Eliot Fisk
Encyclopedia
Eliot Fisk is an American classical guitar
ist.
and is the holder of all reproduction rights to Segovia's music, given to him by Segovia's wife, Emilia. After attending Jamesville-Dewitt High School
in Dewitt, New York, Class of 1972, Fisk also studied interpretation under harpsichord
ists Ralph Kirkpatrick and Albert Fuller at Yale University
, where he graduated summa cum laude in 1976. After graduation, he was asked to form the Guitar Department at the Yale School of Music
. He was the winner of the International Guitar Competition in 1980.
He is a professor at the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg
in Austria
, where he teaches in five different languages, and in Boston
at the New England Conservatory. His students have come from many countries, and several have gone on to become important performers and teachers in their own right.
Fisk lives in Boston, Salzburg, and Granada, Spain with his wife, Zaira, and their 6-year-old daughter, Raquel. He uses a handmade Thomas Humphrey Millennium guitar and another by upcoming luthier
Stephan Connor. He received the Grand Cross of Isabel la Cátolica on June 10, 2006, from King Juan Carlos of Spain. Earlier recipients have included Andrés Segovia and Yehudi Menuhin
. Fisk earned the award for contributions to Spanish music as an interpreter and teacher.
into unusual venues, including schools, senior centers and even prisons. He has received critical acclaim in recital
, as a soloist
with major orchestras and in a wide variety of chamber music
combinations. In 1996 he appeared in a command performance in the Palacio de los Cordova in Granada, Spain, for then U.S. President Bill Clinton
and King Juan Carlos
and their families.
Fisk is founder and director of Boston Guitar Fest, an annual event held in the month of June at the New England Conservatory
. This workshop is dedicated to exploring new technical and musical possibilities of the guitar within an international cultural context. He has expanded the repertoire for the guitar through transcriptions of works by Bach
, Scarlatti
, Haydn, Mozart, Paganini, and others, as well as through commissions from various composers including Luciano Berio
, Leonardo Balada
, Robert Beaser, Wiliam Bolcom, Xavier Montsalvatge
, Nicholas Maw
, George Rochberg
and Kurt Schwertsik
. His transcriptions and editions are published by Universal, Presser, Ricordi and Guitar Solo Publications.
His recordings for the Musical Heritage Society, DGG, Arabesque, and EMI
have been much praised and even entered the Billboard charts
as bestsellers. Many of these recordings include repertoire never before performed on the guitar such as his reading of the 24 solo violin Capricci, Op. 1 of Paganini, and his recordings of contemporary works by Berio and Rochberg or his recording with Paula Robison of Robert Beaser’s Mountain Songs, which was nominated for a Grammy.
Fisk's efforts in unconventional musical territory have included collaborations with chanteuse Ute Lemper, Turkish music expert Burhan Öçal, jazz
musician Joe Pass
, and master of castanets Lucero Tena. Upcoming projects include the premiere of a new quintet for guitar and strings by Leonardo Balada
with the Miro String Quartet, the premiere of a new guitar concerto by Robert Beaser, and a nationwide tour of the US resulting in a duo CD with flamenco guitar
ist Paco Peña
.
Classical guitar
The classical guitar is a 6-stringed plucked string instrument from the family of instruments called chordophones...
ist.
Biography
Fisk was the last direct pupil of Andrés SegoviaAndrés Segovia
Andrés Torres Segovia, 1st Marquis of Salobreña , known as Andrés Segovia, was a virtuoso Spanish classical guitarist from Linares, Jaén, Andalucia, Spain...
and is the holder of all reproduction rights to Segovia's music, given to him by Segovia's wife, Emilia. After attending Jamesville-Dewitt High School
Jamesville-DeWitt High School
Jamesville-DeWitt High School is a New York State public education facility located in the Town of DeWitt, serving high school students in the Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District. The current principal is Mr. Paul Gasparini....
in Dewitt, New York, Class of 1972, Fisk also studied interpretation under harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
ists Ralph Kirkpatrick and Albert Fuller at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, where he graduated summa cum laude in 1976. After graduation, he was asked to form the Guitar Department at the Yale School of Music
Yale School of Music
The Yale School of Music is one of the twelve professional schools at Yale University and one of the premier music conservatories in the world....
. He was the winner of the International Guitar Competition in 1980.
He is a professor at the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg
Universität Mozarteum Salzburg
In Salzburg, the Universität Mozarteum Salzburg, the University of Music and Dramatic Arts Mozarteum Salzburg, honours the Austrian city's most famous son, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.-History:...
in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, where he teaches in five different languages, and in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
at the New England Conservatory. His students have come from many countries, and several have gone on to become important performers and teachers in their own right.
Fisk lives in Boston, Salzburg, and Granada, Spain with his wife, Zaira, and their 6-year-old daughter, Raquel. He uses a handmade Thomas Humphrey Millennium guitar and another by upcoming luthier
Luthier
A luthier is someone who makes or repairs lutes and other string instruments. In the United States, the term is used interchangeably with a term for the specialty of each maker, such as violinmaker, guitar maker, lute maker, etc...
Stephan Connor. He received the Grand Cross of Isabel la Cátolica on June 10, 2006, from King Juan Carlos of Spain. Earlier recipients have included Andrés Segovia and Yehudi Menuhin
Yehudi Menuhin
Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin, OM, KBE was a Russian Jewish American violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in the United Kingdom. He was born to Russian Jewish parents in the United States, but became a citizen of Switzerland in 1970, and of the United Kingdom in 1985...
. Fisk earned the award for contributions to Spanish music as an interpreter and teacher.
Career and evaluation
An innovative performer, Fisk is known for an adventurous repertoire and willingness to take art musicMusic
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
into unusual venues, including schools, senior centers and even prisons. He has received critical acclaim in recital
Recital
A recital is a musical performance. It can highlight a single performer, sometimes accompanied by piano, or a performance of the works of a single composer.The invention of the solo piano recital has been attributed to Franz Liszt....
, as a soloist
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
with major orchestras and in a wide variety of chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
combinations. In 1996 he appeared in a command performance in the Palacio de los Cordova in Granada, Spain, for then U.S. President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and King Juan Carlos
Juan Carlos I of Spain
Juan Carlos I |Italy]]) is the reigning King of Spain.On 22 November 1975, two days after the death of General Francisco Franco, Juan Carlos was designated king according to the law of succession promulgated by Franco. Spain had no monarch for 38 years in 1969 when Franco named Juan Carlos as the...
and their families.
Fisk is founder and director of Boston Guitar Fest, an annual event held in the month of June at the New England Conservatory
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
. This workshop is dedicated to exploring new technical and musical possibilities of the guitar within an international cultural context. He has expanded the repertoire for the guitar through transcriptions of works by Bach
Bạch
Bạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
, Scarlatti
Alessandro Scarlatti
Alessandro Scarlatti was an Italian Baroque composer especially famous for his operas and chamber cantatas. He is considered the founder of the Neapolitan school of opera. He was the father of two other composers, Domenico Scarlatti and Pietro Filippo Scarlatti.-Life:Scarlatti was born in...
, Haydn, Mozart, Paganini, and others, as well as through commissions from various composers including Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian composer. He is noted for his experimental work and also for his pioneering work in electronic music.-Biography:Berio was born at Oneglia Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (October 24, 1925 – May 27, 2003) was an Italian...
, Leonardo Balada
Leonardo Balada
Leonardo Balada , is a Catalan American composer, now teaching and composing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Life:...
, Robert Beaser, Wiliam Bolcom, Xavier Montsalvatge
Xavier Montsalvatge
Xavier Montsalvatge i Bassols was a Spanish Catalan composer and music critic. He was one of the most influential music figures in Catalan music during the latter half of the 20th century.-Life:...
, Nicholas Maw
Nicholas Maw
John Nicholas Maw was a British composer.-Biography:Born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, Maw was the son of Clarence Frederick Maw and Hilda Ellen Chambers. He attended the Wennington School, a boarding school, in Wetherby in the West Riding of Yorkshire. His mother died of tuberculosis when he was 14...
, George Rochberg
George Rochberg
George Rochberg was an American composer of contemporary classical music.-Life:Rochberg was born in Paterson, New Jersey. He attended the Mannes College of Music, where his teachers included George Szell and Hans Weisse, and the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Rosario Scalero and...
and Kurt Schwertsik
Kurt Schwertsik
Kurt Schwertsik is an Austrian contemporary composer. He is famous for creating the “Third Viennese School” and spreading contemporary classical music....
. His transcriptions and editions are published by Universal, Presser, Ricordi and Guitar Solo Publications.
His recordings for the Musical Heritage Society, DGG, Arabesque, and EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
have been much praised and even entered the Billboard charts
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
as bestsellers. Many of these recordings include repertoire never before performed on the guitar such as his reading of the 24 solo violin Capricci, Op. 1 of Paganini, and his recordings of contemporary works by Berio and Rochberg or his recording with Paula Robison of Robert Beaser’s Mountain Songs, which was nominated for a Grammy.
Fisk's efforts in unconventional musical territory have included collaborations with chanteuse Ute Lemper, Turkish music expert Burhan Öçal, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
musician Joe Pass
Joe Pass
Joe Pass was an Italian-American jazz guitarist of Sicilian descent. He is generally considered to be one of the greatest jazz guitarists of the 20th century...
, and master of castanets Lucero Tena. Upcoming projects include the premiere of a new quintet for guitar and strings by Leonardo Balada
Leonardo Balada
Leonardo Balada , is a Catalan American composer, now teaching and composing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Life:...
with the Miro String Quartet, the premiere of a new guitar concerto by Robert Beaser, and a nationwide tour of the US resulting in a duo CD with flamenco guitar
Flamenco guitar
A flamenco guitar is a guitar similar to a classical guitar. Flamenco guitar also refers to toque, the guitar-playing part of the art of Flamenco.-Brief history:...
ist Paco Peña
Paco Peña
Paco Peña is a Spanish flamenco guitarist. He is regarded as one of the world's foremost traditional Flamenco players.Born in Córdoba, Spain as Francisco Peña Pérez, Paco Peña began learning to play the guitar from his brother at age 6 and made his first professional appearance at 12...
.
Criticism
- "He constantly stretches himself and his instrument technically [...] And yet I had to notice, as in Fisk’s previous visit that I attended, wildly fast tempos that became unsteady and led to wrong or smudged notes."
- "In several of the caprices, as arranged and played by Eliot Fisk, one gets an impression that they are either unsuitable for playing on the guitar or the musician has been stretched beyond his technical capabilities. [...] A reasonable observation is that Mr. Fisk may have bitten off more, technically, than he can chew."
- "A hallmark of virtuosity is precise and accurate execution of certain passages very quickly, and exercising good musical judgement within the context of the music. Laudable though his arrangements and intentions may be, Mr. Fisk fails to give a convincing performance in those caprices that require execution within the criteria defined. Some, irrespective of the speed at which they are traditionally played on the violin, may benefit in his hands if their tempi were decreased, and winning the Paganini Derby given a lower priority."
- [...] Eliot Fisk opened the second half with a lute prelude and his arrangement of the Chaconne from Bach's D minor Violin Partita. If the steady tread and the cumulative magnificence of that great movement can be achieved on the guitar, they were not apparent here.
Views on guitarists
Eliot Fisk has said:- "It's true that SegoviaAndrés SegoviaAndrés Torres Segovia, 1st Marquis of Salobreña , known as Andrés Segovia, was a virtuoso Spanish classical guitarist from Linares, Jaén, Andalucia, Spain...
didn't get compositions from Bartok, Stravinsky, Prokifiev and a lot of composers we would like to have pieces from. Maybe he was in a position to have done that, but on the other hand, who among us has done as much as he did? If other people were interested, they could've tried commission them. Besides, this criticism of Segovia is pointless. If you disagree with what Segovia did, take that energy and go out and do something positive. Otherwise, shut up." - "Now, it's different when John WilliamsJohn Williams (guitarist)John Christopher Williams is an Australian classical guitarist, and a long-term resident of the United Kingdom. In 1973, he shared a Grammy Award win in the 'Best Chamber Music Performance' category with Julian Bream for Julian and John .-Biography:John Williams was born on 24 April 1941 in...
, who studied with Segovia, says he wasn't a good teacher and the like. There is a difference in generation. [...] I didn't have Segovia butting into my life, telling me to do this and that. That's why John needed to rebel violently." - "My rebellion is in truth against BreamJulian BreamJulian Bream, CBE is an English classical guitarist and lutenist and is one of the most distinguished classical guitarists of the 20th century. He has also been successful in renewing popular interest in the Renaissance lute....
and WilliamsJohn Williams (guitarist)John Christopher Williams is an Australian classical guitarist, and a long-term resident of the United Kingdom. In 1973, he shared a Grammy Award win in the 'Best Chamber Music Performance' category with Julian Bream for Julian and John .-Biography:John Williams was born on 24 April 1941 in...
; because I have to confess I'm a bit disappointed in both of them. From time immemorial, it has been the practice of one generation to pass on to the next what it learned. But my generation has almost no guitar fathers. GhigliaOscar GhigliaOscar Ghiglia is an Italian classical guitarist.Born of an artistic family - his father and grandfather were both famed painters, his mother an accomplished pianist – Oscar Ghiglia had to choose between a path strewn with brushes and colours and a world cut into harmony and melody.Though his early...
and DiazAlirio DiazAlirio Díaz is a Venezuelan classical guitarist.The eighth of eleven children, Díaz was born in Caserio La Candelaria, a small village near Carora in western Venezuela. From childhood he showed a great interest in music. At age 16 he ran away from home to Carora, where he sought better schooling...
taught and were accessible, but Bream and Williams were not. [...] They've both given immensely. But growing up, I was very saddened by their inaccessibility. I feel that my generation lost a lot because of that. In a way, we all need to rebel. The next generation will rebel against us. It's one thing I encourage when teaching. I want to give my students the strength to tell me to go to hell. 'Cause if they can tell me to go to hell, they can tell the world. Ultimately, that will help them, not to be difficult but rather to have conviction for the long struggle."
Discography
- Guitar Music of Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco with Czech Phiharmonic Orchestra,
- Richard Kapp, Conductor · The Shanghai String Quartet · Musical Heritage Society
- J.S. Bach The Six Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord
- BWV 1014 - 1019 · Transcribed by Eliot Fisk for Violin, Guitar, and Cello · Benjamin Hudson, violin · Eliot Fisk, guitar · Gyorgy Vognar, violoncello · GOOD International
- Mountain Songs with flutist Paula Robison
- Robert Beaser's Cycle of American Folk Music · MusicMasters 67038-2
- The Artistry of Eliot Fisk
- Two-disc sampling of previous recordings (various composers) · Musical Heritage Society
- Vivaldi Concerto in D Major for Lute, RV. 93, Largo
- J.S. Bach The Sonatas & Partitas for Solo Violin
- Two disc set: BWV 1001 - 1006 · MusicMasters
- Canciones Latinas with Paula Robison, flute
- Works by Villa-Lobos, Ponce, Peramo, Casals, Piazzolla, Ginastera and Ovalle plus traditional folk melodies of Latin America · MusicMasters 67193-2
- SegoviaSegoviaSegovia is a city in Spain, the capital of Segovia Province in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is situated north of Madrid, 30 minutes by high speed train. The municipality counts some 55,500 inhabitants.-Etymology:...
Canciones Populares
- Premiere recording of original compositions and arrangements by Andres Segovia · MusicMasters 67174-2
- J. S. Bach Trio Sonatas with Albert Fuller, Harpsichord
- The 6 Trio Sonatas BWV 525-530 transcribed for guitar and harpsichord · MusicMasters 67182-2
- Paganini 24 Caprices
- 24 Violin Caprices transcribed for solo guitar · MusicMasters 67092-2
- Bell'Italia: Four Centuries of Italian Music
- Scarlatti, Frescobaldi, Locatelli, Fiorillo and others
- ScarlattiScarlattiScarlatti was the name of several Italian composers:*Alessandro Scarlatti , Baroque composer known for operas and chamber cantatas*Francesco Scarlatti , Baroque composer and musician, brother of Alessandro Scarlatti...
Sonata in A Major (originally in F Major), K. 274, Andante
- MusicMasters 67079-2
- ScarlattiScarlattiScarlatti was the name of several Italian composers:*Alessandro Scarlatti , Baroque composer known for operas and chamber cantatas*Francesco Scarlatti , Baroque composer and musician, brother of Alessandro Scarlatti...
18 Sonatas
- Harpsichord sonatas arranged for solo guitar by Eliot Fisk · VGo Recordings VG 1003
- Für Eliot
- Scarlatti, Martin, Ponce, Paganini, Relly RaffmanRelly RaffmanRelly Raffman was a composer and professor of music at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts.-Early Biography:Raffman was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, in 1921 and grew up in that area. He entered Dartmouth College in 1939, by which time he had been performing as a jazz pianist for...
· GSP 1008
- The Best of Eliot Fisk
- Paganini, Sagreras, Barrios-Mangoré, D. Scarlatti, Vivaldi, Mozart, J. S. Bach, Rochberg, Beaser and others· MusicMasters 67151-2
- Sequenza!
- Berio, D. Scarlatti, Paganini, Mendelssohn, Beethoven · MusicMasters 67150-2
- George Rochberg Caprice Variations
- 50 Variations on Paganini's 24th Caprice · MusicMasters 67133-2
- Vivaldi Concerti
- Vivaldi Concerti and Other Works with the Orchestra of St. Luke's · MusicMasters 67097-2
- Eliot Fisk Plays Guitar Fantasies
- Mozart, Couperin, Sor, Poulenc, Weiss, Dowland, J. S. Bach and others · MusicMasters 67008-2
- The Latin American Guitar
- Ponce, Sagreras, Sojo, Lauro and Barrios-Mangoré · MusicMasters 67127-2
- Eliot Fisk Performs Works by Baroque Composers
- J. S. Bach, Frescobaldi, Scarlatti · MusicMasters 67130-2
- Virtuoso Guitar
- J. S. Bach, Scarlatti, Froberger · MusicMasters 67128-2
- The Classical Guitar
- Mozart, Haydn, Paganini, Soler · MusicMasters 60034-2
- Two American Virtuosi with Carol Wincenc, flute
- Giuliani, Gossec, Ravel, Milhaud, Godard, Poulenc and Bartok · MusicMasters 60059-2
- Latin American Guitar Music
- Ponce, Barrios-Mangore and others · Angel Records 47760-2
- Eliot Fisk Plays Villa-Lobos, Sojo, Morel, Barrios-Mangoré
- EMI Classics 14 6757-1
- Eliot Fisk
- Dowland, Philips, Howett, Holborne, Britten and Others · EMI Classics 27 0217-1
- The Spanish Guitar
- Granados, de Falla, Turina · EMI Classics 27 0216-1
External links
- Eliot Fisk official web site
- Fan site for Eliot Fisk
- Masterclass
- Paganini's Caprice No. 24
- Some photos of LP covers (Oviatt Library Digital Collections)
- Julia Crowe's Interview with Eliot Fisk.