by Mike Telin
On their debut recording Together, celebrated harpist Yolanda Kondonassis and Grammy Award-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux take listeners on a beautiful sonic journey that will mesmerizes from the first note to the last. On Thursday, May 28 at 8:00 pm in Mixon Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Kondonassis and Vieaux will perform all of the music from the album in a recital presented as a part of the 2015 Cleveland International Classical Guitar Festival. The program will also include Antônio Carlos Jobim’s A Felicidade (arranged for solo guitar) and Carlos Salzedo’s Chanson dans la nuit, for solo harp. CIM student performances will take place in the Pogue Lobby from 7:00 to 7:45 pm. [Read more…]
On Friday, May 29 at 8:00 pm in Mixon Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Ricardo Gallén will present a recital featuring Bach’s complete works for the lute as part of the Cleveland International Classical Guitar Festival. We reached him by Skype at his home in Weimar, Germany, where he is professor of guitar at the Hochschule für Musik “Franz Liszt.” 
Deemed a “master guitar maker,” Canadian luthier Joshia de Jonge has gained international acclaim for her acoustically and aesthetically stunning instruments. On Saturday, May 30 from 11:30 to 12:45 pm at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Studio 113, de Jonge will lead a workshop entitled The Art of French Polishing, in which “participants will be taught through demonstrations and hands-on exercises how to apply shellac finish to wood surfaces using traditional French polish technique.” This event is open to the public and free of charge. De Jonge graciously agreed to an interview via e-mail, and her responses were enlightening. 
On Saturday, May 30 at 4:00 pm in Mixon Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Paul Galbraith (Scotland) will present a recital as part of the Cleveland International Classical Guitar Festival. Galbraith’s program will feature Bach’s “Allemande” from the Lute Suite in E minor, BWV 996 and Cello Suite No. 5, BWV 1011 and No. 1, BWV 1007. The program also includes Mozart’s “Allemande” from the unfinished Suite in C, K. 399 and the Piano Sonata in F, K. 570.
by Mike Telin
Italian Guitarists Matteo Mela and Lorenzo Micheli formed SoloDuo ten years ago. Their performances have received world-wide acclaim from New York’s Carnegie Hall to Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall, from Kiev’s Hall of Columns to Vienna’s Konzerthaus.