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Biography & Reviews
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British-born guitarist
Stanley Yates has established an international career as
concert performer and recording artist, teacher, arranger and
scholar.
Performing to wide critical and audience acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic, he has been praised by the English magazine Classical Guitar as "one of an elite breed of guitarists," the Fort Worth Star Telegram for the "transcendent quality of his interpretative abilities," the Italian magazine Suonare for his "musical instinct and brilliant technique." He has been the subject of interviews, articles and extended reviews in many national and international guitar magazines including, Guitare Aktuel (Germany), Il fronimo (Italy), Fingerstyle (US), Soundboard (US), Guitar International (UK), Fingerstyle Review (US), Teaching Guitar (US), Suonare (Italy), Classical Guitar (England). His recent transcription and recording of the Bach cello suites has received international attention, being described as "immaculate...a major landmark" (Classical Guitar, England), "elegant and persuasive...a transcription that makes history" (Suonare, Italy), "distinguished...refreshing" (Soundboard, USA), "compelling and technically flawless" (American Record Guide). A past prize-winner in such prestigious performance competitions as the Myra Hess (London) and the Guitar Foundation of America International Competition, he has performed as recitalist and concerto soloist throughout the United States and Europe. Recent appearances include the International Festivals of the Guitar Foundation of America, the Guitar Festival of Great Britain, the Lagonegro Contemporary Music Festival (Italy), live solo and concerto broadcasts from the Romanian National Radio Orchestra Hall, the Rantucci Festival (New York), Spoleto; the Appalachian Guitar Festival; the international concert series of the Seattle, Dallas and Fort Worth Guitar Societies, and many others. A committed interpreter of new music as well as neglected masterpieces from the past, he has been dedicatee and first performer of music by such notable American and European guitar composers as Stepan Rak, Angelo Gilardino, John Duarte, Atanas Ourkouzounov, Mark Delpriora, James Piorkowski, Mark Houghton, Elizabeth Vercoe, Lloyd Wells and Roger Hudson, and has reconstructed and given first modern performances of such important rediscovered works as Villa-Lobos' Valsa Concerto No. 2, the Shand Premier Concerto and late eighteenth-century concertos by Vidal, Doisy and Viotti. His recordings for Reference Recordings, Heartdance Music, Zillian Records and Aeolian Recordings include his widely-acclaimed arrangements of the Bach Cello Suites, premiere recordings of major chamber works by John Rutter, Michael Fink and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, a recent recording of music by Lennon and McCartney, a premiere recording of late 18th-century Paisian concertos, and a series of didactic recordings. His editions and arrangements are published in the Stanley Yates Series by Mel Bay Publications. This critically-acclaimed series includes transcriptions of music by Bach and Albéniz; performance editions of collected concert works by Rak and Shand, and a series of didactic works. His performance articles dealing with the music of Bach, Villa-Lobos and Albéniz have been published internationally in over ten languages, appearing in such journals as Il Fronimo, Guitarre & Laute, Gendai Guitar, 8 Sonoro, Homa Guitar, Soundboard and Classical Guitar. An in-demand teacher, he has presented masterclasses and lectures at numerous festivals, colleges, universities and conservatories, including the Royal Academy of Music, London; and the Royal Conservatory of Music, Glen Gould Professional School, Toronto; the Royal Northern College of Music; the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music (where he performs and teachs each summer), and the Cleveland Institute of Music. He is an advisory board member of both the Guitar Foundation of America and Guitar Forum - the Journal of the European Guitar Teachers' Association. Stanley received performer's diplomas from Trinity College, London, and Sandown College of Performing Arts, Liverpool (where he graduated with the highest pass in the history of the college). He also received post-graduate degrees from the University of Liverpool (with a distinction in performance) and the University of North Texas (where he was the only non-pianist ever to receive the Morgan Dissertation Award for Excellence in Music Performance). Currently a resident of the United States, he directs the guitar program at Austin Peay State University, home of Tennessee's Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts.
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Performance Reviews
"one of very few musicians who, having
dedicated themselves to the guitar, have managed to bring together
instinct and brilliant technique with the most refined musical and
musicological preparation." "...a master of the instrument...an experience
not to be missed!" "Yates plays with all profundity in undisturbed
communication of the music. Technical perfection, tonal purity and a
considered objectivity are all perfectly placed." "This is distinguished playing, a recording to
hear and learn from."
"..a very personal, compelling, and technically flawless
performance..." "Listening to this interpretation it is
impossible not to refer to the same transcriptions of the Suites by
Yates, where he rethinks the terms in which Bach has been
represented in the guitar tradition..." more Publication Reviews "This is a transcription that makes
history...since the time of Segovia's version of the Chaconne (1934)
there has not been, in the history of guitar transcription, a more
important event..." more |
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