Nunez

Unfamiliar combinations in music can lead to surprising, captivating results. At the “Jazz at Berlin Philharmonic” concert in October 2014, series curator Siggi Loch presented Swedish guitarist Ulf Wakenius in a new and unexpected role: as second guitarist alongside the undisputed master of flamenco nuevo, Gerardo Núñez. The combination of Wakenius and Núñez has succeeded in sending the Jazzpaña project off into a wholly new direction. The Tagesspiegel described the occasion as a “mighty fiesta.” Sparks definitely flew, Núñez had an appetite for more of the same, and he invited his Swedish colleague straight back to Madrid for the re-match.

"Andando el tiempo" - the dynamic title is self-explanatory. As time moves on, so does one’s playing; and that has been an impulse behind the artistic development of Gerardo Núñez. He has always been one step ahead. That has brought him the status as a moderniser of flamenco. Gerardo Núñez is never a follower of trends. His work is defined by a strong personality which seeks its expression in flamenco. Gerardo Núñez goes his own way. He does that with a clear understanding and demonstrates it with his six strings.Already with his first release in 1987 "Flamencos en Nueva York" the world of flamenco resounded with an echo like a drum roll. In both technical and musical respects Gerardo Núñez can be dubbed an "innovator", even if he feels unhappy with such a description. "Talk about fusion, and above al…

Ludwig Minkus’s Don Quixote has held a place in the repertoire since its premiere at the Bolshoi Theater in 1869. The music is charming and well orchestrated, but persistently a little bland. There are plenty of melodies, but none of them are particularly distinctive. This is certainly not Tchaikovsky or Prokofiev. The poor boy meets rich girl love story interwoven with the fantastic adventures of Don Quixote has attracted the biggest names in ballet over the years, with Marius Petipa’s original classical production being followed by Rudolph Nureyev, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and George Balanchine. Now, it is Carlos Acosta’s turn. His choreography is based on Petipa, but he has modernized it with his trademark physicality, and some new unclassical sounds (clapping, vocal exclamations) from the corps de ballet on stage.

Caprichio, part of Channel Classics' ongoing series focusing on the first chair players of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, features Uruguayan bassoonist Gustavo Nunez. Considered one of the finest bassoonists of his generation, Núñez studied at the Musikhochschule Hannover and the Royal College of Music. While still a student in 1987, he was awarded the Prix Suisse at the International Competition in Geneva and the Carl Maria von Weber Prize in Munich. Nunez has held the position of principal bassoonist of the Concertgebouw since 1995. Included here are works for bassoon and string orchestra by Villa-Lobos, Gubaidulina, Dutch composer Kees Olthuis and Ururguayan composer Jaures Lamarque Pons.

When flamenco guitarist Gerardo Nunez puts pen to paper, he usually has only one thing in mind: music. However, when he started working on his newest album “Travesia” (“Crossing”), the long-awaited follow-up to 2004’s “Andando El Tiempo“, he wanted to tell a particular story that had moved him; the story of his friends Ahmed and Khaleb.

Galician piper Carlos Núñez is one of the world’s main exponents of Celtic music, a genre that he defends and has studied at great depth. For 30 years he has collaborated with The Chieftains (Ireland), Alan Stivell (Brittany), Capercaillie, Phil Cunningham, Julie Fowlis (Scotland)… but also Jackson Browne, Ry Cooder (USA), Milton Nascimento (Brazil), Gustavo Santaolalla (Argentina), Ryuichi Sakamoto (Japan), Jordi Savall (Catalonia), Bryn Terfel (Wales), or even Julio Iglesias.