Simon Powis, guitar

simon powis · guitar Doctor of Musical Arts Recital

Music of Albéniz, Bach, Brouwer, Coeck, Sor, and Walton Morse Recital Hall • Thursday, October 10, 2013 at 8 pm

Robert Blocker, Dean

Doctor of Musical Arts Recital

simon powis · guitar October 10, 2013 • Morse Recital Hall Armand Coeck b. 1941

Constellations

Johann Sebastian Bach 1685–1750

Ciaconna from Partita in D minor, BWV 1004 transc. Simon Powis

William Walton 1902–1983

Five Bagatelles I. Allegro II. Lento III. Alla Cubana IV. Sempre espressivo V. Con Slancio

intermission

Fernando Sor 1778–1839

Fantaisie élégiaque, Op. 59

Leo Brouwer b. 1939

Sonata I. Fandangos y Boleros II. Sarabanda de Scriabin III. La Toccata de Pasquini

Isaac Albéniz 1860–1909

Granada, from Suite Española No. 1. Op. 47 arr. Barrueco Córdoba, from Cantos de España, Op. 232 arr. Williams Sevilla from Suite Española No. 1. Op. 47 arr. Llobet

As a courtesy to the performers and audience, silence all electronic devices.

Please do not leave the hall during selections. Photography or recording of any kind is prohibited.

Simon Powis

A passionate and expressive style coupled with a formidable technique has garnered attention for Simon Powis as a talented soloist, chamber musician and innovator. Growing up in Sydney, Australia, Powis began his musical studies on the cornet at the age of five. Inspired by his brother, he took up the guitar at age eleven and began an enduring obsession that would result in performances throughout Europe, Australia, and the Americas.

After completing his studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with Raffaele Agostino in 2004, Powis traveled extensively throughout Europe to study with some of the world’s most renowned virtuosos. Oscar Ghiglia, David Russell, Pavel Steidl and Aniello Desiderio have had a great impact on Powis’s musical style and technical foundation. In 2006 Powis was invited to undertake a Master of Music degree at the Yale School of Music on a full scholarship. Upon completing this degree, he was accepted as the first guitarist in over two decades to undertake doctoral studies at Yale.

During his time at Yale the professor of guitar, Ben Verdery, offered instruction, support, and guidance that readied him for a career as a professional musician.

Powis has toured extensively as a soloist with performances in the Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), Australia House (London), and the Banff Center for the Arts (Canada). A strong passion for chamber music has resulted in international collaborations ranging from traditional groups such as the Modigliani String Quartet and Ian Swenson (violin) to less common performances with double bass,

electronics, and even the tuba. Powis’s openness to innovation is exhibited by his devotion to performing new works. In the past years he has collaborated with a variety of composers to premiere over thirty new works on the concert stage.

As a teacher Powis has given master classes in Lima, Mexico City, and New York, and at Yale he was employed as both a guitar instructor at the School of Music and a teaching fellow in the Department of Music. With a growing interest in pedagogy, he decided to undertake research in sightreading for his doctoral thesis. With insights and encouragement from Jerry Willard, David Leisner, John Williams and Ben Verdery, Powis has developed sightreading seminars that he has given in music schools, guitar societies, and guitar festivals around the world.

This performance is in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree.

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Concert Programs & Box Office: Krista Johnson, Carol Jackson Communications: Dana Astmann, Monica Ong Reed, Austin Kase Operations: Tara Deming, Chris Melillo Piano Curators: Brian Daley, William Harold Recording Studio: Eugene Kimball P.O. Box 208246, New Haven, CT · 203 432-4158

music.yale.edu

Robert Blocker, Dean