Sharon Isbin Press Clips - June 1, 2009

May 29, 2009

Sharon Isbin Journey to the New World

Release Date: March 24, 2009 Produced by: David Frost Format: CD The skilled guitar playing of Sharon Isbin sets the tone for this multi-tracked album, with many of the songs broken down into suites and movements. Most songs are arranged from earlier classic works like the four-tracks of “Four Renaissance Lute Works” that includes a five minute rendition of the lovely “Greensleeves.” Within the magnificent “Joan Baez Suite, Op 144,” Isbin works a meditative version of Pete Seeger's “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” In addition, she brings in original flower girl, Joan Baez to lend her vocals to several tunes (“Wayfaring Strangers,” “Go 'Way From My Window”). Isbin enlists the country fiddle of American Roots violinist master, Mark O'Connor within the confines of her 13 part “Strings & Threads Suite.” This twists the style of Journey to the New World to a more lively manner, but still classically presented, thereby highlighting the intended story and flow of the album. Sharon Isbin plays with a softness that is at once pleasant to hear and relaxing to the soul. It transitions into a more Americana style from the original Old World classicism that it begins with. However, Isbin's Journey to the New World should be listened to loudly and immersed in rather than allowing it to slip into the background. You'll have little problem with finding much to like about Sharon Isbin and her unique new album with a lot to musically say. By Matt Rowe

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Sharon Isbin Journey to the New World (Sony Classical) US release date: 24 March 2009 UK release date: 6 April 2009

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Guitar virtuoso Sharon Isbin’s latest release might be described as a classical companion piece to immigration-narrative albums such as Tim O’Brien’s The Crossing and Tom Russell’s The Man From God Knows Where. Teaming Isbin with renowned violinist-composer Mark O’Connor, and boasting a moving cameo by Joan Baez (Isbin’s first musical inspiration), the record traces the progression of folk music from the British Isles to America, opening with a selection of English Renaissance lute AMAZON duets, moving through John Duarte’s sevenmovement “Joan Baez Suite” (written for Isbin in LALA 2002 and based around the folk songs Baez performed and popularised in the 1960s), and concluding with O’Connor’s eclectic 13-movement “Strings and Threads Suite” which draws upon a range of American music traditions. The playing is, as expected, exemplary, and the result is an ambitious, intriguing and thoroughly enjoyable album.

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5/12/2009

06-07 GV5-08 People&Profile

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28 APRIL-11 MAY 2009

ed by the recession, with recent reports alleging musicians had not been paid throughout the month of March.

ART AN D C R AF T For Sharon Isbin, the freedom accorded by the guitar allows for experimentation and creative expression

Williams

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (Ascap) has named

Cosgrove

Sharon Isbin Photo: © J Henry Fair Interview: Christian Lloyd

began playing in earnest when I was nine, in Italy, when I was too young to know what I wanted to be. I was first interested in model rockets and science, and my father told me I couldn’t launch my rockets until I’d put in an hour of practising. Then, when I was 14, I won a competition where my prize was to perform in front of 10,000 people with the Minnesota Orchestra – I found this was even more exciting than sending grasshoppers up into space!’ She passes this excitement on to the composers she works with, having commissioned and premiered more concertos than any other guitarist. ‘Some adapt to the instrument very quickly, like Joseph Schwantner and Tan Dun, who was coming from the tradition of the pipa, the ancient Chinese lute. His concerto united the Spanish guitar and flamenco with the ancient Chinese instrument.’ Despite the smaller classical repertoire, Isbin speaks of the guitar’s advantage over other instruments in that ‘there are no preconceptions, and much more freedom’. John Corigliano’s Troubadors, for instance, required the normally seated Isbin to begin the performance backstage and move with the guitar around the stage, ‘so we had to find some way to hold the instrument with suction cups and devise a wireless sound system to allow me to walk on playing a very fast, virtuosic run’. www.sharonisbin.com Artist’s site

Oscar-winning songwriter Paul Williams as its new president. He succeeds Marilyn Bergman, who has stepped down after 15 years at the helm. Williams has been Ascap’s vice chairman, writers, for the past two years – a position that will now be filled by Jimmy Webb. Williams’ songs include We’ve Only Just Begun, You and Me Against the World and Evergreen, for which he won an Academy Award with co-writer Barbra Streisand.

Ballet.The Oklahoma native will remain as executive director of the OK Mozart International Festival, which he has run for three years. He will take up his new role at the end of this year’s festival in June. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma College of Fine Arts, Black has worked as an actor, director and producer, including three years as a manager for Broadway and off-Broadway productions in New York City.

Scott Black has been named managing director of Tulsa

Matthew Cosgrove has been named general manager of

Onyx, the UK-based classical label, effective immediately. Cosgrove, who has been both head of Warner Classics and head of A&R at Deutsche Grammophon, succeeds Paul Moseley, the label’s owner/ director, who has relinquished day-to-day management duties to join Decca as its general manager, A&R and operations.

The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra has announced Richard Lee as its next assistant conductor. Lee, 38, has been offered a two-year contract, beginning with the start of the next season. He takes over from Rei Hotoda, who is moving to the same role at the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Lee is currently assistant at the Québec Symphony Orchestra.

Margreta Elkins, one of Australia’s best-known opera singers, has died at the age of 78. The mezzo-soprano performed alongside such names as Luciano Pavarotti, Maria Callas and Joan Sutherland. Elkins spent much of the 1960s in the UK, where she sang in the London premieres of Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Michael Tippett’s King Priam, and sang for Winston Churchill’s 90th birthday celebrations. After settling in Brisbane in 1970, she lectured and taught at the Queensland Conservatorium.

Dallas Opera (DO) has promoted Jonathan Pell, its long-serving director of artistic administration, to the position of artistic director – a position last held by Nicola Rescigno, who stepped down in 1990. Pell, who has been a judge in opera competitions in the US and abroad, ‘has a casting gift that is second to none’ according to DO’s interim general manager John T Cody, who stepped in after George Steel left the position in January (see Gig Vol 5 No 1). Pell has also hosted the Dallas Opera Guild’s Insights programme since 1985, and presents masterclasses on ‘The Art of the Audition’ to other companies.

Violinist Frank-Michael Erben, concertmaster of the Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, has been named principal conductor of the West Saxony Symphony Orchestra (WSSO). The 43-year-old, who has been in his current position since 1987, will begin his new role in September. Erben lectures at the Leipzig Hochschule für Musik und Theater, and has been a member of the Gewandhaus Quartet since 1993. Tom Gulick will step down from his role as executive director of the Honolulu Symphony at the end of June. He will not be seeking an extension of his three-year contract. Board chairman Peter Shaindlin said Gulick might leave earlier, should his ‘next employment opportunity require his presence elsewhere prior to that date’, in a memo to board members. He also confirmed that a search committee would be set up to find Gulick’s successor. The orchestra has been affect-

Fanny Waterman, founder of the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, is the new president of Harrogate International Festivals. She will be taking an active role in the planning of the Summer Music Festival, and plans are afoot for a special weekend featuring her favourite artists for her 90th birthday in 2010. Waterman Photo: courtesy of the festival

Photo: © Allan Mercer

‘My first exposure to the guitar was through folk music,’ explains Sharon Isbin, discussing the inspiration for Journey to the New World, her exploration of folk instrumentals from Renaissance England to US ragtime and swing. ‘My parents taught folk dancing, so I grew up listening to and watching the dances. There was a folk dance club at our home, which Joan Baez’ aunt used to come along to – so I actually got to know her before I knew Joan!’ Baez’ presence is strongly felt on the new album – not only does she sing on one track, the CD includes the premiere recording of John Duarte’s Joan Baez Suite.‘We came up with a lot of source material,’ Isbin recalls,‘and in the suite you’ll hear some familiar songs. He’s done it in a very creative arrangement, and once [Baez] heard it, she offered to sing on the recording.’ The CD begins with Isbin’s interpretations of Renaissance folk tunes, including her interpretations of Dowland’s lute music. ‘I’d performed these works five years before recording them,’ she adds. ‘adding embellishments – some of the Dowland works had embellishments marked, but it would be characteristic of the style of the time to change things in the repeats, and that’s what I do. I created an ideal vision in my head of the colours, the phrases, the dynamics, the tempi and the breathing – I had it all in my head as I was doing the other tracks.’ Isbin likes to compare the guitarist’s art with that of a painter: ‘In the different phrases and the repeats, you choose different colours that capture the character and spirit of the work and it changes dramatically.’ The guitar’s role as a classical instrument, in Isbin’s view, gives it a flexibility that other instruments lack. ‘One of the ways I speak as a guitarist is with the lyricism of a singer,’ she states.‘We have an ability that a pianist doesn’t – to use the point between two notes that a singer or a violinist can, and a certain kind of articulation, like the use of the fingernails and how much flesh to use on the instrument. These colours are only possible with a guitar.’ Isbin’s focus on virtuosic technique, as well as her drive to try new things with each CD, might stem from her earlier passion – when she was growing up, she wanted to be a scientist.‘I

Atlanta Ballet (AB) has named Virginia Hepner its interim executive director, as of 1 May. Hepner, will be stepping in to replace Barry Hughson, who has been appointed executive director of Boston Ballet.The AB board has already started a national search for a permanent executive director. Hepner has held several leadership roles including working on the ‘Brand Atlanta’ campaign from 2005 to 2007.

Mwe3.com April 20, 2009

http://www.mwe3.com/reviews/SharonIsbinJourney/ SHARON ISBIN Journey To The New World (Sony Masterworks) Classical guitarist Sharon Isbin is one of the preeminent musicians in the world and she brings her legacy into the 21st century with her 2009 CD Journey To The New World. Released by Sony Masterworks, the CD is something of a departure for Ms. Isbin. Featuring folk music icon Joan Baez and violin virtuoso Mark O’Connor, Journey To The New World combines classical guitar sounds with 20th century American folk music. Commenting on her CD Ms. Isbin adds, ‘It’s one of the most unusual and creative albums I’ve ever done. It’s been percolating subconsciously for many years, because folk music was my introduction to guitar and I have been touched so powerfully by the music and voice of Joan Baez.’ Folk and classical music are two of the most vital outlets for guitarists and when combined they yield some heavenly musical fruit. In fine form still, Joan Baez is featured here on a couple of tracks and O’Connor is prominently featured on his self-composed “Strings & Threads Suite.” Other highlights of the 29 track Journey To The New World include Isbin performing the music of classical guitar icon Andrew York and the world premier recording of the seven part instrumental “Joan Baez Suite” written as a tribute by the late English composer John Duarte. In fact, it was after she heard Ms. Isbin performing the “Joan Baez Suite” that Ms. Baez offered to sing on the album. A rewarding spin from start to finish, Journey To The New World is a fine choice for fans of both classical guitar music and acoustic guitar-based American folk music. www.SharonIsbin.com

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INTERVIEW WITH SHARON ISBIN FOR GENDAI GUITAR MAGAZINE (Japan), June 2009 Issue

Could you tell us about the concept of Journey to the New World, the first CD with Sony label? The music explores the evolution of American folk music through several hundred years beginning in the British Isles with 16th and 17th century Renaissance lute duets in which I perform both parts: Drewrie’s accordes (Anonymous), Lord Willoughby’s Welcome Home (Dowland), Rossignol (Anonymous) and Greensleeves (Johnson.) I vary the colors and embellishment in repeats to explore different characters, moods and textures. I follow with English composer Edward Flower’s brilliant arrangements of Drunken Sailor with its 17th century Irish origins, and Wild Mountain Thyme which evokes an 18th century Scottish song. The journey then crosses the ocean to America where the transformation of these roots takes on a new and distinct vernacular.

John Duarte wrote his Joan Baez Suite for solo guitar for me in 2002, and it includes many songs that Baez performed in her early career. After hearing my performance of the music, she offered to sing on my recording. I

selected Wayfaring Stranger and Go ‘Way from my Window to perform with her. She was a joy to work with, her voice is magnificent, and artistically we share a very special chemistry together. This album is in homage to her.

The journey concludes with Mark O’Connor, the finest folk violinist in America in a style we call country fiddle. He is truly amazing! When I heard his Strings & Threads Suite for solo violin, I suggested he arrange it for the two of us to perform. We premiered it in concert November 2007 and recorded it the following month.

You can hear samples of the music, watch a video of my performance with Mark, and see photos of me with Joan Baez on my website:

http://www.sharonisbin.com

I understand that Joan Baez is your music hero. When and by which song Joan attracted you?

Do you have any

special memory about her? “Sweet Sir Galahad” was one of my early favorites, then later “Diamonds and Rust,” but I love so many of her songs it’s hard to single out a few. She was the only person in my life I ever wrote a fan letter to, back when I was just out of college. Her music has always moved me to tears. When we had our first rehearsal in my home in New York, she asked me first to play for her and placed a chair about a meter in front of mine. As I began to play, she had tears streaming down her face. It was a very powerful, intimate and poignant experience to have shared with her, a total unity of souls.

Could you tell us about Joan’s recent music activities? Joan has been touring the world this last year to promote her latest recording, Day After Tomorrow, and to celebrate the 50th anniversary of her career.

Are there any episodes about her in making recording of the CD? When I took a taxi from the airport to Joan’s home, the driver got completely lost and I arrived 1.5 hours late. He wasn’t too bright… But we finally found her house and it all worked out. We rehearsed with her 94-yr old mother in attendance, ate persimmon fruit from her garden, and had a beautiful next day driving across the Golden Gate Bridge to the California countryside where the Skywalker Sound Studio is located. On the way to our recording, she was learning a song called “The Rose of Sharon” and humming it in the car. We spent ten wonderful hours together that day.

Could you describe in detail how John Duarte composed Joan Baez Suite? After the success of Duarte’s Appalachian Dreams suite, I asked him to write another work for me, this time honoring Joan Baez whose artistry I’ve long admired. Baez loved the idea and gave it her full support. John and I each came up with a list of songs, and from these he created the seven-movement suite. Included are some especially famous ones like “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,”

“House of the Rising Sun,” “Barbara Allen,”

and “Lily of the West.” His approach was very beautiful and creative, using harmonics to suggest funeral bells in “Barbara Allen,” parallel fifths in the bass of “Unquiet Grave” to suggest a pacing ghost, a rising chromatic line in

“The Trees they do Grow High” to create the image of a young boy growing up, a bass drone in the second variation of “Silkie” to give the feeling of Scottish bagpipes, the bugle call of “Taps” played in American military funerals at the end of “Where Have all the Flowers Gone” to evoke fallen soldiers, and so on. I had the opportunity to play the suite for him, ask questions, select tempi and coach with him at his home in London just a couple of months before he died. Knowing the end was near, we listened with tears in our eyes to one of his favorite pieces of music, Henry Purcell’s “Lament” from Dido and Aenaes which he added halfway through “Unquiet Grave.”

I understand Mark O’Connor wrote Strings & Threads Suite based on folksongs of 13 American roots. Could you tell us about what are 13 roots? Mark’s family emigrated from Ireland to the United States during the famous potato famine, settling in the thirteen original colonies before migrating to the West in the early 1900’s. Each movement in Strings & Threads represents a different folk style and appears in a chronological form that reflects the evolution of American folk music and his family’s journey including reels, waltzes, jigs, blues, spirituals, ragtime, swing and bebop.

Did you get any musical influences from your parents? My parents taught folk dancing and as a child, and I would listen to the recordings they enjoyed and watch them dance with their club members in our home, including Joan Baez’s aunt Mimi Kingsley who I met when I was about five years old! My mother loved classical music, and encouraged us all to study an instrument. I began classical guitar at age nine when we lived in Italy. When I was in college, it was my mother who suggested I study Baroque music with the great Bach scholar and keyboard artist, Rosalyn Tureck.

Could you tell us about Andecy by Andrew York, which is recorded in your new CD? Andecy is a hauntingly beautiful work inspired by the many early American, English and Irish folk tunes Andrew heard his father and uncle perform. I chose colors and dynamics in the repeats that would add special character and feeling to the music. I understand this year is the 20th anniversary of creation of classical guitar department at Juilliard School. How long have you been the director of the guitar department? I was asked to created the guitar department in 1989, and have been its director and sole faculty. A year ago, we added an undergraduate degree so now Juilliard offers both Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in guitar. Applications must be received by December 1, and auditions take place in New York end February or early March each year.

How many professional classical guitarists have you produced up to the present? It would be difficult to count! I’ve had students from 16 different countries and many have returned to their homelands to become leading players. Three students from Japan were Go Nagano, Kenta Kondo, and Masahiro Masuda. Other former students you may be familiar with include Antigoni Goni & Kevin Gallagher (each 1st Prize winners of GFA Competition), Mats Bergstrom, Ben Pila, Giuliano Belotti, Johannes Kreusch, Luis Quintero, and

many more.

What is your daily exercise for your good health? I enjoy a healthy breakfast and practice Transcendental Meditation twice a day which I learned as teenager. I eat organic and mostly vegetarian whenever possible. Daily exercise is either jogging, walking, hiking, cross-country skiing, or dancing (I am taking lessons in Latin dance.)

You have received many awards in your professional career. Could you tell us about your most recent awards you have received? I received Guitar Player magazine’s Readers’ Choice Award for Best Classical Guitarist for several consecutive years. Two of my recordings received GRAMMY Awards: Dreams of a World and Concerti by Christopher Rouse/Tan Dun.

Could you provide us with your message to Japanese guitar fan? If you are interested in studying with me, come to the Aspen Music Festival (http://www.aspenmusicfestival.com) where I give four weeks of master classes each July/August in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Applications are due early January. In addition to the guitar program, students can hear hundreds of concerts with top instrumentalists, singers and orchestras. You can also learn from me online at http://www.ivideosongs.com where I teach two works of Savio and Lauro and talk about my experiences.

Tell us about your schedule of concert tour, recording etc. in 2009? This summer I perform at the Ravenna Festival in ITALY, in Miami, and at the Aspen Music Festival where I direct the guitar department. Next season, I am soloist with the Detroit Symphony, Nashville Symphony, and Pacific Symphony in Los Angeles, and give solo recitals, concerts with violinist Mark O’Connor, and performances with Paul Winter and Thiago de Mello (Journey to the Amazon program). I also continue filming a documentary on my life and work.

Over

© Sharon Isbin

MUSICA Maggio 2009

Domande per Sharon Isbin -- Venerdi di Reppublica Magazine, May 1, 2009, Italy 1) Lei è arrivata ai vertici della musica internazionale in un campo, quello della chitarra, dominato dagli uomini. Qual è il segreto? You reached the top of the classical guitar world, which is mainly a male-dominated field How did you manage to do this? I focussed on becoming the best musician and guitarist I could be. This meant seeking excellent teachers like Oscar Ghiglia, Alirio Diaz, Segovia, and ten years study of with Rosalyn Tureck for the music of Bach. I’ve also worked with some of the finest composers of our time, creating popular new concerti which orchestras want to perform. Other projects have taken me outside the classical realm resulting in unusual, never-before-heard collaborations in a variety of genres. Along the way, I was asked to create a guitar department for The Juilliard School, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. My students come from 16 different countries – including Italy of course -- and their influence is felt worldwide. 2) Per il suo ultimo Cd si è avvalsa della collaborazione di Joan Baez. Come è nato il sodalizio? In your latest CD you perform with Joan Baez. How did this collaboration happen? After the success of composer John Duarte’s Appalachian Dreams suite, I asked him to write another work for me, this time honoring Joan Baez whose artistry I’ve long admired. She loved the idea and gave it her full support. The Joan Baez Suite for solo guitar includes many songs she performed in her early career, including “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,” “House of the Rising Sun,” “Barbara Allen,” “Lily of the West,” and others. After hearing my performance of the music, she offered to sing on this Sony recording titled Journey to the New World. I selected Wayfaring Stranger and Go ‘Way from my Window to perform with her. She was a joy to work with, her voice is still magnificent, and artistically we share a very special chemistry together. This album is in her homage, and Joan is touring the world this season in celebration of the 50th anniversary of her career. Would you believe, her aunt used to folk dance with my parents in our home in Minneapolis every month as a member of their university club. So I met Joan Baez’s aunt years before, at age five! The concept of this CD begins with 16th century Renaissance lute duets which I perform with myself, and explores the evolution of folk music through 17th and 18th century Scotland and Ireland, crossing the ocean to America and where the transformation of these roots became a new and distinct vernacular. You can hear samples of the music, watch a video of my performance with the virtuoso folk violinist/composer on the album Mark O’Connor, and see photos of me with Joan Baez on my website: http://www.sharonisbin.com 3) Si dice che lei tragga continua ispirazione dai suoi frequenti viaggi. E' vero? It seems that you get inspiration from your continuous travelling. Is that true? Performing has been a great way for me to discover the world. I’ve learned so much about different cultures and people, and all of these travels and their rich tapestries of life have influenced my music. Whether it’s meeting a famous koto player in Japan or pipa player

from China, discovering the romantic gardens of the Alhambra, hiking in the Brazilian Amazon, or being inspired by the ancient histories of Greece and Israel.... 4) Il compositore Leo Brouwer ha detto di essere stato colpito dalla chiarezza e dal lirismo delle sue esecuzioni. Si riconosce in questo tributo? Leo Brouwer said he was struck by the clarity and poetry of your playing. Did you recognize yourself in this definition? Leo was one of the first composers to write for me, and his Afro-Cuban influenced El Decameron Negro has become legendary. It is a work inspired by poetry and which demands color, clarity, contrast and emotion, so I’m glad Leo feels that I have captured his intended spirit. 5) Come è nata la sua passione per la chitarra classica? How did you become interested in classical guitar? Our family lived in Varese for a year when I was nine years old. When my oldest brother asked for guitar lessons, my parents discovered the wonderful classical guitarist Aldo Minella who commuted weekly from Milan to teach. But my brother’s fantasy was to be the next Elvis Presley, so he declined the lessons and I volunteered to take his place. I loved it immediately. 6) Ha suonato con i grandi del jazz e del rock, ha inciso con la New York Philharmonic l'unico Cd ma registrato da questa celebre orchestra con un chitarrista, ha vinto un Grammy Award, ha firmato la colonna sonora del film di Scorsese “The Departed”, ha avuto 39 copertine in tutto il mondo. C'è un traguardo che non ha ancora raggiunto? You performed with great jazz musicians and rock stars, recorded with NY Philharmonic the first ever Cd this orchestra made with a guitarist, won a Grammy, performed the soundtrack of Scorsese's The Departed, were featured on 39 cover around the world. Is there any goal you haven't achieved yet? I look forward in the next couple of years to recording the duo that rock guitarist Steve Vai wrote for the two of us. I’ve also been taking Latin dance lessons these last several months, and hope to become fluent – both as a leader and follower - in Cha Cha, Tango, Salsa, Merengue, Rhumba, Mambo and other dances. 7) E' la prima volta che Tan Dun scrive per lei? Is this concerto (YI2) the first work composed for you by Tan Dun? Tan Dun wrote the guitar concerto for me in 1996, and I premiered it in Germany with the Orchestre National de France. It was his first work for me, and it is inspired by the beautiful folk tradition of the ancient Chinese lute (pipa) and the rich heritage of the Spanish flamenco guitar of the gypsies. This remarkable interweaving of the two cultures and styles makes this dramatic work compelling and engaging. My recording of it is paired with an equally amazing concerto written for me by Christopher Rouse inspired by the Barcelona architect Antoni Gaudi. 8) Lei dice di non considerare un “no” una risposta definitiva. Sempre così ottimista? You said you didn't take no for an answer. Are you always so optimistic? When the first composer I ever asked to write a concerto said no and then changed his mind after hearing me play, I learned that if you really believe in something, you can find a path

to make it happen. 9) Non è la prima volta che suona in Italia. Le piace questo Paese? This not the first time you perform in Italy. Do you like this country? Every time I return to Italy I remember my childhood, and am grateful for the opportunity this country afforded me to discover my passion for the guitar. I love the history, beauty and diversity of the land, and the warmth and generosity of the people. It was always my dream to return, and I’m so happy now to perform in Italy every year. ********************************************