Ustad Farida Mawash, singer
Ustad Farida Mahwash was born into a conservative Afghan family. Her mother was a Quran teacher and religion loomed large throughout her upbringing. For many years, her interest in music was suppressed as, at the time, female singers and musicians were viewed with contempt. Upon completion of her studies, Farida accepted a position in the Kabul Radio Station. …
Trimpin, sound sculptor
Trimpin is a Seattle-based, world-renowned sound artist, kinetic sculptor, engineer, musician, composer, and inventor. He has described his work as “an ongoing exploration of the concepts of sound, vision, and movement, experimenting with combinations that will introduce our senses of perception to a totally new experience.” The son of a brass and woodwind player, he …
Timo-Veikko Valve, cello
Timo-Veikko Valve began his studies at the West-Helsinki Music Institute when he was 6 years old. In 1997 he moved to the Sibelius Academy. His main teachers were Heikki Rautasalo, Marko Ylönenand Teemu Kupiainen. Valve continued on to study in Edsberg, Stockholm with Torleif Thedéen and Mats Zetterqvist. He graduated from Edsberg in 2006 and from the Sibelius Academy in 2007 focusing on Chamber Music in both institutions. …
Scott Robinson, alto and bass clarinet
Multi-instrumentalist/composer Scott Robinson has been a highly active presence on the New York-based jazz scene for more than 25 years, appearing on some 200 CDs. He has been heard on tenor sax with Buck Clayton, on alto clarinet with Paquito D’Rivera, on trumpet with Lionel Hampton, and on bass sax with the New York City Opera, along with …
Satu Vänskä, violin
Satu was born to a Finnish family in Japan, where she took her first violin lessons at the age of 3. Her family moved back to Finland in 1989 and she continued her studies with Pertti Sutinen at the Lahti Conservatorium and the Sibelius Academy. From 1997 she was a pupil of Ana Chumachenco at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich, where she finished …
Richard Tognetti, violin
Austlian violinist and conductor Richard Tognetti has established an international reputation for his compelling performances and artistic individualism. He studied at the Sydney Conservatorium with Alice Waten, in his home town of Wollongong with William Primrose, and at the Berne Conservatory (Switzerland) with Igor Ozim, where he was awarded the Tschumi Prize as the top …
Mark Danner, writer
Mark Danner is a writer and reporter who for twenty-five years has written on politics and foreign affairs, focusing on war and conflict. He has covered Central America, Haiti, theBalkans, Iraq and the Middle East, among many other stories. Danner is Chancellor’s Professor of Journalism and Politics at the University of California, Berkeley and James …
Maria Schneider
Maria Schneider’s music has been hailed by critics as “evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, and beyond categorization.” She became widely known for the orchestra she founded in 1992. They appeared at Visiones in Greenwich Village every Monday night for a stretch of five years. Subsequently, the Maria Schneider Orchestra has performed at festivals and concert …
Kayo Iwama, piano
Kayo Iwama, Head of Program for the Graduate Vocal Arts Program at the Bard Conservatory, has performed extensively with singers such as Christópheren Nomura, Lucy Shelton, and Dawn Upshaw throughout North America, Europe, and Japan, in venues such as the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center, Weill Recital Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, the Gardner Museum, Seiji Ozawa …
Jay Anderson, Bass
Bassist/composer Jay Anderson is among the most versatile and respected jazz artists performing today. He has performed/recorded with a wide variety of jazz artists including Woody Herman, Carmen McRae, Michael Brecker, Paul Bley, Bob Mintzer, John Abercrombie, Dave Liebman, Joe Sample, Maria Schneider, Lee Konitz, Mike Stern, Toots Thielemans, Kenny Wheeler, Jay Clayton and non-jazz …
Gilbert Kalish, piano
Gilbert Kalish leads a musical life of unusual variety and breadth. His profound influence on the musical community as educator, and as pianist in myriad performances and recordings, has established him as a major figure in American music making. A native New Yorker and graduate of Columbia College, Mr. Kalish studied with Leonard Shure, Julius …
Frank Kimbrough, piano
Pianist/composer Frank Kimbrough has been active on New York’s jazz scene for nearly 30 years. He is currently a Palmetto Records artist, with previous recordings as a leader for OmniTone, Soul Note, and Mapleshade, and nearly 50 more as a sideman. His latest CD is “Rumors”, with bassist Masa Kamaguchi and drummer Jeff Hirshfield. His previous trio CD, “Play”, with Masa Kamaguchi and Paul Motian, …
Dawn Upshaw, 2011 Music Director
Ojai Music Festival welcomes back Dawn Upshaw as the 65th Festival Music Director making this her fourth appearance in Ojai. Joining a rare natural warmth with a fierce commitment to the transforming communicative power of music, Dawn Upshaw has achieved worldwide celebrity as a singer of opera and concert repertoire ranging from the sacred works …
Bard College Conservatory of Music Graduates
Michael Bukhman is completing his DMA studies at Juilliard in piano performance while working as a collaborative pianist at Bard College. He was a prizewinner in the Hilton Head and the Corpus Christi International Piano Competitions, among others. He had previously graduated with honors (BM) from Oberlin College for his self-produced recording of Shostakovich’s 24 Preludes and Fugues. …
Australian Chamber Orchestra
The internationally renowned for inspired programming and the rapturous response of audiences and critics, the Australian Chamber Orchestra is a product of our country’s vibrant, adventurous and enquiring spirit. In performances around Australia, around the world and on many recordings, the ACO moves hearts and stimulates minds with repertoire spanning six centuries and a vitality …