Posts from the ‘2010 Season’ Category

Dec 30

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Gohar Vardanyan – February 25, 2011

Armenian guitarist Gohar Vardanyan has performed for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, New England and Sierra Nevada Guitar Societies, Guitar Masters Series at the Interlochen Guitar Festival, Juilliard’s Wednesday’s @1 Series, Peabody’s Thursday Noon series, with the Juilliard Opera Center and as a soloist with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra. She has been a Guest Artist for Baltimore Classical Guitar Society’s Guitar Day and a master class faculty at the Interlochen Guitar Festival and Workshop.

Ms. Vardanyan holds a Master of Music Degree from The Juilliard School where she studied with Sharon Isbin and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Peabody Conservatory of Music where she studied with Manuel Barrueco. She is also an alumna of the Aspen Music Festival and School.

Ms. Vardanyan began studying the guitar at the age of five with her father. She gave her first public performance and appeared on Armenian National Television at the age of eight. She was the First prize winner in the Armenian National Music Contest “Amadeus” and was accepted into “New Names,” a group for talented young musicians. She went on to study with Antigoni Goni at the Pre-College Division of the Juilliard School. In 2001, Ms. Vardanyan studied with John Wunsch at the Interlochen Arts Academy. A graduate with High Honors, she has received numerous awards in academic and musical fields. Among these is the Young Artist’s Certificate, one of the highest awards offered to graduating seniors by the Academy, and the Harold Randolph Prize in performance from the Peabody Conservatory.

Sep 25

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Gala Concert – April 29, 2011

About Michael Dailey

Michael Dailey started playing guitar at the age of five. His first public performance followed three years later and he has been performing professionally since the age of fourteen. Mr. Dailey was self taught in those early years and did not start his formal training until he was in his early twenties due to the lack of quality instructors. Miguel Bernal, a long time student of Andrés Segovia, was his first true classical guitar teacher. He also studied with Tom Sheeley and had several private lessons with many well know guitarists including Andrés Segovia, Pepe Romero, Christopher Parkening and Manuel Lopez Ramos. Mr. Dailey has performed in every state in the US except for Hawaii and has also performed in Central and South America, Canada, and Western Europe. He moved to Fort Worth in 1986 and has been a central figure in the development of the classic guitar in Fort Worth ever since. Mr. Dailey is currently on the faculty of Texas Wesleyan University and Tarrant County College Northwest and is the owner of The Guitar Studio.

About Christopher Davis

A native of Iowa, Christopher began his musical training on the Clarinet. At 14 years old, inspired by Black Sabbath and Metallica, Chris took up the guitar.

Christopher holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from Drake and Masters degree from Austin Peay State University where he studied with Stanley Yates. He has performed in masterclasses for world renowned artists such as Odair Assad and Christopher Parkening, and is currently studying at the University of North Texas. Chris’ performance experiences include solo classical guitar performances and work with rock, jazz, and Christian groups.

Christopher is passionate about teaching music on the guitar and teaches in Fort Worth and at the Southlake Music Academy. In addition to his performing and teaching activities, Chris is extremely interested in the entrepreneurial aspects of the music business, often lecturing and consulting on the subject, and writes The Classical Guitar Blog.

Sep 9

Tom Sheeley – March 25, 2011

Tom Sheeley has performed nationally and internationally as a soloist, as well as having been featured in chamber music concerts with groups such as the Blair Quartet, The St. Petersburg Quartet, The Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, The Flagstaff Festival of The Arts Summer Orchestra, The Sinfonica de Maracaibo, Venezuela, The Redlands Summer Festival Orchestra, The Idaho Civic Sympony and the Sinfonica Nacional de Ecuador.

His solo concerts include performances at the Concours Internationale de Guitare in Paris, The European International Festival in Geneva, Switzerland and numerous recitals in four South American countries. He was first prize winner of the first Concurso Internacional de Guitarra Manuel M. Ponce, organized to celebrate the 100th birthday of the composer whom Segovia referred to as “the greatest composer for guitar.”

He currently teaches courses in guitar, Music literature, aesthetics and philosophy at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.

Sep 6

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Laura Young – Nov. 12, 2010

Program | Watch Laura Play

Connect with Laura on Facebook, or visit her website

Born in Toronto of Russian and Irish heritage, Laura began her study of music at the age of seven and became an educated student of the guitar when she was nine years old. With a rare passion and intensity, she applied herself to technical mastery of the instrument, building on the exceptional musicality evident from the moment she began to play.

From the time she was just a young girl and at every step of her career, Laura has been recognized as a gifted artist; winning prestigious prizes at international competitions such as the “Andrés Segovia” in Palma de Mallorca, Spain and the “Jacinto e Inocencio Guererro” in Madrid, Spain, among many others.

At the University of Toronto, Laura earned her Music Degree under the direction of Eli Kassner. Grants from Canada’s national arts organizations – the Canada Council and Ontario Arts Council – provided an opportunity for Laura to continue her studies with some of the world’s finest guitarists, including David Russel and Leo Brouwer. Studying with Hubert Kaeppel at the Hochshule in Cologne, Germany she received her Master’s Degree with Honours.

As a soloist Laura has given widely acclaimed performances, offering profound and often daring programs in concert halls around the world, from the Alte Oper in Frankfurt, Germany to the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Canada to the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, Spain. She’s also a regularly invited performer and teacher in International Guitar Festivals: Toronto, Canada; Ezstergom, Hungary; Gdansk, Poland; Cologne, Germany; and Volos, Greece – to name but a few.

In addition to her solo career, Laura was a founding member of the very successful Trio de Cologne, which performed throughout the 1990’s in Europe and the Americas. Laura is currently working in duo with the Greek-Canadian singer Frances Pappas in the ensemble Lagrimosa Belta which presents pieces written for them by composers such as Helmut Jasbar, Feliu Gasull i Altisent, Stefan Hakenberg all based on contemporary explorations of traditional folk music.

From 1997 – 2001, Laura was the founder and Artistic Director of the Amsterdam International Guitar Festival. Laura Young was awarded professorship at the Escuela Superior de Musica en Catalunya (ESMUC) in Barcelona, Spain in 2003.

Program

J.S. Bach – Ciaccona in d minor, BWV 1004
David Kellner – Fantasia en Re Major, Fantasia en La Menor
Max Reger- Suite #1, op. 131 (originally for solo cello)

INTERMISSION

Max Reger – Suite #3, op. 131 (originally for solo cello)
Feliu Gasull – El Castell del Moro Muesser
Carlo Domeniconi – Koyunbaba, Op. 19

Watch Laura Play

Aug 16

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Jérôme Mouffe – October 8, 2010

Jérôme Mouffe is a virtuoso guitarist from Belgium who has dazzled international audiences with his passionate and spontaneous playing. Jérôme has toured extensively as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the Unites States and Western Europe. Recent solo performances include recitals for Boston Classical Guitar Society, South Bay Guitar Society, Masters of Tomorrow Concert Series in Rhode Island, and Boston GuitarFest. In November 2009, he was invited to perform at the Agustin Barrios Mangore Festival in Brussels, where he shared the stage with Eliot Fisk in addition to performing his own solo recital at the prestigious Flagey concert hall. His performances were broadcast on Belgian national public radios Musiq3 and Klara.

Jérôme has released his debut CD – Capriccio – on the VGo Recordings label in 2009. The album features early nineteenth century virtuoso Italian music. It includes caprices by Regondi, Legnani, Castelnuovo-Tedesco and transcriptions of Paganini’s famous violin capricci for solo guitar.

In addition to his career as a soloist, Jérôme is an active chamber music performer. He has performed with guitarists Eliot Fisk and Grisha Goryachev, flutist Benjamin Smolen, violinist Emil Altschuler, tenor Gregorio Rangel, and soprano Sarah-Luise Traubel. His Duo Musagète – founded with flutist Benjamin Smolen – won the New England Conservatory Honors Ensemble prize in fall 2008 and consequently performed a full recital in Jordan Hall in Spring 2009. Inspired and coached by the renowned Fisk/Robinson flute & guitar duo, they are active in developing the repertoire for their formation both through transcriptions and newly composed works. Jerome also regularly performs as a member of the AM Duo that he founded with American violinist Emil Altschuler.

Passionate about developing the guitar’s repertoire, Jerome is not only an active transcriber but also collaborates with contemporary composers. He is the dedicatee of Bonecas de Chuva, a guitar concerto by composer Andreia Pinto Correia.

Jérôme earned his Master of Music degree with honors in the class of Hugues Navez at the Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles when he was only 20. He studied in Salzburg with the renowned masters Eliot Fisk and Ricardo Gallen. He earned a postgraduiert diploma at the Mozarteum Universität. He met and followed the master courses of numerous great musicians including David Russell, Angel & Pepe Romero, Emmanuel Rossfelder, Joaquin Clerch, and Pavel Steidl, among others. He also studied flamenco with the Spanish guitarist Antonio Segura in Brussels.

A doctorate candidate at the New England Conservatory of Boston under the direction of Eliot Fisk, Jerome’s research interests include improvisation and operatic influences in early nineteenth century guitar music. Performer and guitar instructor, Jerome maintains a private guitar studio in the Boston Area. For more info, please visit: http://www.jeromemouffe.net.

Photos from the Concert

All images courtesy of Ed Barrera Photography

Posts from the ‘2010 Season’ Category

Gohar Vardanyan – February 25, 2011