Adam del Monte
Adam del Monte | |
|---|---|
 Adam del Monte in 2022 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 23 September 1966 Rehovot, Israel |
| Genres | Flamenco, classical music |
| Occupation(s) | guitarist, composer, composer and educator |
| Instrument | Guitarist |
Adam del Monte, born as Adam Kofler is a guitarist, composer, and educator known for his contributions to flamenco and classical music.
Biography
[edit]He was born in Rehovot, near Tel Aviv, Israel, on September 23, 1966.[1] Growing up in Granada, Spain, he had the opportunity to learn the art of flamenco from some of the true maestros of Spain: Pepe Habichuela, Gerardo Núñez and Paco Cortés.[2] He studied flamenco and classical guitar in Spain, Israel and England.[3]
At the age of nineteen, he performed with the flamenco singer Enrique Morente and the Madrid Symphony Orchestra at the Teatro Real in Madrid and the Teatro Manuel de Falla in Granada. In 1997, he won the First Prize at the Stotsenberg International Classical Guitar Competition.[4] The following year, he released his debut CD Viaje a Un Nuevo Mundo, which was highly praised by music critics.[5]
His first flamenco concert called Ensueño Flamenco was premiered on February 12, 1999, at the Jordan Hall in Boston. In February 2000 he performed the Concierto de Aranjuez with the LA Philharmonic.[6] In June 2000, he performed at the Hollywood Bowl, once with his flamenco ensemble and once with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and classical Spanish dancer Lola Greco.[7]
In 2005, he performed Astor Piazzolla's Histoire du Tango with violinist Mark Kashper as part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Chamber Music Series at Disney Hall.[8] Next year, he performed his concerto for flamenco guitar and the Concierto de Aranjuez in Israel, conducted by Nir Kabaretti.[9]
He has recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, playing the featured flamenco guitar part in the double Grammy Award-winning opera Ainadamar (2006) by Osvaldo Golijov.[10][7] In this production, he performed alongside soprano Dawn Upshaw and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Robert Spano.[11] Adam was a member of the Falla Guitar Trio from 2007 to 2012.[12] He performed Ainadamar in the 60th anniversary of the Festival de Granada at the Alhambra Palace with the Granada Symphony Orchestra.[13]
Adam del Monte composed his second flamenco guitar concerto, titled "Paisajes", which was both commissioned and debuted by the St. Monica Symphony.[14] Following its premiere, del Monte has performed the concerto with the Moscow State Symphony at Tchaikovsky Hall[15] and with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in Caracas, Venezuela.[16]
He wrote the opera Llantos 1492 as a tribute to his childhood spent in Spain.[17] The flamenco opera Lantos 1492 was performed at the Tucson Desert Song Festival in Tucson on January 30, 2019.[9][18] During the pandemic, del Monte composed and co-produced a piece for the Virtual Guitar Orchestra titled Relampinos. It involved 117 guitarists from around the world, including Ángel Romero and Eliot Fisk, creating the largest collaboration between flamenco and classical guitarists to date.[19][20] He had 9 performances of Ainadamar at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.[21] Together with Slovenian guitarist Mak Grgić, he held numerous concerts in Texas, California, Maryland, Las Vegas and other locations.[22][23]
Del Monte performed at prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York City, the Barbican Centre in London, the Colorado Music Festival in Boulder, and with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, among many others.[24][25] He performed the Concierto de Aranjuez at Disney Hall with the California Philharmonic.[6]
He has a unique style that blends traditional flamenco with contemporary influences, and he often performs both as a solo artist and with various ensembles.[13] In addition to his performing career, del Monte is recognized for his teaching, sharing his expertise in guitar techniques and musical expression. His work has garnered praise in the classical guitar community and beyond.[26][1][2] Since 2000, he has been teaching classical and flamenco guitar at the University of Southern California.[13] As a composer and performer, Del Monte has been involved in several film productions.[6]
Del Monte has published his first book on technique and scales development with Mel Bay Publications. The book is called Flamenco Scalathon.[27]
Discography
[edit]- Viaja a un Nuevo Mundo (1996)
- Ezordio (1998)
- Ainadamar (2006)
- Excursions (2011)
- Así lo Siento Yo (2010)
- La Buena Vida (2017)
- Transcendence, Kabbalistic Meditation Music by Adam del Monte (2022)
Composition and film music
[edit]- Independent Film Soledad, winner of the Hollywood Film Festival Award – Composer and soloist (1998)
- Mr and Mrs. Smith, music by John Powell – Soloist (2005)
- Munich, music by John Williams – Soloist (2005)
- Knight and Day, music by John Powell – Soloist (2010)
- Savages, music by Adam Peters – Sololist (2012)
- Ferdinand the Bull, music by John Powel – Sololist (2017)
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Adam Del Monte". last.fm. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte at the 2022 Marlow Guitar Series". spainculture.us. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte". bmop.org. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte Viaje a un Nuevo Mundo". 6moons.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Guest Artist: Adam del Monte". biola.edu. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ a b "Adam del Monte Flamenco guitar". nospr.org.pl. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "GUITARISTS ELIOT FISK, ADAM DEL MONTE AND BRIAN HEAD JOIN MEMBERS OF THE LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC IN CHAMBER MUSIC PROGRAM AS PART OF THE ART OF THE GUITAR FESTIVAL AT WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL". laphil.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ a b "Scenes from "Llantos 1492" A Flamenco Opera" (PDF). wpu.cfa.arizona.edu. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Adam Del Monte". bostonguitar.org. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Recording Artist: Adam del Monte". guitarsalon.com. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
- ^ "The Falla Guitar Trio". moonshineink.com. 13 April 2012. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Adam del Monte Adjunct assistant professor". music.usc.edu. 4 May 2012. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
- ^ "Adam Del Monte - Concerto For Flamenco Guitar and Orchestra". guitarsalon.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte Guitar Master Class". pasadenaconservatory.org. 15 August 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "ADAM DEL MONTE ENSEMBLE". boulevardmusic.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Llantos 1492". operasouthwest.org. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ "Llantos 1492, Monte, A. D." operabase.com. 30 January 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
- ^ "Video Pick of the Week: The Virtual Guitar Orchestra Goes Flamenco on Adam Del Monte's 'Relampiños'". classicalguitarmagazine.com. 5 December 2020. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ "3rd Edition – Relampiños". virtualguitarorchestra.com. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ Grella, George (21 October 2024). "Ainadamar review — stunning performance of a near-masterpiece at the Metropolitan Opera". Financial Times. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte and Mak Grgić – Duo Deloro – receive strong tour review". music.usc.edu. 14 April 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
- ^ "Duo Deloro - Adam Del Monte & Mak Grgic". guitarsalon.com. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte". tremolo.mk. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Adam del Monte full bio". bullockguitar.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Guitarist Adam del Monte Brings Together Flamenco and Classical Guitar at Park & Market". parkandmarket.ucsd.edu. 19 April 2023. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
- ^ Monte, Adam del (18 August 2023). Flamenco Scalathon: A New Approach to Faster Picado Scales. Mel Bay Publications. ISBN 978-1-5134-7263-8. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
