The Lone Guitarist – Details, episodes & analysis

Join me as I sit down with the legendary Antigoni Goni. If you don't know who she is pop over to her website (http://www.antigonigoni.com/bio.html) and take a quick look at all of the most important accolades in the guitar world. After you've read all of that, forget it, because this interview is about music and art, stories and people, not about awards. Ms. Goni talks about her most recent project https://www.medio-siglo.com/ which pays tribute to the life and legacy of guitar builder Jose Romanillos, her life as a young musician in a foreign country and her general outlook on the world. I am beyond grateful that we had the time to sit down and talk.

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In this final episode of Season 3 of the The Lone Guitarist Podcast Ben Tint Interviews Jeffery McFadden, a Canadian Guitarist. Watch to learn more!

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Widely admired for her technique, artistry, and passionate performances Armenian-American guitarist Gohar Vardanyan has performed throughout the United States and internationally. She has performed for numerous guitar societies, universities, and arts organizations, including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, and guitar societies in Seattle, San Francisco, Houston, Miami, and New York City to name a few. She has appeared on National Public Radio in the United States and Radio Nacional in Argentina. Ms. Vardanyan has performed with the Juilliard Opera Center and as a soloist with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra and Panama National Symphony Orchestra. She has also been a guest artist at International Guitar Festivals in Sweden, Italy, Panama, Canada, and Mexico. She has been featured on the cover of Classical Guitar Magazine. Guitar International Magazine has described her as “the complete package,” “with a musicality and emotional quality . . . that one would expect from someone much older than the young wunderkind. Not only is she able to draw you into her performances with engaging musical interpretations, but she has the technical facility that is required of any concert level guitarist.” Her playing has been described as “passionate,” “evocative,” and “virtuosic.”

 

In addition to her performing career, Ms. Vardanyan is an avid teacher. She maintains a private studio in New York City and frequently teaches master classes and guitar technique workshops during her concert travels.  Ms. Vardanyan is an author of four books from Mel Bay Publication and has an extensive list of instructional guitar videos on both her own and the Strings by Mail channels on YouTube. 

 

Ms. Vardanyan began studying the guitar in her native Armenia at the age of five under the careful guidance of her father, Vardan Vardanyan. At the age of eight, she gave her first public performance and also appeared on Armenian National Television. She was the first prize winner in the Armenian National Music Contest “Amadeus” and was accepted into the prestigious group, “New Names,” for talented young musicians. She performed in numerous concert venues in Armenia, including Komitas Chamber Music Hall and the Small Philharmonic Hall. 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. She was awarded the Young Artist’s Certificate from Interlochen Center for the Arts and the Harold Randolph Prize in performance from the Peabody Conservatory.

 

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.

 

Gohar Vardanyan is sponsored by Strings by Mail and plays on Royal Classics Recital strings. 

 

Guitar: 2012 Jean Rompré

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French guitar phenomenon Dr. Thomas Viloteau is widely considered one of the most gifted classical guitarists today. His first concert was in his home country of France only a year after he began playing, in front of an audience of 200 people. Since that concert, Thomas has played in some of the best venues throughout the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Great Britain, Taiwan and Puerto Rico.

 

Born into a family of fine arts enthusiasts, Dr. Viloteau took his first lesson at the age of twelve. Eight years later he won first prize at the Guitar Foundation of America Competition and subsequently spent a year concertizing in the United States. Other first prizes include the Francisco Tárrega competition in Spain, Mottola competition in Italy, Sernancelhe competition in Portugal, Ville d’Antony competition in France, and Segovia competition in Spain. Dr. Viloteau is the only guitarist to ever win the Arthur Foote Award from the Harvard Musical Association.

 

His book on guitar technique, ‘In the Black Box, Technique(s) of the Classical Guitar,’ has sold more than a thousand copies worldwide. He has been the Artist-in-Residence at the radio show Performance Today, broadcasting his playing performances to more than a million people across the USA. Dr. Viloteau has released recordings with Naxos, MelBay and La Ma de Guido. His two latest albums, ‘Dances Through the Centuries’ and ‘A Song and Dance’ released on Tigado, contain world premiere recordings of the Suite Brasileira 3, which was commissioned and dedicated to Dr. Thomas Viloteau, and of the Suite Brasileira 4, both by Sergio Assad.

 

Dr. Viloteau has lived in Barcelona, Paris, San Francisco, London, Arizona, Montréal and Rochester, NY. In 2019, he joined the guitar faculty at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD.

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Praised for, “Virtuosity and deep musical interpretation”, Samuel Hines is an award-winning guitarist from Southern California. World-renowned Cuban guitarist, René Izquierdo has described his pupil as, “A profound musician, his artistry will touch many!” An Augustine Strings Artist, Hines is also a prize-winner in over 35 competition, with recent first prizes including the 2020 Texas International Guitar Competition, the 2020 Schubert Club Competition the 2019 Houston Guitar Festival, the 2019 Gohar and Ovanes Andriassian Competition at Cal State LA, the 2019 New Orleans International Guitar Festival, and the 2019 Appalachian Guitarfest, 2017 Florida Guitar Festival, and 2017 East Carolina University Solo Guitar Competition, among others. Hines was selected as one of 15 competitors from around the world at the 2012, 2015 and 2019 of the Parkening International Guitar Competition. He has also recently been awarded the 2020 Mid-Career Artist Grant from the East Central Regional Arts Council, through the McKnight Foundation.  Hines is a Doctoral candidate at the University of Minnesota as well as teaching assistant to Maja Radovanlija. Hines plays a 2014 Antonio Marin Montero on Augustine Regal Blue Strings."

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This was a fun interview to do. David has a lot of information, wisdom and a good sense of humor. Wearing many different hats, he brings serious knowledge to the podcast.   Playing with Ease, can be found on Amazon or at many guitar retailers or on the Oxford University Press website,   https://global.oup.com/academic/produ...   Registration for the Memphis guitar festival can be found here. https://secure.touchnet.com/C20227_us... From David Leisner's official bio:  DAVID LEISNER is an extraordinarily versatile musician with a multi-faceted career as an electrifying performing artist, a distinguished composer, and a master teacher. “Among the finest guitarists of all time”, according to American Record Guide, Leisner is a featured recording artist for the Azica label, with 9 highly acclaimed recordings, including the most recent, Arpeggione with cellist Zuill Bailey and Facts of Life, with the music of Del Tredici, Golijov and Bach. Other recordings are on the Naxos, Telarc and Koch labels, with a concert DVD published by Mel Bay. David Leisner's recent seasons have taken him throughout the US, Canada and Mexico, Asia, Australasia and Europe. Celebrated for expanding the guitar repertoire, David Leisner has premiered works by many important composers, including David Del Tredici, Virgil Thomson, Ned Rorem, Philip Glass, Richard Rodney Bennett, Peter Sculthorpe and Osvaldo Golijov. He was also a pioneer in the rediscovery of 19th-century guitar composers, Johann Kaspar Mertz and Wenzeslaus Matiegka. A frequent visitor to important chamber music festivals, he is also the Artistic Director of Guitar Plus, an innovative series in New York devoted to chamber music with the guitar.  His own compositions, noted for their emotional and dramatic power, are performed, recorded and published worldwide. Fanfare magazine described his music as “rich in invention and melody, emotionally direct, and beautiful”. An extensive discography includes the much-praised Cedille CD, Acrobats, performed by the Cavatina Duo, while his compositions are published mostly by Theodore Presser Co. A distinguished teacher as well, Leisner is currently Chair of the Guitar Department at the Manhattan School of Music. Oxford University Press has published his book, “Playing with Ease: a healthy approach to guitar technique”.  www.davidleisner.com

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I had such a great time talking with Andy Sorensen. It's crazy, we should have already been good friends. We went to the same school, hang out with the same people, and live in the same general area. I can honestly say this was one of my favorite conversations. Andy was a lot of fun and the stories just flowed out of him. I really hope you enjoy.  check out his links and bio below  www.andysorensonmusic.com www.andysorensonmusic.com/book www.atlasgray.com www.instagram.com/andysorenson www.instagram.com/atlasgray  Andy is a guitarist, composer, producer, and educator based in Hartford, CT.  As a founding member of the band Atlas Gray, he has toured with legendary artists such as Albert Lee, Denny Laine, and Peter Asher.  Atlas Gray's new full length album is slated for release throughout 2021.  They recently released a cover of Maybe I'm Amazed (Paul McCartney) for SongAid benefiting the NAACP and WhyHunger alongside artists such as Carlos Santana, Tom Morello, Wilco and more.   Andy is half of Twin Engine, a studio collaboration with fellow producer/composer Rob Griffith (Bronze Radio Return) in which they compose music for licensing purposes as well as producer artists and bands.  As a session musician, Andy is versed in electric and acoustic guitar, bass, and lap steel, and has worked with a variety of artists and bands in an array of styles ranging from rock, soul, pop, folk, hip hop and more.  In the fall of 2017, Andy joined renowned singer-songwriter Stephen Kellogg on his Postcard Tour, playing electric and acoustic guitar, lap steel and bass.  Andy is the producer for hip hop artist WHXAMI, with whom he has accumulated millions of streams on Spotify and Soundcloud.  Under the name AUMEN, Andy has released an EP of music for meditation, as well as composed and produced music for meditation catalogs and courses by Lydia McClain and MoonRising Circle.  As an educator, Andy created a guitar reference ebook with the goal of helping guitarists and musicians of all levels hone their skills in a clear and concise way focused on real world knowledge and application. The new expanded version 3 is now available for download. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/benjamin-tint/support

This interview is the EXACT REASON I created this podcast. Patrick and I talk about all sorts of things, from metal, to metal, to metal, then eventually to the guitar, education and what makes a good musician (and person). ************************************* SHOW NOTES *************************************  *I mistakenly noted Jerome Ducharme instead of Jerome Mouffe. (Sorry Jeromes and Jim Davidson)  From Patrick's Bio Classical guitarist Patrick Kearney represents a rare balance between sheer technical virtuosity and intense musicality. A true artist, he consistently spellbinds audiences through his deep musical insight and natural dramatic flair, interspersing his performances with narration and anecdotes discovered through deliberate research into the guitar repertoire. Born in Montreal, Canada, Patrick Kearney discovered the classical guitar early on in life. Having won his first national competition in Ottawa at the age of ten, he pursued his studies first under Daniel Boyer and then with Jacques Joubert at Vanier College. Convinced that music was his true calling, Patrick went on to complete his Superior Diploma in Performance at the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he received the highest honours under the direction of Rafaël Andia and Alberto Ponce. Upon his return from France in 1993, Patrick began his professional career as an international competitor and touring artist, winning top prizes in several international competitions. Patrick has performed in concert and conducted master classes on numerous tours throughout Europe, the United States, Mexico, and Canada. He has appeared as a soloist with several orchestras, including the Orchestre Philharmonique de l’Îsle, the Shenandoah University Orchestra, Montreal’s I Musici, and the Ensemble Appassionata. In 1997 he completed his Master’s Degree under the guidance of Peter McCutcheon. Never content to remain confined within the standard guitar repertoire, Patrick has taken steps to contribute significantly to the world of art music. He has commissioned and premiered several works by contemporary composers such as Harry Stafylakis, Andrew Zohn, Atanas Ourkouzounov, Jay Kauffman, Ginette Bellevance, and Robert F. Jones, and has inspired composers such as Daniel Boyer and Claude Engel to create and dedicate new works to him. Patrick Kearney has released four guitar albums: Bouquet (1997); Stringendo (2002), which is a tribute to contemporary Montreal-related composers and was nominated for the prestigious OPUS Prize; the powerful Diabolico (2004), in which the listener follows a musical timeline between ambitious youth and understated maturity; and recently the acclaimed Impressions (2009), featuring the works of M.M.Ponce, on the ATMA classique label. Before the end of 2019, Novae, Patrick’s latest album, will see the light of day on the Spanish label, Contrastes Records! Mr. Kearney has been newly appointed (summer of 2019) to teach classical guitar at McGill University in Montreal. As well, Patrick teaches guitar at Concordia University in Montreal and Vanier College. He is the founder and director of the Montreal International Classical Guitar Festival and Competition, which is hosted by Concordia Music. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/benjamin-tint/support

I know I say this in every description for every video, but damn if this wasn't one hell of a night. Scott and I talked for a few hours about all sorts of stuff. There was a lot of dry sarcasm, dated references and fun. We talked about his life with music, competitions and the types of guitars he likes to play.   We didn't get to Segovia, coffee or watches (too much), but that will be for next time. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/benjamin-tint/support

This was a fun one. I spent my masters program sitting in a different kind of chair opposite to Dick. This was a great interview. We talked about all sorts of topics but ultimately I think you'll take away the massive amount of knowledge he has. As a musician he has toured the world, studied with Segovia, Ghiglia and others. as a teacher he founded the oldest guitar program in the country and as a man he has lived a full life of music and art. Get comfortable, grab a notebook and absorb as much of this as you can!

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