert. We look forward to having him join us, along with Tim Berens for this special presentation!