UNLV

presents

BENJAMIN VERDERY

Thursday, March 30, 2017 • 8 p.m.

Doc Rando Recital Hall
Lee & Thomas Beam Music Center, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

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Although unanticipated, programs and artists are subject to change without notice.
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 Tonight’s Program
Prelude & Wedding Dance (2004)......................................................BENJAMIN VERDERY
For Rie (b.1955)

Three Works Inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach:

Bachianas Brasileiras #5 (1938/1945)............................................... HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS
(1887-1959, arr. Roland Dyens)
Searching for a Chorale (2016)..........................................................SEYMOUR BERNSTEIN
(b.1927, written for Benjamin Verdery)
Soepa (1999)..........................................................................................INGRAM MARSHALL
In three movements (b. 1945, written for Benjamin Verdery)
for electric classical guitar with digital delay and loops
--Intermission--
Now and Ever (2007-8)..........................................................................BENJAMIN VERDERY
For David and Marie
In two movements

From Eleven Etudes:.............................................................................BENJAMIN VERDERY

"Worry Knot"
"Let Go"
"Now You See It, Now You Don't, Now You Do"
"Start Now"
"Home Is Here"
Adagio. K 540..................................................................WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
(1756-1791, arr. Benjamin Verdery)

Three North American Songs:.............................................................(arr. Benjamin Verdery)

1- Kiss...................................................................................................PRINCE (1958-2016)
2- In Germany Before The War............................................ RANDY NEWMAN (B. 1943)
3- Purple Haze ........................................................................ JIMI HENDRIX (1942-1970)

Benjamin Verdery uses D'Addario strings and plays a guitar built by Garrett Lee and a baritone
classical guitar built by Otto Vowinkel.

Follow Ben on Facebook, Twitter @benverdery, Instagram

Websites: www.gamisimonds.com | www.benjaminverdery.com

About Ben Verdery

Professor of Guitar at the Yale Universi- Since 1980 he has performed worldwide
ty School of Music, Artistic Director of the in theaters and at festivals, including The-
bi-annual Yale Guitar Extravaganza since atre Carré (Amsterdam), Maverick Concerts
1985, and Artistic Director of the 92nd Street (New York), the International Guitar Festival
Y’s Art of the Guitar series (NYC) since 2006, in Havana, Wigmore Hall (London), Festival
Benjamin Verdery is hailed for his innovative Internacional de Guitarra de Taxco (Mexico),
and eclectic musical career.
continued on page 5
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About Ben Verdery, continued from page 4
the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Cen- Light" for guitar and koto, commissioned
ter and Metropolitan Opera in New York. His by Kyo-Shin-An Arts with funding from the
tours regularly take him throughout the US, New York State Council for the Arts (pre-
Canada, Europe and Asia. He has recorded miered in New York City November 2012). In
and performed with such diverse artists as 2010, The Assad Duo premiered Ben’s work,
Andy Summers, Frederic Hand, William "What He Said." Commissioned by the 92nd
Coulter, Leo Kottke, Anthony Newman, St Y, the work is dedicated to the late luthier
Jessye Norman, Paco Peña, Hermann Prey Thomas Humphrey. Other recent works have
and John Williams. included "Now and Ever" (for David Russell,
Ben has released more than 15 albums, Telarc), "Peace, Love and Guitars" (for John
his most recent being Happy Here with Wil- Williams and John Etheridge, SONY Classi-
liam Coulter; and Branches, featuring works of cal), "Capitola" (John Williams, SONY Classi-
Bach, Strauss, Jimi Hendrix, Mozart and the cal) and "Give" (for eight guitars). "Give" was
traditional "Amazing Grace." His CD, Start composed specifically for Thomas Offermann
Now, won the 2005 Classical Recording Foun- and the guitar ensemble of the Hochschule
dation Award, while other recordings of note for Music and Theatre (Rostock, Germany)
include Some Towns & Cities and his collabora- and dedicated to the memory of U.S. Sena-
tions with John Williams (John Williams Plays tor Edward Kennedy. Ben’s "Scenes from Ellis
Vivaldi) and Andy Summers (First You Build A Island," for guitar orchestra, has been exten-
Cloud). Future recordings include one featur- sively broadcast and performed at festivals
ing Yale composers and one featuring his clas- and universities in the United States, Can-
sical guitar arrangements of pieces by Randy ada, New Zealand and Europe, and the Los
Newman, Neil Young, Prince, Hendrix, John Angeles Guitar Quartet included it on their
Lennon, Eddy Vedder, The National, Cream, CD, Air and Ground (Sony Classical). Dober-
Elvis and others yet to be arranged. man-Yppan (Canada) is currently publishing
Many of the leading composers of our his solo and duo works for guitar, and Alfred
time have created music for Ben, including Music distributes the solo pieces from Some
Ezra Laderman, Martin Bresnick, John An- Towns & Cities as well as instructional books
thony Lennon, Anthony Newman, Roberto and video. Other compositions are available
Sierra, Van Stiefel and Jack Vees. The Yale on Ben’s web site. Most recently, Wake Forest
University Music Library commissioned an University asked Ben to compose a new solo
Ingram Marshall work for Ben to perform on guitar work based on a poem by Pablo Neruda
classical and electric guitars. He and Andy for its homage to Pablo Neruda in September,
Summers premiered the work, "Dark Flores- 2014 and later in 2014 Ben finished scoring
cence," at Carnegie Hall with the American the documentary film Corida Goyesque, an art
Composers Orchestra. In 2012, the two gui- film about, among other things, the role of
tarists appeared at the annual Amsterdam the bull in art.
Electric Guitar Heaven. In 2007 Ben was appointed an honor-
Benis also a prolific published composer ary board member of the Suzuki Association
in his own right with many of his composi- of the Americas, and the summer of 2015
tions having been performed, recorded and marked the 16th anniversary of his annual
published over the years. In 2012, he was Maui Master Class on the island of Maui, Ha-
commissioned to compose two works: "Pen- waii.
zacola Belongs To All," commissioned by the
Pensacola Guitar Orchestra in celebration of
their 30th Anniversary (premiered in Pensac-
ola October 2012) and "Stand in Your Own
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