Tennessee Guitar Festival 2014, May 29-31

Another great festival shaping up for next week.   We're pleased to have the Tantalus Quartet in residence as well as Stanley Yates, Silviu Ciulei, and Chad Ibison.

In addition to the $1200 First Prize for the TN Guitar Competition, the winner will receive a Glen Perry concert guitar valued at $7000.

The event is open to the public.  The Thurs - Sat schedule of event is here.

There will be 3 rounds of competition, 3 evening concerts, 2 lectures on guitar education, 2 masterclasses, and 2 great dinner party receptions.

All single events are $10, or all  festival event are $30.   Registration is available in the lobby of MTSU's Wright Music Building at any festival event.

What keeps people coming back to this festival are the good times.   Join us!   Paella anyone?

MTSU alumnus Silviu Ciulei wins Schadt String Competition

$8000 First Prize - It's surely one of the largest prizes ever won by an MTSU Grad.

The Schadt String Competition is the annual national solo string competition of the Allentown Symphony Orchestra. I had a feeling Silviu would win.   He played the Giuliani op. 30 Concerto.  He first learned it in high school in Romania.  This was a stunning win due to the level of competition.  He competed against a very competitive group, GFA Prize winners, the previous 2nd Prize winner in this competition, etc...  but there was no doubt.   He received the judges unanimous decision as well as the audience ballot.

Dr. Silviu Ciulei will return to perform a concerto with the Allentown Symphony next season, as well as a series of solo concerts.

I met Silviu 10+ years ago after I performed a concerto in Constanza, Romania with the Black Sea Philharmonic.   I'm glad he decided to visit me backstage after the concert.  I immediately recognized his ability.  I tried for a year to get the MTSU upper administration to offer some help for him to come to MTSU, to no avail.  But, it was former MTSU School of Music Director, George Riordan, who recognized Silviu's talent in about 10 minutes, and later approved an unprecedentedly large scholarship package.   Without Dr. Riordan's help,  Silviu may not have been able to come to study in the USA at MTSU.

Silviu is an old-school type player... plays with a big sound, lots of rest stroke.   My type of player.

Dr. Silviu Ciulei has earned a place for himself in the US due to his extraordinary gifts and contributions.  I certainly hope the immigration system does the right thing and grants him a green card.  If anyone has earned it, he has.

Congrats gitano.

MTSU alumnus Matt Palmer at Carnegie Hall

Matt Palmer was selected with short notice to perform on the prestigious D'Addario Carnegie Hall Performance series.  He received a standing ovation:

This concert came about when a Taiwanese guitarist was unable to make it, the D'Addario Foundation had to scramble to find an American virtuoso to fill the bill.  Most people spend years preparing for a NY debut in this, the most hallowed concert hall in the world, but Matt pulled it off with three days notice, and from all reports, rocked the house.

Even more remarkable for me as a teacher, I had heard that it came down to 2 main choices: both MTSU graduates!  Silviu Ciulei was the other person they had contacted.  Silviu told me today that Michael Newman, a prominent NYC guitarist had contacted him about a 'possible concert in NY' ... not hinting it was Carnegie Hall.  The Foundation President told me she had a hard time deciding between the two.   I told her to consider Silviu for next year.  Silviu this weekend is competing in the Schadt Concerto Competition.  God, I hope he wins it.  $8000 first prize.  He took 3rd last time.

I don't know if there is a higher honor for a teacher to have a student receive a standing ovation in Carnegie Hall ... save for perhaps 2 students.   Next year, Silviu.

Matt demonstrates his nail sanding technique in between pieces in Carnegie Hall

 

Matt getting ready to bring it - the Green room selfie, Carnegie Hall

Matt has come a long way from the days of heavy metal and working on cars in the tiny east TN town of Fall Branch.   Here's Matt pulling an engine from a Chevelle...

What a day ...

A day of quick changes ... and participation in diverse events.

Saturday morning 9:30 am -

I arrive at the college to judge music scholarship auditions of prospective music students at the MTSU School of Music.

10:15 am - I get home to don my sprinters tights and track suit to race in the Sewanee Invitational Indoor Track Meet - 60 miles away

11:30 am - Arrive at the track and begin warmups

12:30 pm - Run the 55m dash with guys 30+ years younger and manage to beat a few... running the third fastest time in the US this season in my age group. Photo: I'm in lane one. More here

3:30 pm - Run the 200m dash, beating 5 college guys and running my season best time, 4th in the US in my age group this season.

4:00 pm - Leave for Murfreesboro

5:00 pm - Quick change into a suit and tune my guitar in preparation for a performance.

5:30 pm - Perform classical guitar at Mike and Becky's wedding

What a day... great to have the lovely lady Iska with me all evening. Great to see Mike marry Becky, a lovely person, excellent cook, and a PhD Biologist. Good to see old friends, nice way to end a really full day.

Best of all, everything went great!

Tennessee Guitar Festival and Competition 2011 - music and parties!

The TN Guitar Fest 2011 was a great hang.

Awesome music, friends, and parties.

Here are some photos... click to enlarge.

TENNESSEE GUITAR FESTIVAL AND COMPETITION: June 1-4, 2011

Tennessee Guitar Festival is up and running. June 1-4, MTSU.

Concerts 8:00 pm, MTSU

TennesseeGuitarFestival.com

Tennessee Guitar Festival at MTSU March 21-25

Tennessee Guitar Festival at MTSU – March 21-25, 2010

All events free and open to the public.

The Tennessee Guitar Festival, the largest festival of its kind in the state, will present five consecutive nights of guitar concerts by some of America’s finest guitar virtuosos.

http://www.mtsu.edu/~yelverto/guitfest.html

Sun., March 21, 8:00 pm – Concert: William Yelverton, Roger Hudson

Mon., March 22, 1:40 – 3:40 pm – Masterclass: Enric Madriguera (SFA 117)

Mon., March 22, 8:00 pm – Concert: Enric Madriguera, Duo Guitiano

Tues., March 23, 8:00 pm – Concert: John Knowles, Nicholas Ciraldo

Wed., March 24, 9:30 am – 11:30 am – Masterclass: Nicholas Ciraldo (Hinton Hall)

Wed., March 24, 8:00 pm – Concert: Jason Vieaux

Thurs., March 25, 2:00pm - 4:00 pm - Masterclass: JasonVieaux (SFA 207)

Thurs., March 25, 8:00 pm – Concert: Silviu Ciulei, Tequila Flamenco Group

All concerts are in the Hinton Music Hall, Wright Music Building
Faulkinbery Drive, MTSU Campus

MTSU Guitar Students Sweep Beethoven Club Guitar Competition

MTSU guitar student Otto Stoy has won FIRST PRIZE in the 32th annual Beethoven Club Young Artist Guitar Competition in Memphis on Saturday, March 6. Also, MTSU guitar students BJ Golden and John Hollandsworth were awarded SECOND and THIRD prizes respectively. Each received a cash award. Congratulations to Otto, BJ and John. This is the forth time MTSU students have swept all of the guitar awards in this annual competition.

Founded in 1888, The Beethoven Club is one of America's oldest private music clubs and sponsors an annual Young Artist Competition for Strings, Guitar, Piano, Voice, Woodwinds and Brass.

MTSU Guitar Student wins First Prize in Houston Guitar Competition

BJ Golden wins First Prize in the collegiate division of the Classical Minds Guitar Competition in Houston on July 2, '09. The Classical Minds Competition is part of the Texas Music Festival at the University of Houston.

BJ, who will be a senior at MTSU next year, won the $500 First Prize. He played music of Mertz, Regondi, Bellinati, Morel, and his own jazz transcription of Earl Klugh's Autumn Leaves. BJ played great.

I performed at the festival and enjoyed seeing my colleagues, Doug James, Elliot Frank, Jon Akers, and festival director, Valerie Hartzell.

(photo: Doug, BJ, and I)

I also taught some very talented students. I was particularly amazed and inspired by the level of performance of the high school level students. Texas has emerged as the major 'guitar state' in America - largely through the efforts of Adam Holzman students, particularly Matt Hinsley - director of the Austin Classical Guitar Society, the largest classical guitar society in America that has developed valuable guitar education outreach programs.

I'm happy to say MTSU guitar student BJ Golden is a great example of a guitar student making a living as a performer. Just 2 days after winning this classical guitar competition, BJ took the stage on July 4th as a sideman for the country group Carolina Rain in a performance for several thousand people in Salt Lake City.

Houston was quite warm, 102 everyday and very little rain. I was amazed that it stayed so warm at night, only 'cooling down' to only about 88 degrees by the wee hours. Sooo happy to be back. See my next post.

MTSU Guitar grad wins Rosario Guitar Competition

Erol Ozsever wins First Prize at the Rosario Guitar Competition in Columbia, South Carolina.

In the finals, Erol performed Aquarelle by Sergi Assad, and Muerte del Angel Tango by Piazzolla.

Judges for the competition held during the weekend of April 25, '09, included Steve Aron, Christopher Berg, and Valerie Hartzell.

Erol graduated from MTSU with a degree in Guitar Performance and now is finishing his Masters as a Graduate Assistant at Indiana University under Ernesto Bitetti.

Congrats Erol!!

MTSU Guitar Grad selected as semi-finalist in Parkening Int'l Guitar Competition

(Updated) MTSU Guitar Grad Silviu Ciulei has been selected as one of 5 finalists in the Parkening International Guitar Competition at Pepperdine University on May 28, through Saturday, May 30, 2009.

Silviu was awarded the $500 semi-finalist prize and the $1000 Fifth Prize. Silviu was the only college student presently attending in the United States to win a prize in this, the preeminent guitar competition in the world.

This competition has the largest cash awards of any classical guitar competition in the world. Over $65,000 in prize money, including the $30,000 First Prize. (The $30,000 1st Prize exceeds even that of the famous Van Cliburn piano competition).

After graduating from MTSU last spring, Silviu was awarded a Graduate Assistantship and a Dean's Fellowship last fall at Florida State University where he studies with Bruce Holzman, my old teacher.

Watch Silviu performing one of the required pieces for the competition on youtube.

(Pic of Silviu partying out on my boat)

Also, congrats to MTSU Guitar students Javier Castellote and Kip Minton for winning 2nd and 3rd Prize at the Beethoven Club Young Artist Competition in Memphis on 3/7. They earned $200 and $100 in Prize money.

First day of class

I love teaching Music Appreciation in summer session. On the first day of class, I come in early and sit in the class, posing as a student. I chat with the members of the class, ask them why they're taking it, what their major is, and, what they've heard about the professor... heh. Then I start to bitch loudly about the professor being late... after a while, then, I get up and start handing out the syllabus... surprise!! I can only do this on the first day of the class. What fun! (I'm in the center of the photo, staring at the camera).

This is my only opportunity to interact with a class of students that are not music majors. I love the curriculum. We cover music elements and basic music theory, and then so many styles... folk, religious, jazz, pop, blues, Native American, Latino, Klezmer, Cajun, Indian, Japanese, to name a few... and then after all that, we tackle European Art Music from the Middle Ages and Renaissance to the present. A lot of stuff. With the help of youtube, the Naxos Listening Library, and various videos, the class really is fun. (and ... it's quite good extra $$$$ too ! )

I've noticed some interesting phenomena about the students in general and myself as an instructor over the years of teaching this class. First, the students in general seem to lack a broad vocabulary. (Almost no one knew what the words 'prolific', 'vernacular', or 'virtuosic' meant). Second, international students writing in their second language often write better than many American students! And... I always seem to learn the names of the female students much more quickly than the male students. Hmmm....

MTSU Guitar Student wins - big time

MTSU Guitar student Silviu Ciulei has just been awarded a full tuition scholarship and a $10,800 stipend to attend Florida State University School of Music for his Masters Degree in Guitar Performance. This is the largest package ever offered by FSU to an incoming Masters level student. The award includes a Graduate Assistantship and a Dean's Fellowship. FSU is one of the finest graduate guitar programs in the US and has placed a great number of it's guitar grads in full-time University teaching positions throughout the US... including me.

Silviu also won Third Prize this weekend at the Appalachian State Univ. Guitar Competition, his second consecutive prize in this competition. This is the Fifth consecutive year that an MTSU student or grad has won a prize in this highly competitive national competition. Some of the programs represented by students in this competition include: Cleveland Institute, Peabody Conservatory, Cal. State Northridge, Manhattan School of Music, etc... it is a big time competition, one of two annual national level competitions in the southeast.

I can't believe it's been 5 years since I met Silviu backstage in Constanta, Romania after my concerto performance with the Black Sea Philharmonic. I knew right away that this kid was extraordinary and wow... has he grown. Since coming to the US, he's gained 4 inches and at least 50 lbs... and some guitar chops to boot.

It's great to see another MTSU grad leave the nest with a huge scholarship. He'll be in good hands at FSU with my old teacher, Bruce Holzman.

Paella, paella, paella!!!

Tennessee Guitar Festival 2008, annual paella party.

Paella is a typical Valencian rice dish from Spain. We are mostly "vegetarians plus seafood," so our paella is a seafood paella with saffron rice, shrimp, scallops, cod, clams, mussels - garnished with roasted red peppers, lemons and mussels in the shell. Lemon asparagus on the side. It was a hit as usual, amazingly good!!

From L to R:
Matt Palmer (badass guitarist, best Tennessee-born classical guitarist - ever); Fred Palmer (Matt's brother and marathon runner); Silviu Ciulei (MTSU Senior), Javier Castellote (MTSU Guitar GTA), Randy Reed (guest artist), Christopher Berg (guest artist), Andrea Dawson (MTSU faculty violinist), Valerie Hartzell (guest artist), Robert and Pamela Trent (guest artists), Jerry Roberts (Nashville guitar seller). Me... I'm the cook.

MTSU Guitar students perform live on Nashville Public Radio - Tequila Flamenco

Silviu Ciulei, B.J. Golden and the Flamenco band Tequila performed the second half of an all MTSU "Live in Studio C" Tuesday morning 3/4/08 on Nashville Public Radio, WPLN FM 90.3.

MTSU Faculty string trio played the first half: Xiao Fan Zhang - cello, Sara Cote - viola, and Andrea Dawson - violin.

Have a listen to Silviu Ciulei - Nashville area's only 'real deal' Flamenco guitarist and singer perform with his band. Sound files will be available for listening to this specific live performance through 3/10/08 at the WPLN web site. Tequila starts at around 29:00 into the recording.

In case you miss it, here's some YouTube clips of the band, and of Silviu playing solo. Also, check out the clips on Tequila's myspace page. The rhythm is in their blood.

On the road: Guitar and Lute Concerts

It's my concert season again. I'm kicking it off with a 'warm up' concert at MTSU on Groundhog Day - Feb. 2 at 8:00 pm in Hinton Music Hall. It's free, come on by.

As usual, I'll be playing an extreme variety of music. As my colleague Doug once mused , I 'go from Flamenco to Renaissance lute.' Yes, and a lot in between.

Since I've been so wrapped up in running and teaching, I'll be playing many of my old favorites and my usual 'out of the ordinary' stuff. For one, Elizabethan dances on the lute. I say 'out of the ordinary' because very few people have seen a lute, let alone heard one played. I was surprised that in a Music Appreciation class of 25+ students I recently played for, not one student could tell me the name of the instrument! Wow. (Pretty amazing since the lute has been depicted prolifically in paintings and sculpture throughout the ages... so much for culture).

I'll also be playing my trademark Rameau variations - Gavotte et Doubles, a French Baroque harpsichord piece that I transcribed for guitar. If you have 7 minutes, listen to this work, it's a lovely piece with a wonderful chord progression that pushes the limits of the idiomatic contrapuntal possibilities of the guitar (and the guitarist too!) . It starts slowly and picks up momentum through the 6 variations, often times sounding like 2 separate instruments playing together. In the same vein, I'll be playing a Scarlatti Sonata in that set.

I'll be starting with 'Delta' - the blues inspired piece by my colleague Roger Hudson and a Flamenco dance called a Farruca from the Spanish Gypsy tradition. Two other Spanish pieces on the program will include the Homage a Tarrega by Joaquin Turina, and the intense and mysterious Invocacion y Danza by J. Rodrigo. In addition to a few standards by Lauro (Four valses) and Barrios (Las Abejas), I'll be playing my arrangements of two pieces by Brazilian Jazz composer, Egberto Gismonti - Palhacho and Frevo.

Here is my full concert schedule.

At Austin Peay in Clarksville, TN, I'll be sharing a concert on 2/6 with the amazing Chet-style guitarist Richard Smith . . . what a privilege. It should be a great night. The only problem is that I have to drive 300 miles to play the next night at Mississippi State. Ugh!

After I get home on Friday night, as threatened, I will finally come out of a 30 year retirement as a sprinter. I am scheduled to run the 55 meter dash in the Middle Tennessee Valentine Invitational Track Meet at Murphy Center on 2/9. This is a definite go! I'll be running against some of the fastest college guys around, less than half my age. Should be a blast.

Talk about extremes ... going from the concert stage performing classical concerts to running a sprint race in a college track meet. Life is very full these days.

Silviu Ciulei - flamenco guitarist performs with his band on WPLN FM 90.3 - Tues at 11:06am - 'Live in Studio C'

Silviu Ciulei's Flamenco Band, 'Tequila' performs live on WPLN

21 year old award winning MTSU guitar student, Silviu performs again on WPLN Tues June 12, 11:06 am and rebroadcast at 8:06 pm. This time, he'll be playing and singing flamenco with his band, "Tequila." In addition to being a great classical and flamenco guitarist, Silviu is also a fine flamenco singer and composer.

Flamenco, the earthy and rhythmic Spanish gypsy style of guitar playing is not a style heard much in Nashville. Listen to Silviu Ciulei perform flamenco guitar program with his band on Tues, live on WPLN 90.3 FM.

Silviu is an award winning classical guitarist and a 'real deal' flamenco guitarist who has studied flamenco with top flamenco guitar masters Adam del Monte and Oscar Guzman.

In case you miss it, you can listen to Silviu's program anytime this week on the internet at WPLN.org

Silviu is a Romanian student attending MTSU on a full international music scholarship. This semester, Silviu won 2 major classical guitar competition prizes in the Texas Guitar Competition and the Appalachian State Competition.

Guitarists -- so you think you've got chops? Check out my student

Matt Palmer: MTSU Guitar grad from 'the middle of nowhere,' TN -- a world-class guitarist, competes internationally

Matt performs Etude #2 by Heitor Villa-Lobos
If you do not see the embedded video, click here to view it directly on Youtube



Matt is from Fall Branch, TN - a small town in the East TN mountains where guys his age talk mostly about cars and guns. After winning 3 major U.S. classical guitar competitions, Matt is competing this week at the Koblenz International Guitar Competition in Germany.

I dropped in on Matt last July at his garage in Fall Branch, he was pulling an engine out of a Chevy.

If you're a guitarist who has studied the Villa-Lobos etudes, you'll appreciate Matt's level of virtuosity. There are very few people in the world that can play that Villa-Lobos Etude #2 with the speed, evenness and clarity you hear in the video. It's just a small sample of what he can do. Matt is not just chops, he plays with great phrasing, tone and lyricism. Guitar competitions can not be won on chops alone, you have to be musical.

Matt is not exactly what you'd expect from this guy in the garage. Matt graduated Summa Cum Laude from the MTSU McLean School of Music, Appalachian State University for his Masters, and is on a full Doctoral Guitar Assistantship at the University of AZ.

I think it's safe to say, Matt, who's still in his 20's, is likely the best classical guitar virtuoso ever born in the state of TN.

I wish Chet could have seen him.

MTSU guitar student wins another major competition prize

Silviu Ciulei, a junior guitar performance major at MTSU has won the $500 Second Prize at the 12th Annual Appalachian State University Guitar Competition on Sunday, April 15. This year's competition was exceptionally competitive and included guitarists from across the US representing universities and music conservatories in Los Angeles, Chicago, Baltimore, Hartford, and Dallas. Also competing were international students representing Slovakia, Bosnia, Israel and Ecuador. (The First Prize was won by Cameron O'Conner, a graduate student from Cal State Northridge). This is the fourth consecutive year that an MTSU guitar student has won a prize in this nationally recognized competition.

From Constanza, Romania, Silviu was awarded a full international scholarship to attend MTSU three years ago. In just three years, he has established himself as one of the Nashville area's finest classical and flamenco guitarists. Last month, Silviu won the $2000 Second Prize in the Dallas International Guitar Competition. Since coming to MTSU, he has won First Prize in the Memphis Beethoven Club Competition and Second Prize in the Mississippi Concerto Competition.

Silviu's program for the competition finals:

Three Caprices - L. Legnani
Un tiempo fue itálica famosa - J. Rodrigo
Jongo - P. Bellinati