Luis Miguel Rojas is a product of the program for youth symphony orchestras of Venezuela, also known as “El Sistema”. He began his career as a trumpet player and member of the “Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra”. Nevertheless, due to lung disease, he had to stop his trumpet studies. Shortly after, he started studying cello. He was 19 years old. And just three years later, he made the Latin American premiere of the “Concerto for Cello and Orchestra” by Aram Khachaturian. Since then, he has performed in Argentina, France, Germany, Honduras, Mexico, The Netherlands, Puerto Rico, The United States, and Venezuela.

Rojas holds a bachelor’s degree from the Simón Bolívar Music Conservatory, a master’s degree from Duquesne University of Pittsburgh, and a Doctorate from Michigan State University. He has held positions in several orchestras in the USA, among them; Grand Rapids symphony, Greater Lansing symphony, Wheeling symphony. For two seasons, he was substitute cello for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and the Pittsburgh Opera. He was also a Teaching Artist for the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra and was a member of the Dalí Quartet.

Rojas has stood up for the promotion of Latin American music and its inclusion in the standard repertoire for the cello. He has given lectures and recitals on Latin American music in the USA, and he has been very active in chamber music, recitals, and as a collaborator for the creation of new works. He is currently the Principal Cello of the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, professor at the Puerto Rico Conservatory, and he is the founder and president of the “Festival Cellistiko PR, Inc”