About the performers

Last May, Rupert Boyd gave a concert for the Second Sundays Classical Guitar Series in New York (that I co-direct) at the Roger Smith Hotel at Lexington and 47th Ave. Unfortunately, I had to miss it, but heard great things from my co-director John Olson of the NYCCGS. Fortunately, I had a second opportunity to meet and hear Rupert in Granada, Spain in July. My wife Nancy and I were teaching and performing at the 5th International Festival of Spanish Song where Rupert was a guest performer with his partner Jacob Cordover, together known as the Australian Guitar Duo. They gave a wonderful concert in a gorgeous outdoor garden at 10pm, just around the corner form the Alhambra. I was thrilled when Rupert said he would be available for a concert in Boston this January and that he would perform the "hit" from his first solo CD, Granados' Valses Poeticos. Rupert has done an amazing job of his own transcription of the complete work - not to be missed.

Our second concert will be Michael Nicolella on February 27, 8pm. Michael gave a master class for us last February at the suggestion of Bob Ward. I was very impressed by his teaching and his You Tube videos of Spanish classics. After the master class, we exchanged CDs. The breadth of this man's work blew me away! Shard features music by Steve Reich, Elliott Carter, Jacob ter Veldhuis, Joshua Kohl, Christopher DeLaurenti, David Mesler and Michael Nicolella. The recording alternates works for solo classical guitar with pieces for guitar and orchestra, multi-tracked guitars and electric guitar. Nicolella's own Guitar Concerto, performed with the Northwest Symphony Orchestra led by conductor Anthony Spain, is in a neo-classical "Stravinsky" style. His interest in the great composer was recently emphasized to me by the fact that he has done a transcription of the complete Rite of Spring for three guitars. Michael will play some of his compositions for both electric guitar as well as classical at his Third Life Studio recital. See his recent interview in Riffs.

The American violin and guitar ensemble Duo46 (a.k.a. guitarist Matt Gould violinist Beth Ilana Schneider-Gould) will perform with Israeli mandolinist Avi Avital. The concert program will feature music by local composer Steven Funk Pearson and Berklee School of Music Professor Apostolos Paraskevas, newly commissioned trios for B.A.M. (Beth.Avi.Matt) by composers Justin Rubin and Giovanni Albini, and music by J.S. Bach for solo mandolin.

As artists living in the 21st-century, Duo46 embraces music by living composers. Important advocates of contemporary art music, their recordings often celebrate new chamber music for guitar, most often composed specifically for them. Since the release of the group’s debut recording FMI: Homage to the 50s, their performance of new music has been described as "cutting edge" by the Cincinnati Enquirer and "brilliant and breathtaking" by American Record Guide. Ongoing collaborations with American composers inspired their Untaming the Fury record, described as "spontaneous and fresh" by Strad with "fiery performances" by Gramophone. In commemoration of 9/11, this disc features commissions by emerging and established American composers who are contributing greatly to our national heritage. A track from this CD is included on a compilation recording with the music of Rachmaninoff, Faure, Bernstein and Corigliano. This disc, Communing with Music: Practicing the Art of Conscious Listening teaches the listener how to experience music with a new focus and intensity that will benefit the body, mind, heart and spirit.

Their most recent duo recording, Aires de Sefarad--a commission funded in part by the Guggenheim Foundation-- has been described as "one of the most gorgeous releases of the year" by the Cincinnati Enquirer and features 46 Spanish songs by the late Argentinean-American composer Jorge Liderman. The music was inspired by the composer's visit to the Alhambra in Granada, Spain and the vibrant flamenco dancing and music of Seville, and reflects his impressions of past and present Spain in its vast and varied culture. This recording made the 2007 Grammy entry list for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.

"The pair flaunt their gift for the most spontaneous and fresh delivery from the outset...the works commissioned for the disc [Untaming the Fury] are so varied, inventive and enjoyable, and they are performed with such commitment and flair." (Strad Magazine, June/July 2003)

I met Troy King and Kathrin Murray at the 8th Bethlehem Guitar Festival last June. This is a wonderful one-day festival that John Arnold directs at Moravian College. Troy and I were both doing recitals for the festival and I later met his wife Kathrin. They live in Baltimore where Troy teaches at Towson University and Kathrin heads the guitar department at McDaniel College. Both have solo CDs on Centaur, which are stunningly beautiful, and both have studied with Gilbert Biberian and Ricardo Iznaola whose works they perform. Troy's recital was the picture of elegance and refinement with powerful tone and superb musicality. We are lucky to get both performers together as a duo.
- - Frank Wallace

For more information on the performers, please visit their websites:

• www.rupertboyd.com
• www.nicolella.com
• www.duo46.com
• www.troykingguitar.com