Byron Schenkman Explained

Schenkman, Byron
Birth Name:Byron Schenkman
Birth Date:1966
Origin:Lafayette, Indiana, United States
Instrument:Harpsichord
Piano
Fortepiano
Genre:Classical
Baroque
Occupation:Harpsichordist
Years Active:1981–present
Label:Centaur Records, Wildboar Records, Loft Recordings, Dorian Recordings, Focus, Virgin Classics, Naxos Records, Boxwood Media, Matthews & Schenkman, CD Baby, BS&F Recordings, Acis Productions
Associated Acts:Ingrid Matthews

Byron Schenkman (born 1966)[1] is an American harpsichordist, pianist, music director, and educator. Schenkman has recorded over 40 CDs and has won several awards and accolades.[2] [3] He co-founded the Seattle Baroque Orchestra, and was its artistic director.[4] [5] Schenkman currently directs a baroque and classical chamber music concert series, Sound Salon,[6] formerly Byron Schenkman & Friends,[7] [8] and performs as a recitalist and concert soloist.[9] [10] He also performs with chamber music ensembles, and is a teacher and lecturer.

Early years

Schenkman grew up in a musical family on a farm in Lafayette, Indiana. He graduated from the New England Conservatory, where he was a student of John Gibbons.[11] He studied with Elisabeth Wright and Edward Auer at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and earned a Master of Music degree with Honors in Performance. In 1990 he earned a Performer's Certificate in Harpsichord from Indiana University School of Music. In 1991 Schenkman was a finalist in the Cambridge Society for Early Music's International Mozart Competition.

Career

At first Schenkman played harpsichord and fortepiano.[12] He has recorded dozens of albums, and has made solo and concerto appearances in the Americas, Europe, and Asia.[13] [14] In 1999 he won the Cambridge Society for Early Music's Erwin Bodky Award, given "for outstanding achievement in the field of early music". In 2003 Schenkman's recording with Musica Pacifica, Telemann: Chamber Cantatas & Trio Sonatas, won the Chamber Music America/WQXR Record Award.[15] [16] In 2004 Schenkman was awarded a Partners of the Americas travel grant which enabled him to perform and teach in Chile.[17] In 2006 Schenkman was voted "Best Classical Instrumentalist" by the readers of the Seattle Weekly newspaper.[18] [19] In 2007 he was featured in the Seattle Magazine Music Portfolio of Seattle's Defining Musicians as a Key Player saying that "He makes 300-year-old music sound fresh."[20]

Schenkman has worked with baroque violinist Ingrid Matthews.[21] [22] In 1994 they co-founded Seattle Baroque Orchestra, where Schenkman was artistic director from 1994 through 2004, and co-director from 2010 to 2013. In 2014 Schenkman and Matthews received the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music Entrepreneur of the Month award.[23] He also performs with various chamber ensembles and tours internationally with his contemporaries.[24] He performs as a guest artist with chamber music ensembles in North America.[25] His live performances at the Boston Early Music Festival have been compared with those of Vladimir Horowitz and Jimi Hendrix. He was reviewed in The Boston Globe as "a superb and imaginative instrumentalist".[26]

Schenkman gave his first recital on modern piano at Town Hall, Seattle, in 2001, and has since been active performing and recording on modern piano and harpsichord.[27] [28] His New York recital debut playing modern piano was in 2009.[29] [30] [31] Schenkman's playing has been described as "dazzling" in American Record Guide,[32] and listed in the Chicago Tribune as a favorite recording of 2000, for "stylish, invigorating performances".[33] He released The Art of the Harpsichord in 2017 to critical acclaim, featuring eight different historical harpsichords from the National Music Museum.[34] [35]

In 2013, Schenkman formed Byron Schenkman & Friends.

In 2017 Schenkman created a new recording label named Byron Schenkman & Friends. In 2018 the recording label name was changed to BS&F Recordings.[36]

On March 26, 2023, Schenkman performed the world premiere of Concerto for Harpsichord and Strings composed by Caroline Shaw on a commission to mark the 10th season of Byron Schenkman & Friends.[37] [38]

In 2023 Byron Schenkman & Friends was rebranded as Sound Salon.[39]

Schenkman teaches music history at Seattle University, where he is a member of the Fine Arts Faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences.[40] He was a member of the Early Music Faculty at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, where he taught harpsichord, piano, and music history from 2005 to 2017.[41] In 2012 Schenkman was visiting instructor of fortepiano and harpsichord at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Schenkman gives master classes on 18th-century performance, informal lecture-recitals, and pre-concert talks.[42] He also teaches harpsichord master classes, serves artistic residencies, and teaches music history at music festivals and universities. Schenkman is a frequent guest on radio station 98.1, Classical KING-FM.[43]

His principal harpsichord was built by Craig Tomlinson in 2013.[44] [45]

Discography

Solo recordings

Collaborative recordings

Albums available as MP3 download only

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Alexander, Morin . Classical Music: Third Ear: The Essential Listening Companion . July 1, 2001 . Backbeat Books . 978-0879306380 . 1122 . 25 February 2015.
  2. Web site: Byron Schenkman . Naxos . 25 February 2015.
  3. News: 22 February 2015 . Duo plans eclectic performance for Tuesday concert in Port Angeles . Port Angeles, WA . Peninsula Daily News . 10 April 2015.
  4. News: von Rhein . John . 16 April 2000 . Handel: Italian cantatas . Chicago Tribune . 10 April 2015.
  5. Web site: Interview: Byron Schenkman & Ingrid Matthews. The Fridge. Blog. 25 February 2015.
  6. News: May . Thomas . 6 Seattle-area classical music picks for fall 2023 . 4 March 2024 . The Seattle Times . September 6, 2023.
  7. News: Borchert . Gavin . 1 Oct 2013 . Ear Supply: Sounds Like Teen Spirit . Seattle Weekly . 21 March 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150317231704/http://www.seattleweekly.com/arts/earsupply/949072-129/music-schenkman-beethoven-love-series-written . 17 March 2015 . dead .
  8. Web site: Preview: Byron Schenkman and Friends . KING FM 98.1 . 25 February 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150621222612/http://www.king.org/pages/18178612.php . 21 June 2015 .
  9. News: Bargreen . Melinda . 7 October 2013 . 'Byron Schenkman & Friends' Off to a Spirited Start . The Seattle Times . 25 February 2015.
  10. Web site: Schuth. Brian. Contrasts at the Goethe for BEMF. The Boston Musical Intelligencer. Lee Eiseman. 21 June 2015. 12 June 2015.
  11. Web site: Teddy . Kaufman . Aryeh . Oren . Byron Schenkman (Harpsichord, Piano) . Bach Cantatas Website . 25 February 2015.
  12. News: Barndt . Michael . 5 September 2013 . Early Music Now offers an instrumental clarinet history lesson . Urban Milwaukee Dial . 10 April 2015.
  13. News: Campbell . R.M. . 25 August 2005 . Harpsichordist finds an 'enormous' new world as a pianist . Seattle PI . 10 April 2015.
  14. News: May. Thomas. Byron Schenkman & Friends present the poetry of Schumann, played and sung. November 1, 2017. The Seattle Times. November 1, 2017.
  15. Web site: McDowell . Peter . new Musica Pacifica CD "Dancing in the Isles" . Early MusiChicago . 8 September 2019.
  16. Web site: MacBlane . Amanda . Music and Marketing Hand-in-Hand: Report from the 25th Annual CMA Conference . NewMusicUSA . 30 January 2003 . 8 September 2019.
  17. Web site: Amigos Americanos. WA/Chile Partners of the Americas. 25 February 2015. 14 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141114080511/http://washington-chile.org/documents/nlettermar05.pdf. dead.
  18. News: The Winners . Seattle Weekly . 21 March 2015.
  19. Web site: Japanese, South American, and world-class piano music to ring through City Hall . https://archive.today/20150410172933/http://www.seattle.gov/council/newsdetail.asp?ID=6401 . dead . 10 April 2015 . 17 August 2006 . City of Seattle . 10 April 2015 .
  20. News: 2007 Music Portfolio . Seattle Magazine . July 2007 . 105.
  21. News: Bargreen . Melinda . 22 September 2014. Byron Schenkman & Friends display dashing musicianship . The Seattle Times . 10 April 2015.
  22. News: Jacobi . Peter . Baroque violinist Matthews and harpsichordist Schenkman are genuinely gifted in performance . https://archive.today/20150413015843/http://www.styrk.com/posts/baroque-violinist-matthews-and-harpsichordist-schenkman-are-genuinely-gifted-in-performance . dead . 13 April 2015 . 13 April 2015 . Herald-Times (Bloomington, IN) . 18 January 2015 .
  23. Web site: Entrepreneur of the Month. Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. 10 April 2015. 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150304164912/http://www.music.indiana.edu/departments/offices/project-jumpstart/entrepreneur%20of%20the%20month/entrepreneur-matthews-schenkman.shtml. 4 March 2015.
  24. Walker . Willian Thomas . 4 August 2004 . Scintillating Music in Kuhn Gallery: The 8th Foothills Chamber Music Festival . Classical Voice of North Carolina . 10 April 2015.
  25. Web site: Gut Reaction . Gut Reaction . 25 February 2015.
  26. News: Bargreen . Melinda . 14 April 2006 . 2 siblings, 4 strings and 1 Seattle pianist . The Seattle Times . 10 April 2015.
  27. News: Campbell . R. . April 10, 2008 . Musician trades his harpsichord for a piano on his return visit to Seattle . Seattle PI . 20 March 2015.
  28. News: Bargreen . Melinda . 20 April 2006 . Daedalus Quartet: dynamic, exuberant, insightful . The Seattle Times . 10 April 2015.
  29. Music at the Frick Collection: Byron Schenkman . The New Yorker . 5 April 2009 . 10 April 2015.
  30. News: Schweitzer . Vivien . April 7, 2009 . Mendelssohn's Classic Roots . The New York Times . 25 February 2015.
  31. Web site: Davis . Helga . 1 August 2009 . Concerts from the Frick Collection with Helga Davis: Byron Schenkman . WNYC 93.9 FM . 10 April 2015.
  32. Haskins. Handel: Variations. American Record Guide. 1 July 2000. https://archive.today/20150412164640/http://business.highbeam.com/3872/article-1G1-65173298/handel-variations. dead. 12 April 2015. 12 April 2015.
  33. News: von Rhein . John . 3 December 2000 . Classical Music Finds Hope In Independent Labels . Chicago Tribune . 21 March 2015.
  34. News: Brodersen . Christopher . Meet Harpsichordist Byron Schenkman . 4 . Fanfare Magazine . April 2018. 41 .
  35. News: O'Regan . Noel . The Art of the Harpsichord: from Cabazon to Mozart . Early Music Review . February 11, 2018.
  36. Web site: BS&F Recordings . Byron Schenkman & Friends . 8 September 2019.
  37. News: May . Thomas . Byron Schenkman & Friends celebrates past and present of classical music . 3 April 2023 . The Seattle Times . March 24, 2023.
  38. News: Keller . Max . The Future of Classical Music Is Queer . 14 August 2024 . The Nation . January 29, 2024.
  39. News: May . Thomas . 6 Seattle-area classical music picks for fall 2023 . 4 March 2024 . The Seattle Times . September 6, 2023.
  40. Web site: Faculty and Staff Directory . Seattle University . 25 February 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304194957/http://www.seattleu.edu/directories/faculty_staff_directory/searchresults.aspx?keyword=Schenkman&category=sn&division=All&pagesize=5 . 4 March 2016 .
  41. Web site: Faculty & Staff . Cornish College of the Arts . 25 February 2015.
  42. News: Aldridge . Tom . 25 June 2012 . Matthews and Schenkman make dazzling duo . Indianapolis, IN . NUVO . 10 April 2015.
  43. Web site: Search results for Byron Schenkman . KING FM 98.1 . 21 June 2018.
  44. Web site: Kiraly . Philippa . A Too-Rarely Heard Composer . The SunBreak . Blog . 25 February 2015 . 1 April 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150401193140/http://thesunbreak.com/2014/03/18/a-too-rarely-heard-composer/ . dead .
  45. Web site: Komavitch-Tomlinson . Olga . Instrument Builder Craig Tomlinson . Craig C. Tomlinson . 25 February 2015.

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