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• Alan Mearns, Guitar Virtuoso in Concert

  • When
    2 Nov 2024
  •  
    7:30 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    St. Francis Episcopal Church 1205 Pine Ave, San Jose, CA 95125

  Register

   

  DIRECTIONS: St Francis Episcopal Church 

  ​Guitar Virtuoso Alan Mearns in concert

  with a Prelude performance by Meezahn Kemal

  Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Alan Mearns began musical studies on the classical violin at age five, switching to the guitar at ten. After moving to the U.S. in his late teens, Mearns studied guitar with Douglas James at Appalachian State University under the prestigious Fletcher Scholarship and with Stanley Yates at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn.

  Prelude performer Meezahn Kemal

  John Dowland:  My Lady Hunsdon's Allemande (Poulton 54)
  Dušan Bogdanović:  Secrets Nos. 3 and 7
  J.K. Mertz:  Nocturne Op. 4 No. 1
  

  Meezahn Kemal, age 15, has performed in numerous recitals, including at the 2024 Summer Guitar Workshop at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he studied both solo and ensemble repertoire under David Tanenbaum, Marc Teicholz, and Meng Su. Meezahn has been a student for six years under Bradly Pupa at the California Conservatory of Music. Outside the guitar, Meezahn is a high-school sophomore in Redwood City and has sung in his school choir and been on his school’s cross-country and track teams.   

  
  

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• Marko Topchii, Guitar Foundation of America Competition Winner in Concert

  • When
    2 Feb 2025
  •  
    7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    Community School of Music and Arts, Tateuchi Hall, 230 San Antonio Cir, Mountain View, CA 94040

  Register

  

  DIRECTIONS: Tateuchi Hall

  ​PLEASE NOTE THE START TIME OF 7:00 p.m.

  Guitar Foundation of America winner Marko Topchii in concert

  with a Prelude performance by Ashwin Naren

  Born in 1991 into a musical family in Ukraine, renowned classical guitarrist Marko Topchii has garnered widespread acclaim for his exceptional talent and numerous competition victories. With over 100 awards in international competitions, including first prizes in the prestigious International Guitar Competition Francisco Tarrega and the Guitar Foundation of America's International Concert Artist Competition, Marko has established himself as a one-of-a-kind musician in the classical guitar world.
  

  Marko has graced some of the most esteemed venues worldwide including Carnegie Hall, the Salle Cortot in Paris and Yamaha Ginza Hall in Tokyo. He has performed 15 concertos with orchestras around the world, showcasing his musical depth and flexibility.

  Marko discography includes solo albums recorded under legendary classical music labels Naxos and Contrastes. His most recent Naxos recording was released in spring 2024 as part of the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America  Laureate Series.

  Beginning his guitar studies at age four under Volodymyr Homenyuk, Marko graduated from Kharkiv Conservatory and pursued advanced studies under notable mentors Volodymyr Dotsenko and Yuri Aleksik. In 2018, he joined the Professional Studies program of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under Judicaёl Perroy, with whom he continued his studies at Haute Ecole de Musique de Genève in its Master Soloiste program.

  Prelude performer Ashwin Naren

  Ashwin Naren is a student of Scott Cmiel.

   

  
  

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• Guitar Virtuoso Petra Poláčková in Concert

  • When
    1 Mar 2025
  •  
    7:30 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    Evergreen Valley High School, 3300 Quimby Road, San Jose

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   Guitar virtuoso Petra Poláčková in concert

  with a Prelude performance by Lukas Lin

  With her extraordinary musicianship and virtuosity, Petra Poláčková has performed and led masterclasses at many prestigious festivals around the world, including in Bonn, Vienna, Prague, Paris, Madrid, Jerusalem, and across Australia.  

  Since 2010 she has been an organizer of the Guitar Festival Mikulov in the Czech Republic and in 2020 released her debut recording of music by German lutenist Sylvius Leopold Weiss, recorded on a nine-string romantic guitar.

  Poláčková studied at the School of Music in Pardubice in the Czech Republic with Prof Petr Saidl and received her university degrees with Prof. Paolo Pegoraro at Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz in Austria.

  She is teaching in Austria at the Franz Schubert Music School Fürstenfeld, the Johann-Joseph-Fux Konservatorium Graz, and Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/Aalborg. She performs on a historical guitar by Domingo Esteso, courtesy of Gabriele Lodi, a classical guitar by Martin Šuk, and a nine-string romantic guitar by Jan Tuláček.
  

  Prelude performer Lukas Lin

  Lukas Lin is a student of Yuri Liberzon. 

  
  

  
  

  
  

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• David Russell, Guitar Virtuoso in Concert

  • When
    23 Mar 2025
  •  
    2:00 PM - 4:30 PM
  • Location
    Sobrato Auditorium, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose

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  David Russell, Guitar Virtuoso in Concert

  with a Prelude performance by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music's Pre-College guitar orchestra, directed by Scott Cmiel

  Please note the SUNDAY 2:00 p.m. time of this concert.

  DIRECTIONS: Sobrato Auditorium at Hammer Theatre Center, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose

  David Russell is world-renowned for his superb musicianship and inspired artistry and has earned the highest praise from audiences and critics alike. In recognition of his great talent and his international career, he was named a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in London in 1997.

  In May 2003 he was bestowed the great honor of being made "adopted son" of Es Migjorn, the town in Minorca where he grew up. Later the town named a street "Avinguda David Russell" in his honor. After winning a Grammy, the town of Nigrán in Spain where he resides, honored him  with a town medal.

  During his studies at the Royal Academy, Russell twice won the Julian Bream Guitar Prize. Later he won numerous international competitions, including the Andrés Segovia Competition, the José Ramírez Competition and Spain's prestigious Francisco Tárrega Competition.

  Today Russell tours the world and appears regularly at prestigious halls in New York, London, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Madrid, Toronto and Rome, captivating concertgoers with his musical genius and captivating stage presence. His love of his art resonates through his flawless and seemingly effortless performances. The attention to detail and provocative lyrical phrasing suggest his innate understanding of what each composer sought and bring a sense of adventure to each piece.

  A prolific recording artist, Russell has made includes 17 albums with Telarc International.

  The New York Times has commented: "... Mr. Russell made his mastery evident without ever deviating from an approach that places musical values above mere display. It was apparent to the audience throughout the recital that Mr. Russell possesses a talent of extraordinary dimension."

  Upon hearing him play in London, Andrés Segovia wrote, "My congratulations on your musicality and guitaristic technique."

  Prelude performers: San Francisco Conservatory of Music's Pre-College guitar orchestra, directed by Scott Cmiel

  
  

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• Kyuhee Park, Guitar Virtuoso in Concert

  • When
    5 Apr 2025
  •  
    7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    Tateuchi Hall, Community School of Music and Arts, 230 San Antonio Circle, Mountain View

  Register

   

  DIRECTIONS: Tateuchi Hall, Community School of Music and Arts 

  ​PLEASE NOTE THE START TIME OF 7:00 p.m.

  Guitar Virtuoso Kyuhee Park in concert

  with a Prelude performance by Lucas Quan

  Originally from Incheon, South Korea, Kyuhee Park is the first-prize winner of the Alhambra International Guitar Competition, Augustín Barrios International Guitar Competition and Printemps de la Guitare International Competition, among others. A former student at the Tokyo College of Music, she participated in opera tours conducted by the late Maestro Seiji Ozawa and studied under leading Japanese classical guitarists Shin-ichi Fukuda and Kiyoshi Shomura and at Vienna Music University under Alvaro Pierri.
  
  Ms. Park made her highly acclaimed CD debut with “Sueño” on the FONTEC label in Japan in 2010 and two years later released “Sonate Noir.” Collaborating with Nippon Columbia, she released the album ”Spanish Journey.”
  

  Prelude performer Lucas Quan

  Lucas Quan is a student of Patrick O'Connell.

  
  

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• Giulia Ballarè, Guitar Virtuoso in Concert

  • When
    3 May 2025
  •  
    7:30 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    St. Francis Episcopal Church 1205 Pine Ave, San Jose, CA 95125

  Register

  
  

  DIRECTIONS: St Francis Episcopal Church 

  ​Guitar Virtuoso Giulia Ballarè in concert

  with a Prelude performance by the Cypress Strings Guitar Quartet 

  Guitarist Giulia Ballarè performs around the world and has appeared in numerous countries on four continents, including the U.S., Brazil, Mexico, Russia,  Spain, Switzerland, France, Poland, Ireland, England, Austria, Portugal, Montenegro, Estonia, Croatia, Hungary, Bosnia Herzegovina, Romania, Finland, Bulgaria, Sweden, Germany, and Italy. 

  She is professor at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève in Switzerland and Conservatorio "A Vivaldi" in Allessandria, Italy. She also organizes an annual masterclass in Novara in Italy.

  In 2013 she released her first album with the label dotGuitar entitled Lirically Spain and released a second album Untuned Guitar in 2019 under the Spanish label JSM Guitar Records. In 2019 she founded the Gauthey Ballarè Duo with French guitarist Pauline Gauthey. In 2023 they released their first album Lo Que Vendrá" under JSM Guitar Records.

  The winner of more than 30 prizes in international competitions, Ballarè is a Savarez Artist.

  Prelude performer: Cypress Strings Guitar Quartet

  
  

  The Cypress Strings Guitar Quartet is directed by Anthony DeMers.

  
  

  
  

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