Mandolin Madness
Maestra Barbara Day Turner is the founder and music director of the San José Chamber Orchestra, and its family of youth orchestras. An ardent advocate for new music, Maestra has premiered more than 210 new works with SJCO alone, the most recent being the chamber opera OURLAND, A Dystopian State with libretto by Daniel Helfgot and music by Paul Davies, presented at 3Below Theatre in San José.
Named the 2012 Silicon Valley Arts Council “On Stage” Artist Laureate, Maestra Day Turner completed 15 seasons as Music Administrator and Conductor of the Utah Festival Opera and spent 18 years as Artistic Administrator and Conductor for Opera San José. She has conducted the world premieres of operas by Henry Mollicone, Craig Bohmler, George Roumanis, Paul Davies, and Alva Henderson in addition to leading a repertoire of over 100 operas and musicals.
In Germany, Barbara conducted a Marilyn Monroe inspired production of Rossini’s Cenerentola at the Rheinsberg Festival outside Berlin, as well as concerts with the Thuringian Symphony, where she also made her European debut as a harpsichordist. In Mexico, she has conducted the Orquesta Sinfónica de Aguascalientes. Her recordings include 6 CDs with SJCO, the PBS award-winning DVD of Roumanis’ Phaedra, the Naxos release of Henderson’s Nosferatu, and a critically acclaimed Naxos release of works by Howard Hersh. She has been an adjudicator for the Metropolitan Opera national auditions, and is a judge for the Irving M. Klein International String Competition, and serves on the board of directors of the Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy. She enjoys an alter-ego life as a harpsichordist.
Evan Price is a versatile violinist and composer best known for his work with the paradigm-shifting chamber ensemble, The Turtle Island Quartet, and with The Hot Club of San Francisco, the most venerable gypsy jazz band in North America. A native of Detroit, Michigan, he grew up studying classical violin while mixing with folk and jazz musicians of all stripes, learning to fiddle and improvise in various styles as well as teaching himself to play numerous folk instruments. He also developed a love of chamber music and with it a taste for composing and arranging, greatly inspired by the early recordings of Turtle Island.
He joined that group at age 24 and within a year was also playing with the Hot Club of San Francisco. In 2016, he composed and performed his first large-scale work, a Concerto for Jazz Violin and Orchestra, and recorded his debut solo album, “Dialogues.” Both reveal an artist with not only the ability to traverse far-ranging genres with authority but the maturity to assimilate them into a uniquely American voice.
His current projects include leading his own jazz trio, continuing to perform with the HCSF, directing the International Space Orchestra, performing with the San Francisco Ballet and Opera Orchestras, and composing and arranging for the San Jose Chamber Orchestra and others. He is the recipient of 2 GRAMMY® awards for his work with Turtle Island.
Caterina Lichtenberg is one of the most important classical mandolinists in the world today. Raised in Germany, Caterina graduated with highest honors from the Music Conservatory in Cologne. She now holds the position of Professor of Classical mandolin/Soprano lute at that prestigious institution. (The only position of it’s kind in the world today)
For over 20 years Caterina has been recording, teaching and touring throughout Europe, Japan, Taiwan, South America, Canada and the U.S. to rave reviews.
In January of 2016 Caterina was signed to the Artist Works online teaching school as the Classical mandolin teacher. Mrs. Lichtenberg collaboration with American mandolinists Mike Marshall brought together two of the greatest mandolinists in the world. Their first recording blurred the lines between their classical, jazz, bluegrass and Brazilian musical backgrounds. Their second release were duets by Johann Sebastian Bach (The Two Part Inventions, Organ Duets and Canons) on mandolin and Mandocello was released in 2015. Their third CD is including original compositions by Caterina & Mike.
To date Caterina Lichtenberg has released 13 CDs under her own leadership in a variety of chamber music settings, five with guitarist/lutenist Mirko Schrader. As a specialist on early period instruments, Caterina was invited to record on a 1775 mandolin from the Ferdinandeum Museum in Innsbruck in Austria.
Mike Marshall is one of the most accomplished and versatile string instrumentalists in the world today and a three time Grammy Nominee. A master of mandolin, guitar, mandocello and violin, Mike is a living compendium of musical styles and has created some of the most adventurous instrumental music in America today. Mike has helped spawn the next generation of young string instrumentalists through his many recording projects and to his deep commitment to music education Mike seamlessly blends his American roots background with a deep understanding of European classical, Jazz, Pop and Brazilian Music.
Mike is primarily touring these days with his wife, German Classical mandolinist Caterina Lichtenberg and the two created the Mandolin World Retreats together. An exquisite mandolin educational, food and wine gathering in Napa Valley, California and Sicily, Italy. Mike and Caterina have three CDs together including a recording of the Johann Sebastian Bach Two Part Inventions for Mandolin and Mandocello.
mikemarshall.net/biography/
https://caterinalichtenberg.com/about/
