Blas Rivera is one of the best saxophonists in Brazil, proposing a blend of jazz with Argentinean tango where the saxophone plays the role of the bandoneon. His Blas Rivera Quintet performed for 3,000 people at the Ibirapuera Park in São Paulo, and his group was appointed by critics as the best one to perform at the Festival Internacional de Londrina in 1994. He has also represented Brazil at the Montreux Festival (Switzerland). Rivera settled in Rio in 1987. He graduated from Cordoba State University (Argentina) with an emphasis on composition, and went on to pursue postgraduate studies at Boston's Third Stream Department. He later came to Brazil to be a music professor, opening his own school; he soon quit to perform with his own group. ~ Alvaro Neder