Internationally acclaimed clarinetist David Krakauer redefines the notion of a concert artist. Known for his mastery of myriad styles, he occupies the unique position of being one of the world’s leading exponents of Eastern European Jewish klezmer music, and at the same time is a major voice in Classical music. He has appeared with the Tokyo, Kronos, and Emerson quartets, plus as soloist with the Dresden, Seattle, and Detroit symphony orchestras, among many others. With his band Ancestral Groove, he has redefined the klezmer genre with major appearances at Carnegie Hall and internationally.

His discography contains some of the most important klezmer recordings of the past decade, notably Osvaldo Golijov’s The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind with the Kronos Quartet on Nonesuch. Consistently defying categorisation, Krakauer has enjoyed major ongoing artistic collaborations with a tremendously diverse group of performers and composers including Dawn Upshaw, Itzhak Perlman, John Zorn, Fred Wesley, Music from Marlboro, Abraham Inc, the Klezmatics, John Cage, Danny Elfman, and Socalled.

Scott Goff, principal flute of the Seattle Symphony and Opera for 42 seasons, recently retired from those organizations in 2011. For 25 years he was also principal flute of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra in New York City, frequently appearing as soloist on Live From Lincoln Center broadcasts. Before returning to Seattle he was associate principal flute of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared as soloist with these organisations in concert on numerous occasions and is principal flute for virtually all of the Seattle Symphony’s recordings to date. A student of Julius Baker at Juilliard, Goff had undertaken earlier studies at the University of Washington with then Seattle Symphony principal flutes Sidney Zeitlin and Felix Skowronek and longtime Seattle Symphony principal flute Frank Horsfall.

Martha Mooke was born in New York City, graduated from the State University of New York at Albany, and earned a master of music degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. A pioneer of the electric five-string viola, she has developed a unique musical voice by synthesizing her classical musical training with extended techniques, digital effects processing, and improvisation, while retaining the natural qualities of the instrument. Mooke has performed and recorded with such varied artists as David Bowie, Enya, Moby, Lauryn Hill, Al DiMeola, John Cale, Anthony Braxton, the Turtle Island and Soldier String quartets, Musicians Accord, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and Steve Reich, and she is heard in numerous film scores including Philip Glass’s sound tracks for Kundun and Koyaanisqatsi. Mooke also created and produces ASCAP’s new music showcase Thru the Walls.

Internationally recognised for his moving performances, innovative programming and extensive catalogue of recordings, acclaimed American conductor Gerard Schwarz serves as music director of The All-Star Orchestra, Eastern Music Festival, Palm Beach Symphony and Mozart Orchestra of New York, conductor emeritus of the Mostly Mozart Festival and conductor laureate of the Seattle Symphony, with whom he completed his final season as music director in 2011 after 26 years.

He is distinguished professor of music; conducting and orchestral studies of the Frost School of Music, University of Miami, and music director of the Frost Symphony Orchestra.

As a guest conductor, he has worked with many of the world’s finest orchestras and has led the San Francisco, Washington National and Seattle Opera companies on many occasions.

Schwarz has won eight Emmy Awards and received fourteen GRAMMY nominations, and his considerable discography of over 350 albums showcases his collaborations with some of the world’s greatest orchestras. In 2017 The Gerard Schwarz Collection, a 30-CD box set of previously unreleased or limited release works spanning his entire recording career was released by Naxos (8.503294).

He is also a gifted composer and arranger with an extensive catalogue of works.

www.gerardschwarz.com

“Schwarz’s 26-Year Seattle Legacy - Au Revoir But Not Good-Bye” courtesy of American Record Guide