As part of its 49th Season, UNLV Performing Arts Center resumes its 20th season of guitar performances, welcoming the return of Las Vegas local and award-winning classical guitarist Ricardo Cobo with 'Diary of Musical Images' on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 7:30 p.m. in the Dr. Arturo Rando Recital Hall of the Lee and Thomas Beam Music Center at UNLV.
About Ricardo Cobo
Born in Cali, Colombia, Cobo began taking guitar lessons at the age of 8, on a twenty-dollar souvenir guitar that his uncle bought him in Brazil. He quickly outpaced his lessons, so his parents enrolled him in the Antonio Maria Valencia Conservatory, now part of Colombia’s national school for the fine arts.
Following high school, Cobo attended Peabody Conservatory as a student of Aaron Shearer, a widely known master of the classical guitar. He ultimately received the Bachelor of Music degree from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and the Master of Music degree at Florida State University. While at FSU, he pursued postgraduate studies under Bruce Holzman, both as a graduate assistant and university doctoral fellow.
Cobo won many international competitions, including the Guitar Foundation of America’s International Concert Artist Competition, Alirio Díaz International Competition, and Casa de España Competition. Cobo’s professional career began when he was 17 and performed with the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá (Columbia) for a television audience of over nine million. Cobo’s recordings are on the ESSAY, NAXOS, Ellipsis Arts, and Angel/EMI labels.
Single tickets are on sale now for $38.50 (discounts available). A discounted three guitar concert subscription package is also available that includes Ricardo Cobo, Montreal Guitar Trio and Sergio and Odair Assad – starting at $82.95 when purchased online before Dec. 11.
Tickets may be ordered online at pac.unlv.edu and can also be purchased in person at the PAC box office from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Friday. When purchasing tickets, consider a donation to the UNLV PAC to provide local students the opportunity to work with this season’s artists and to help support programming during the UNLV PAC’s 50th Anniversary Season (2026-2027).
The UNLV Performing Arts Center is undertaking a bevy of activities to prepare for the 50th anniversary celebration. Look for more information in the venue and in the event program when visiting for the Ricardo Cobo.
About the Performing Arts Center
The UNLV Performing Arts Center is the original home for the arts in Southern Nevada; it opened in 1976 and celebrates its 49th season in 2025-26. A self-sustaining unit of UNLV, the PAC operates like many other arts organizations: costs for productions, some facilities improvements, and other projects come from ticket sales, rentals, and donations. It hosts a variety of performances and events and is home to self-produced events plus productions of the Nevada Conservatory Theatre, UNLV School of Music, UNLV Dance, the Las Vegas Men’s Chorus, among many other community arts presenters, and various Clark County School District fine arts festivals and concerts. For further information, visit pac.unlv.edu.
