Meet some of our friends and learn what they do!
Andrew Zohn
American guitarist Andrew Zohn is recognized internationally for his work as a performer, instructor, and composer. A prize winner in five international competitions including the Guitar Foundation of America and the Stotsenberg International, Zohn has performed concerts on four continents. In 2008, Zohn served as a visiting artist at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China.
Since 1999, he has served on the faculty of Columbus State University in Georgia, where he directs the annual CSU Guitar Symposium. Students of Andrew Zohn have won prizes in several international competitions.
Jan Bartlema
Performer and composer Jan Bartlema (b. Zwolle, The Netherlands) studied at the music conservatories of Zwolle and Enschede under Pieter van der Staak and Jorge Oraison, then furthered his training with Czech Guitarist Milan Zelenka in Prague, with whom he collaborated on various concerts and radio performances in The Czech Republic and The Netherlands.
Jan has released two CDs featuring the works of van der Staak and Kruisbrink; additional chamber music CDs have been released by the Juerga ensemble and the Encuentro Guitar Quartet. Jan’s latest solo album “Oracion” was hailed by the Classical guitar magazine as “a master class in musical presentation and a must-have for all collectors of good classical guitar music”.
Along with solo recitals and guitar concerts in Europe, Canada, USA and China, Jan has frequently performed with orchestras, guitar and choir, guitar and organ, guitar and cello, guitar and piano/harpsichord, and as member of the chamber music group Juerga ensemble, consisting of a soprano, flute and two guitars. His numerous guitar compositions have been published with De Haske Publications in The Netherlands, Les productions d'Oz in Canada and Edition Daminus in Germany.
Currently Jan teaches music in the Music Teacher program at ROC Friese Poort in Drachten, The Netherlands.
Joseph Palmer
Award-winning guitarist Joseph Palmer has earned a reputation as one of the most highly engaging and dynamic young performers on the American guitar scene. His performances have captivated audiences in cities throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Serbia, and France.
Joseph earned degrees in music performance at Columbus State University (2009 B.M.), and the University of Texas at Austin (2011 M.M. & 2015 D.M.A.). In his later years of study, Palmer toured the competition circuit and was awarded eight 1st prizes in international guitar competitions, receiving seventeen awards including such contests as the Boston GuitarFest, Guitare Montreal, and the World Guitar Competition.
As an extension of his work with Austin Classical Guitar, Joseph is also the co-creator of the world’s first classical guitar educational resource for students with blindness/visual impairment, which launched in Summer 2018 (letsplayguitar.org).
In 2018, Joseph Palmer joined the acclaimed Texas Guitar Quartet (txgq.net). This fall, he joined the faculty of University of Mary Hardin-Baylor as instructor of guitar in Belton, TX, where he also runs the annual Texas Guitar Conference.
Patrick Kearney
Born in Montreal, Canada, Patrick Kearney has released four guitar albums: Bouquet (1997); Stringendo (2002); the powerful Diabolico (2004), and the acclaimed Impressions (2009), featuring the works of M.M.Ponce, on the ATMA classique label. Mr. Kearney teaches guitar at Concordia University in Montreal as well as at Vanier College. He is the founder and director of the Montreal International Classical Guitar Festival and Competition which is hosted by Concordia Music.
Christopher Ladd
Christopher Ladd is recognized throughout North America and abroad as one of the most promising classical musicians of his generation. Mr. Ladd is a founding member of The Pandora Duo with flutist Janet Arms, and The Amaranth Duo with violinist Asa Gudjonsdottir. Mr. Ladd currently serves on the faculty of The Hartt School in Connecticut. He is Director of The Hartt School Guitar Festival, and Chair of the Guitar and Harp Program.
Brendan Matthews
“The Barn Raisers” hand cuts and raises traditional timber frame structures with a love of the Art, the craft, the community, sustainability and aesthetics of old New England.
Jeffrey McFadden
Jeffrey McFadden has collaborated with Norbert Kraft, Robert Aitken, Ann Monoyios, John Beckwith and R. Murray Shafer, among others. He is frequently heard on CBC radio and NPR in the United States both as soloist and ensemble player. Jeffrey has given masterclasses and seminars at some of North America's most prestigious institutions including the Université de Montréal, Conservatoire de Music à Hull/Gatineau, University of British Colombia, Michigan State University and the Oberlin College Conservatory. He is a lecturer in guitar at the University of Toronto.
Pascal Archer
Pascal Archer is the founder and artistic director of Exponential Ensemble, a mixed chamber music ensemble creating interactive music educational programs connecting music with math, science and literacy. He is currently Principal Clarinet of the Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic and acting principal clarinet of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra. He has played on several New York City Broadway Show productions. Mr. Archer is also a former member of the New World Symphony, America's Orchestral Academy.
Joe Burros
Through his company, Fine Musical Instruments, Joe Burros sells guitars at locations all over New England and the North Jersey Region/Lehigh Valley Region, including Springfield, MA; Natick, MA; Acton, MA; North Reading, MA; North Kingston, RI, North Haven, CT; and Easton, PA. He also does home and teacher studio showings in New York City, and New England depending upon location, so that the player can benefit from the advice of his or her teacher before purchasing a guitar.
Fred Springer
Sharing his passion for the classical guitar with audiences across different cultures, Fred Springer has performed concerts on three continents in countries including the United States, Argentina, Switzerland, and Canada. Fred earned a Bachelor of Music in Classical Guitar Performance from the University of Texas at Austin, where he also completed a minor in Art History, and he holds a Master of Music in Classical Guitar Performance from Columbus State University. In addition to his work performing, arranging, and transcribing music for guitar, Fred has a passion for film and visual art.
Dani Zanuttini-Frank
Dani Zanuttini-Frank is a student at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, where he studies classical guitar with Ben Verdery. He has had master classes with Andrew Zohn, Pepe Romero, SoloDuo, and Fabio Zanon, among others. Dani has placed in several international competitions, including second place at the Boston GuitarFest Academy competition and second place at the Columbus Guitar Symposium Division II competition in 2017. Dani is an active performer in idioms as far reaching as jazz and early music. In addition to his musical studies, he is an avid student of sociology, urbanism, and French.
Image (top), courtesy Bob Rosen; images following, courtesy of the artists.