Christian Saggese plays guitar on "The Saggese Suite for Solo Guitar" (2007). He was born in Verona, Italy in 1974. Christian plays classical guitar, electric guitar and mandolin in different musical styles. He has participated in several International guitar competitions and won First Prize at the "Andres SEGOVIA" International Guitar Competition in Almunecar (Spain) in 1999. The Spanish newspaper "EL PAIS" considers Christian "...among the best of European guitarists". He began his carrier in 1990 with concerts in Italy, Spain, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Japan, and South America both as a soloist and in chamber ensembles.
Matthew Gould, guitarist and Beth Schneider, violinist (Duo46), with Nathanael May on piano play on "Trio for Guitar and Violin with Piano" (2004). Since 1994, Duo46 has established itself as an important advocate of contemporary art music, actively commissioning, recording and performing new music for violin and guitar. Matt and Beth have conducted ensemble residencies at many Universities across North America and have given concerts around the world. Nathanael May is a pianist with a penchant for contemporary music, dedicated to establishing a new American repertoire for the 21st century. Matt and Beth play on "The Torture of Love" (2004).
Thomas Yee plays piano on "Pensive Leanings" (2001). Thomas is a professor of music at UH Manoa and plays concerts regularly throughout the year. He is from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada and has won First Prizes in over 20 national and international competitions. In October 2005, Thomas was presented with the Horizon Award for Lifetime Achievement under the age of 35 for excellence in performance, teaching and community service. Mr. Yee has performed as guest soloist with orchestras throughout Canada and the United States and has performed extensively as soloist, chamber musician and collaborative artist.
Influences
Slide Shows
This digital art work slide show uses images by the artist Satoshi Matsuyama. He is inspired by Hawaiian landscapes. This slide show is Used by Permission and is Copyrighted 2007. You can find his art works here: CLICKHERE
Here is a poster advertising Hugh Sung's Visual Recital Concert.
This poster is advertising a guitar concert in Honolulu.
Collections
John collects the art, books, ephemera, and prints of Edward Gorey. Here are a few items from his collection, which can be viewed at the University of Hawaii in Manoa, where the collection resides.
John was born in Torino, Italy and brought to the U.S. by his adoptive parents. When he was in grade school, studying classical piano and singing in the church choir, his musical friends were listening to English folk-rock music, mostly Fairport Convention and The Pentangle.
He moved to San Diego, CA from Oil City, PA, to attend college, taking courses in music and psychology. During this time, John took piano lessons and began composing his first piano works. He graduated from San Diego State University with a Masters Degree in Psychology.
Shortly after, he moved to Honolulu, began a full-time mental health career for the State of Hawaii and began taking private composition lessons with Dr. Robert Wehrman. John's first composition under Bob's tutelage was a piano suite in six parts. Following this effort, Robert encouraged John to compose an atonal work entitled Frenetic Unfoldings for Solo Violin. After completing this large work, John focused his energies on compositions which incorporated various instrumentation.
The composer writes poetry when time permits and has set many of his poems to music in his "Improvisations With Narrations."
Poetry
Jade Ponds (2001)
jade ponds filled with white lilies
reaching for the sky;
cool breezes whisper a melody
past tall timbers clipping the amber clouds
as they roll gently over the mountain side;
water trickles down serrated slopes
forming silver streams where falcons
gather to nest and feed their young;
the grassy knoll provided a great back support
where we witnessed beauty unfold slowly,
tumbling down, wrapped in arms embraced,
to view reflections off a whimsical Jade pond.
"Jade Ponds" by Satoshi (used by permission) Satoshi was inspired by the above poem and created this digital wonder.
Crafted Stardust (2002)
we are all crafted stardust,
floating on an island paradise,
sharing a common dream,
revealed in conversation
a day at a time;
reality is sculptured slowly,
with a chisel,
until a universal form becomes self-evident;
our individual realities
are golden bits of stardust,
strewn in fields of yellow streams,
upon a stage
where we perform
to an audience
clapping at each curtain close.
Little Gems (2002)
little gems
sparkle,
awaiting to be discovered,
as they shine
among
the bramble
and the brier
of our busy
lives;
we often
don’t see
the glow
of a jewel
as it merrily
lingers,
and when
discovery
occurs,
we are surprised
and often startled,
as the gleam
beckons you
to feel
its eternal
power
and
glory.
Metamorphosis No. 9 (2003)
I hear shifting patterns over time
as my ephemeral creation spins on an axis of creativity,
its form comes from a rich musical reservoir
of sparkling themes and motives;
as swift as rivers meandering through varied terrain,
my new auditory sensation screams with joy
as you become a sounding board,
absorbing sonic vibrations in a classical feast,
designed to lift your tattered spirits,
reborn with a fresh vitality for life,
you float to a new dimension
leaving behind your shell of burden
for a garden of possibilities and promises
Resonance (2002)
I want to raise my hands to the sky,
touch overcast clouds as they float by my window;
my fingers would create surrealistic forms
and my head would rest on cotton pillows;
as fantastic vistas shaped my dreams
into a universe of splendid rainbows;
You could join me only if you dream
of silk webs dangling from below the moon;
your radiant hair flowing in the cool breeze
of a spring day would fill the air with cosmic wonder;
and your charming spell would cast a thin net
around the globe as we listened to its dazzling resonance.
A Time Not Long Ago (2001)
There once was a time not long ago
when scented flowers hung from balconies,
swaying in cool breezes by the pool;
when friends drank a toast to things eternal,
sharing love and revealing dreams;
when reading a good book to your children
was the entertainment for the evening;
when marvelous insights into human nature
was what you got from movies;
when listening to music was a social event
and music making involved the entire family;
perhaps a time will come when gifts
such as these will return the simple things to life.
Surfing Life’s Vibrational Waves (2007)
composers surf life’s vibrational waves,
absorbing cultural currents as they pass by,
expressly stated in splendid marvels,
created spontaneously from droplets of ether,
changing expressions to match the newness of the moment.
Fragments (2003)
now that the music is over,
we can hear musical fragments,
trails of sound fluttering
in golden silence,
sonic memories breathing
life in our soul,
inspired harmony floating
in brief segments
over endless time.
She Saw the Rainbow (2002)
after the storm,
she saw the rainbow,
appear in the northern sky,
transparent and luminous,
arched over the San Gabriel Range;
she heard the thunderous clamor
from miles away beckoning,
transfixed and mindful
of the elements of nature;
she savored the moment,
as the sun rose to greet the
attentive witness;
she sparkled with joy
having heard the glorious
vibrations from a dear friend.
“The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it's the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him with his friend.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson ~
The secret of a good memory is attention, and attention to a subject depends upon our interest in it. We rarely forget that which has made a deep impression on our minds. Tryon Edwards
We have magnificent brains, but we use a great deal of our brilliance to keep ourselves stuck and ignorant, to keep ourselves from not shining. We are so afraid of our beauty and radiance and brilliance because it scared the adults around us when we were children. Patricia Sun
What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy? Mahatma Gandhi
"The longer I live the more I see that I am never wrong about anything, and that all the pains that I have so humbly taken to verify my notions have only wasted my time." - George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)
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