Philosophy of music is the study of fundamental questions regarding music. The philosophical study of music has many connections with philosophical questions in metaphysics and aesthetics. Some basic questions in the philosophy of music are:

• What is the definition of music? (what are the necessary and sufficient conditions for classifying something as music?)
• What is the relationship between music and mind?
• What does musical history reveal to us about the world?
• What is the connection between music and emotions?
• What is meaning in relation to music?

Philosophical issues[link]

Definition of music[link]

One common definition of music is "organized sound". However, this definition is rather unsatisfactory since it is too broad; there are many types of organized sound that are usually not considered music such as human speech or the beeping of an alarm clock. Other definitions, such as "music is organized tones", as suggested by some early philosophers, are too narrow, because there are many forms of music that do not use a tonal scale. Percussive music and atonal music are good examples. There are many different ways of denoting the fundamental aspects of music which extend beyond tones: popular aspects include melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre. However, Musique concrète often consists only of sound samples of non-musical nature, sometimes in random juxtaposition. Ambient music may often consist merely of recordings of wildlife or nature. The arrival of these avant-garde forms of music in the 20th century have been a major challenge to traditional views on music, leading to broader characterizations. Some people^[who?] consider these forms to no longer be musical, and better categorized under the broader label of "sound art".

A preeminent figure in the development of avant-garde music in the 20th century was John Cage. His work, 4'33" is a central test case for any definition of music. In it, a performer(s) sits on stage for four minutes and thirty three seconds and produces no sounds. Cage intended the piece to not be produced by the performer, but by the environment around the performer. After all, there are always sounds around us no matter where we go, and no concert hall is perfectly quiet. John Cage believed that any sounds could be considered as music, and this idea is reflected in many of his works.^[1]

Absolute music vs program music[link]

"Absolute music" refers to music that is not about anything and is non-representational. "Program music", by contrast, is intended to evoke extra-musical ideas in the mind of the listener by musically representing a scene, image or mood. Since absolute music cannot have any external meaning, the meaning must be derived from the very essence of the music itself. There is debate over the sense in which absolute music can really exist and whether all music is "programmatic" in nature be it intended or not.

There was intense debate over the matter during the late Romantic Era, with the majority of opposition to absolute instrumental-based music coming from Richard Wagner, Friedrich Nietzsche and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. Wagner's works were chiefly programmatic and often used vocalization, and he said that "Where music can go no further, there comes the word… the word stands higher than the tone." Nietzsche wrote many commentaries applauding the music of Wagner and was in fact an amateur composer himself.^[2] Hegel went so far as to say that "Instrumental music is not strictly art at all."^{[citation needed]}

Other Romantic philosophers and proponents of absolute music, such as Johann von Goethe saw music not only as a subjective human "language" but as an absolute transcendent means of peering into a higher realm of order and beauty. Some expressed a spiritual connection with music. In Part IV of his chief work, The World as Will and Representation (1819), Arthur Schopenhauer said that "music is the answer to the mystery of life. The most profound of all the arts, it expresses the deepest thoughts of life." In "The Immediate Stages of the Erotic, or Musical Erotic", a chapter of Either/Or (1843), Søren Kierkegaard examines the profundity of music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the sensual nature of Don Giovanni.

Meaning and purpose[link]

Today there is still much debate over how music gets its meaning. Of course, music can be interpreted many different ways by different listeners, but there are many general emotional characteristics which appear to be universal to music. People may associate certain sounds with certain emotions based on cultural conditioning, but some fundamental types of sounds are probably naturally pleasing or displeasing. For instance, studies have shown that low-pitched background noises tend to be soothing and relaxing (presumably because they are similar to the womb) whereas high pitches and high tempos are used to convey excitement. A central question is how much of these associations come directly from the music itself and how much come from cultural association. The sciences of neurobiology and evolutionary psychology and the field of ethnomusicology are slowly making progress in answering this and related questions.

Also being investigated is the question of why music developed in the first place. The first attempts to put music in an evolutionary framework were made by Charles Darwin who said in his 1871 book The Descent of Man, "Musical notes and rhythm were first acquired by the male or female progenitors of mankind for the sake of charming the opposite sex." Today there is active research in the evolution of music, with some evidence supporting Darwin's hypothesis that it was used for mating and other evidence suggesting that music was a means of social organization and communication in early cultures. A few leading evolutionary psychologists argue that music has no adaptive purpose at all, but simply manages, as the Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker has written, to "tickle the sensitive spots"^{[citation needed]} in areas of the brain that evolved for other purposes. In his 1997 book How the Mind Works, Pinker dubbed music "auditory cheesecake" a phrase that in the years since has served as a challenge to the musicologists and psychologists who believe otherwise.^[3]

Aesthetics of music[link]

The study of the aesthetics of music revolves around the question "what makes music pleasurable to listen to?". Views on what is "good music" have changed dramatically over the centuries as new musical forms have arisen and others have fallen out of favor. This fact shows the cultural dependence of a person's ability to interpret and enjoy music. Of importance is the difference between art music and popular music. Popular music is music that mass audiences find accessible and is thus is heavily dependent on culture and time period. Art music is music that is cultivated by relatively small groups and must be practiced and studied in order to be fully appreciated. The precise boundaries between art music and popular music are constantly changing and are often the subject of debate.

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Kivy, P: Introduction to the Philosophy of Music, Hackett Publishing, 1989.
• Malcolm Budd: "Music and the Expression of Emotion", Journal of Aesthetic Education, Vol. 23, No. 3 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 19–29.
• Goehr, Lydia. 'The Imaginary Museum of Musical Works. An Essay in the Philosophy of Music' Oxford, 1992/2007.
• Scruton, R: The Aesthetics of Music, Oxford University Press, 1997.

External links[link]

	Music portal
	Philosophy portal

• Philosophy of Music from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Sergiu Celibidache (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈserd͡ʒju t͡ʃelibiˈdake]; 28 June 1912 – 14 August 1996) was a Romanian conductor.

Biography[link]

Celibidache was born in Roman, Romania, and began his studies in music with the piano, after which he studied music, philosophy and mathematics in Bucharest, Romania and then in Paris. One of the most important influences in his life was his introduction to Martin Steinke, who, being knowledgeable about Buddhism, heavily affected Celibidache's outlook for the rest of his life.

Career[link]

Sergiu Celibidache studied in Berlin and, from 1945 to 1952, he was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. He later worked with radio orchestras in Stockholm, Stuttgart and Paris. He also worked in Britain in the late 1940s and 1950s, due partly to the promotional efforts of the pianist Eileen Joyce and her partner, an artists' agent. Joyce said that Celibidache was the greatest conductor she had ever worked with - "he was the only one who got inside my soul".^[1] In 1970 he was awarded Denmark's Sonning Award. From 1979 until his death he was music director of the Munich Philharmonic. He regularly taught at Mainz University in Germany and in 1984 taught at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Teaching was a major focus throughout his life and his courses were frequently open to all without fee. Among his notable students are Françoys Bernier, Jordi Mora, Peter Perret, and Markand Thakar.

Celibidache's approach to music-making is often described in terms of what he did not do instead of what he did. For example, much has been made of Celibidache's "refusal" to make recordings even though almost all of his concert activity actually was recorded with many released posthumously by major labels such as EMI and Deutsche Grammophon with consent of his family.^[2] Nevertheless, Celibidache did pay little attention to making these recordings, which he viewed merely as by-products of his orchestral concerts.

Celibidache's focus was instead on creating, during each concert, the optimal conditions for what he called a "transcendent experience". Aspects of Zen Buddhism, such as ichi-go ichi-e, were strongly influential on him. He believed that musical experiences were extremely unlikely to ensue when listening to recorded music, so he eschewed them. As a result, some of his concerts did provide audiences with exceptional and sometimes life-altering experiences, including, for example, a 1984 concert in Carnegie Hall by the Orchestra of the Curtis Institute that New York Times critic John Rockwell touted as the best of his twenty-five years of concert-going. ^[3]

Sergiu Celibidache giving a conducting lesson at the Curtis Institute in 1984 to Curtis Student David Bernard

Celibidache was well known for his demands for extensive rehearsal time with orchestras.^[4] An oft-mentioned feature of many of his concerts, captured in the live recordings of them, is a slower tempo than what is considered the norm, while, in fast passages, his tempos often exceeded expectations.^[5] In Celibidache's own view, however, criticism of a recording's tempo is irrelevant, as it is not (and cannot be) a critique of the performance but rather of a transcription of it, without the ambience of the moment – for him, a key factor in any musical performance. As Celibidache explained, the acoustic space in which one hears a concert directly affects the likelihood of the emergence of his sought-after transcendent experience. The acoustic space within which one hears a recording of one of his performances, on the other hand, has no impact on the performance, as it is impossible for the acoustic features of that space to provide feedback to the musicians that might impel them to, for example, play slower or faster.

That his recorded performances differ so widely from the majority of other recordings has led them to be seen by some as collectors' items rather than mainstream releases, 'one-offs' rather than reference recordings.^[6] The reality is that the recordings and their relationship to other recordings are the arena within which his artistic importance is now judged, while the contributions he made in the concert hall fade along with the memories of those who were there.

Notable releases have been his Munich performances of Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Anton Bruckner, Robert Schumann, Johann Sebastian Bach, Gabriel Fauré and a series of live performances with the London Symphony Orchestra and the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra.

One controversial incident during his tenure with the Munich Philharmonic was a protracted legal battle to oust principal trombonist Abbie Conant that lasted 12 years, with Conant ultimately prevailing. Judge Angela Mack ruled that the City of Munich through the orchestra had broken the law concerning the equal treatment of employees. ^[7] Ms. Conant alleged sexism in an internet article published by her husband, William Osbourne. Her audition and controversy is discussed in Malcolm Gladwell's book Blink.

Sergiu Celibidache died in La Neuville-sur-Essonne, arrondissement Pithiviers near Paris on 14 August 1996, at age 84.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Celibidache's Garden: a 2009 film by the conductor’s son
• Sergiu Celibidache at Allmusic
• Sergiu Celibidache discography
• Life After Death Reviews of posthumous Celibidache CD releases
• Jan Schmidt-Garre: Celibidache's Presence of Mind
• Sergiu Celibidache - The Last of the Mad Genius Conductors?
• František Sláma (musician) Archive. More on the history of the Czech Philharmonic between the 1940s and the 1980s: Conductors

Robert Spano (born May 7, 1961, Conneaut, Ohio) is an American conductor and pianist. Since 2001 he has been Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO), and he served as Music Director of the Brooklyn Philharmonic from 1996 to 2004.^[1] He is the Music Director Designate of the Aspen Music Festival and School, beginning full-time responsibilities in the 2012 season.^[2]

Spano has gained national and international prominence in recent years, appearing with major orchestras and opera companies throughout the United States and Europe.^[1] He is regarded as an advocate of contemporary composers, and has earned a reputation for ambitious and adventurous orchestral programming and presentation.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8]}

In addition to raising his profile with, for example, appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman,^[9] Spano has made several prominent recordings with the ASO, which have garnered multiple Grammy Awards.^[1] Spano has also won the favor of many major music critics, and he is frequently mentioned as a candidate to lead any of the most prominent orchestras in the USA.^{[5][6][9][10]}

Life and career[link]

Early life[link]

Spano grew up in a musical family in Elkhart, Indiana.^[9] His father, Tony Spano, was a flute-builder and instrument-repairman as well as a clarinetist. Spano began making music early, studying piano, flute and violin. By the age of 14, he conducted a composition of his own with the local orchestra.^[8][11]

After graduating from Elkhart Central High School, he studied at the Oberlin Conservatory, where he earned a degree in piano performance, while also pursuing the violin and composition and studying conducting with Robert Baustian.^[12][13] After Oberlin he went on to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia to train with Max Rudolf.^[1]

In 1985, he left Curtis to take his first professional position, Director of Orchestral Activities, at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, where he briefly considered pursuing a degree in philosophy.^[13][8] In 1989 he returned to Oberlin, now as a faculty member, leading the Opera Theater program.^[12] He has maintained at least an official affiliation with Oberlin ever since, despite the physical separation enforced by his international performing career.^[13]

Rise to prominence[link]

In 1990, Spano was named as an Assistant Conductor with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, under Seiji Ozawa.^[14][11] Spano's profile rose steadily while in Boston. Since he left the post in 1993, he has been a regular guest conductor with the Boston Symphony and a teacher at the Tanglewood Music Center in the summertime. At Tanglewood, he headed the conductor training program from 1998 to 2002, and directed the Festival of Contemporary Music in 2003 and 2004.^[14][1]

From 1993 until 1996 he traveled the world nonstop, conducting concerts and operas – for a time not even having a home address.^[11][3] Eventually his travels would team him with orchestras in Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles, and other cities throughout North America, and overseas from Amsterdam to Zurich. He has conducted operas at the Royal Opera at Covent Garden in London, the Welsh National Opera, and the opera houses of Chicago, Houston, Santa Fe, and Seattle (the latter most notably in 2005 and again in 2009 when he led cycles of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen to general acclaim).^[1][15]

In 1995, Spano's first music directorship was announced, with the Brooklyn Philharmonic.^[11][7] He began his tenure in the fall of 1996, and quickly garnered acclaim.^[7] Over the next few years, despite multiple financial crises,^[16][10][5] Spano and the orchestra gained a fervent following in the New York musical community and press. Working with executive director Joseph Horowitz, Spano developed innovative programs organized around intellectual, dramatic, or historical themes, and often with jarring stylistic juxtapositions featuring unfamiliar works alongside standard repertoire. He also explored the use of visual elements in his programs to augment the standard orchestral concert experience.^[3][4]

Atlanta[link]

In 2002, Spano announced his intention to step down from the Brooklyn post at the end of the 2003/04 season, remaining as an advisor, and then principal guest conductor, until 2007.^[10] By then, Spano had already assumed his new position, as Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. When his appointment was first announced in February 2000, it was widely regarded, in Atlanta and nationally, as a coup for the orchestra.^[9][4][17]

In a gesture toward collaborative leadership in what is traditionally an autocratic culture, Spano was hired concurrently with Principal Guest Conductor Donald Runnicles (then Music Director of the San Francisco Opera), and it was announced that they would "share responsibilities," including programming, with then-ASO President Allison Vulgamore acting as a "facilitator."^[9][18] Both of their contracts have been renewed and subsequently extended, currently running through the 2008/09 season.^[19] In March 2008, the orchestra and Spano announced the extension of his contract as Music Director through the 2013/2014 season.^[20]

Spano, however, remains the face of the organization, and his profile has continued to rise. After some troubled years for the orchestra in the 1990s,^[18][9] and despite his would-be gala debut as Music Director being marred by the September 11 attacks just four days earlier,^[18] most have judged Spano's tenure to have greatly bolstered the orchestra's morale, and maintained artistic standards.^[21][18][22] The ASO also has reported increased ticket sales and donations during Spano's tenure.^[1]

Spano, whose work was unrepresented on recordings prior to coming to Atlanta,^[9] has particularly benefited from the orchestra's previously existing relationship with Telarc Records, which dates back to the ASO's years with Robert Shaw.^[23] Spano and the ASO have released several CDs on the Telarc label, ranging from new works to standard repertoire, which have been well received and won several awards (see below). More recently they have also recorded for Deutsche Grammophon.

One interesting project Spano has undertaken in Atlanta involves forging long-term relationships with several living composers, incorporating commissions, multiple performances, and recordings. This "fluid list" includes the composers Osvaldo Golijov, Jennifer Higdon, Christopher Theofanidis, Michael Gandolfi, and Adam Schoenberg, and has been dubbed by Spano and the ASO the "Atlanta School" (the name refers to the orchestra's advocacy itself – only Higdon comes from Atlanta, and none of the composers of the "School" are based there).^[24]

In addition to his conducting career, Spano remains active as a pianist, performing frequently as a chamber musician – often with his colleagues from Atlanta, Brooklyn, Boston and other orchestras.^[1] He also continues to compose his own music, though only in his time off from his performing career.^[15]

Critical praise and awards[link]

Named by Musical America as Conductor of the Year in 2008, Spano has won praise from several leading music critics, such as Justin Davidson of Newsday,^[3] Pierre Ruhe of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,^[6] Bernard Holland of the New York Times,^[7] and Richard Dyer of the Boston Globe.^[5] Spano was recognized with the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award in 1994.^[25][12] He has also received honorary degrees from Bowling Green State University and the Curtis Institute of Music,^[1] and his recordings have won several Grammy Awards (see below). He also was awarded the Ditson Conductor's Award in 2008. [1]

Affiliations[link]

This is a summary list of organizations with which Spano has had a staff-affiliation. Guest conducting appearances, visiting faculty affiliations, etc., do not appear. For a more exhaustive list of these please see his Official Bio (described in External links below).

For sources concerning the affiliations listed here, please see Life and career above.

• Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

Music Director 2001–present

• Aspen Music Festival and School

Music Director 2012-present

• Brooklyn Philharmonic

Music Director 1996–2004

Artistic Advisor 2004–2005

Principal Guest Conductor 2005–2007

• Tanglewood Music Center

Director: Conducting Fellowship Program 1998–2002

Director: Festival of Contemporary Music 2003–2004

• Boston Symphony Orchestra

Assistant Conductor 1990–1993

• Oberlin Conservatory of Music

Professor of Conducting 1989–present

• Bowling Green State University

Assistant Professor of Conducting 1985–1989

Recordings[link]

All recordings feature Spano conducting the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and ASO Chorus (as appropriate). Additional featured soloists are noted.

• Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, Op. 35; Russian Easter Overture Telarc CD #80568 (2001). Cecylia Arzewski, solo violin.

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 2007-03-25)

• Vaughan Williams: A Sea Symphony (Symphony #1). Telarc CD #80588 (2002). Christine Goerke, soprano; Brett Polegato, baritone; ASO Chorus

Awards: Grammy Awards for Best Classical Album, Best Choral Performance, and Best Engineered Album, 2003.

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Theofanidis: Rainbow Body; Barber: Symphony No.1, Op. 9; Copland: Suite from Appalachian Spring; Higdon: Blue Cathedral. Telarc CD #80596 (2003).

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Higdon: City Scape; Concerto for Orchestra. Telarc CD #80620 (2004).

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Berlioz: Requiem, Op. 5 (Grande Messe des Morts). Telarc CD #80627 SACD #60627 (2004). Frank Lopardo, tenor; ASO Chorus.

Awards: Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance, 2005.

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Del Tredici: Paul Revere's Ride; Theofanidis: The Here and Now; Bernstein: "Lamentation" from Symphony No. 1 (Jeremiah). Telarc CD #80638 (2005). Hila Plitmann, soprano; Richard Clement, tenor; Brett Polegato, baritone; Nancy Maultsby, mezzo-soprano.

Awards: Gramophone Magazine "Editor's Choice" (December 2005).

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Sibelius: Kullervo, Op. 7. Telarc CD #80665 (2006). Charlotte Hellekant, soprano; Nathan Gunn, baritone; Men of the ASO Chorus

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Golijov: Ainadamar (Fountain Of Tears) Deutsche Grammophon CD #477 616-5 (2006). Dawn Upshaw, soprano; Jessica Rivera, soprano; Kelley O'Connor, mezzo-soprano; Ladies of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus

Awards: Grammy Awards for Best Opera Recording, Best Classical Contemporary Composition, 2006.

Product page / Audio samples (Accessed 25 March 2007)

• Tallis: Why Fum'th in Fight; Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5/Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis/Serenade to Music Telarc CD# 80676 (2007) Jessica Rivera, soprano; Kelley O'Connor, mezzo-soprano; Thomas Studebaker, tenor; Nmon Ford, baritone; ASO Chamber Chorus

References[link]

External links[link]

• Robert Spano – Artist Homepage from Kirshbaum Demler & Associates. Official bio; discography; news, etc. Accessed 24 March 2007
• Robert Spano Website
• The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra homepage. Accessed 24 March 2007
• 1998 Radio Interview with Brian Bell of WGBH in Boston. Spano discusses Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony. Accessed 24 March 2007
• Artist page at Telarc International. Older bio; list of Telarc cd's; audio samples. Accessed 24 March 2007
• Index of Articles relating to Spano from The New York Times. (Paid subscription required for some articles). Accessed 24 March 2007

Interviews[link]

• Interview by Bruce Duffie, October 26, 1998
• 2005 Print Interview with Pierre Ruhe of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Spano discusses conducting Wagner's Ring Cycle. (also cited above) Accessed 24 March 2007

Tommy Emmanuel
Emmanuel performing at the Soave Guitar Festival, Italy, May 2010
Background information
Born	(1955-05-31) 31 May 1955 (age 57) Muswellbrook, New South Wales, Australia
Genres	Folk, Rock, Pop, Blues, Country
Occupations	Musician, Songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, lap steel guitar
Years active	1962–present
Associated acts	Dragon
Website	Official website
Notable instruments
Maton TE Signature model, Williamson Guitars

William Thomas "Tommy" Emmanuel AM (born 31 May 1955) is an Australian guitarist and occasional singer, best known for his complex fingerstyle technique, energetic performances and the use of percussive effects on the guitar. In the May 2008 and 2010 issues of Guitar Player Magazine, he was named as "Best Acoustic Guitarist" in their readers' poll.^[1] In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM).^[2]

Biography[link]

Emmanuel was born in Australia in 1955. He received his first guitar in 1959 at age four, being taught by his mother to accompany her playing lap steel guitar. At the age of 7 he heard Chet Atkins on the radio. He vividly remembers this moment and says it greatly inspired him.^[3]

By the age of 6, in 1961, he was a working professional musician. Recognizing the musical talents of Tommy and his brother Phil, their father created a family band, sold the family home and took his family on the road. With the family living in two station wagons, much of Emmanuel’s childhood was spent touring Australia with his family, playing rhythm guitar, and rarely going to school. The family found it difficult living on the road; they were poor but never hungry, never settling in one place. His father would often drive ahead, organize interviews, advertising and finding the local music shop where they'd have an impromptu concert the next day. Eventually the New South Wales Department of Education insisted that the Emmanuel children needed to go to school regularly.^[3][4]

After his father died in 1966, the family settled in Parkes. Tommy eventually moved to Sydney where he came to be noticed nationally when he won a string of talent contests in his teen years.^[3][5] By the late 1970s, he was playing drums with his brother Phil in the group Goldrush as well doing session work on numerous albums and jingles. He gained further prominence in the late 1970s as the lead guitarist in The Southern Star Band, the backing group for vocalist Doug Parkinson. During the early 1980s, he joined the reformed lineup of leading 1970s rock group Dragon, touring widely with them, including a 1987 tour with Tina Turner. He left the group to embark on a solo career.

Throughout his career he has played with many notable artists including Chet Atkins, Eric Clapton, Sir George Martin, Air Supply, John Denver, Les Paul and Doc Watson.

In 1994 Australian music veteran John Farnham invited him to play guitar next to Stuart Fraser from Noiseworks for the Concert For Rwanda. Emmanuel became a member of Farnham's band.

Emmanuel and his brother Phil performed live in Sydney at the closing ceremony of the Summer Olympics in 2000. The event was televised worldwide with an estimated 2.85 billion viewers.^[5] When performing together the pair will sometimes share and play just one guitar with each having one hand free.

In October 2002 he was invited to perform the Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda at a service at the Washington National Cathedral held for the victims of the Bali bombings.

In December 2007 he was diagnosed with heart issues^[6] and was forced to take a break from his hectic touring schedule due to exhaustion, but returned to full-time touring in early 2008.

In late January 2010, having been deeply touched by the tragic 2010 Haiti earthquake earlier in the same month, Emmanuel announced^[7] that he would be auctioning off three guitars, that he personally played and owned, on eBay, in order to raise money to donate to UNICEF in Haiti.

In June 2010 Emmanuel was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM).^[2]

Musical style[link]

Emmanuel's fingerstyle technique shown at a June 2006 performance at the City Stages venue in Birmingham, Alabama

Emmanuel has said that even at a young age he was fascinated by Atkins’ musical style – sometimes referred to as Travis picking – of playing bass with the thumb and melody parts with the first two or three fingers at the same time. This technique became the basis of Tommy's guitar style.

While Emmanuel has never had formal music training, his playing ability has won him fans from all over the world. He is known to play percussion parts on the body of his guitar. As a solo performer he never plays to a set list and uses a minimum of effects.^[5] He usually completes recordings in one take.

Emmanuel frequently uses his left thumb to fret bass notes on the 5th and 6th strings as well as playing chords such as Am and E with just two fingers. He uses a thumb pick mostly, a flat pick or just fingers. He also integrates amongst his trademark blazing runs and kaleidoscopic chord progressions a quick note / chord "dive," imitating a tremolo system effect on his fixed-bridge acoustic guitars, by pressing the palm of his right hand against the body of the guitar directly above the fret board close to the neck joint while maintaining forward pressure with his left (fretting) hand.

His main guitar is a small-bodied custom Maton EBG808 made in 2003, that is fitted with a pickup and an internal condenser microphone, to which he has given the nickname "Mouse" due to its quieter volume unplugged but massive sound when plugged into an amp. Two of his main stage guitars, notably his signature TE1 Maton dreadnought, are battered and worn due to his excessive playing and percussive techniques.

Association with Chet Atkins[link]

As a young man in Australia, Emmanuel wrote to his hero Chet Atkins in Nashville. Eventually Atkins replied with words of encouragement and a longstanding invitation to drop by to visit.^[8]

In 1997, Emmanuel and Atkins recorded as a duo and released the album The Day Finger Pickers Took Over The World, which was also to be Atkins' last recorded album before he died. Emmanuel and Atkins appeared together on The Nashville Network's 'County Christmas' in late 1997 and on that occasion Atkins stated about him: "He is one of the greatest guitar players I've ever seen."

In July 1999, at the 15th Annual Chet Atkins Appreciation Society Convention, Chet presented Tommy with a Certified Guitar Player award, an honor Atkins has bestowed on other guitarists.^[3] This award gains its fame from being bestowed by Atkins himself, a widely recognized leader in guitar music. The award states: "In Recognition Of His Contributions to the Art Of Fingerpicking." Tommy performs at the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society (CAAS) in July each year in Nashville.^[9]

Discography[link]

• 1979 From Out Of Nowhere
• 1987 Up From Down Under
• 1990 Dare to Be Different
• 1992 Determination
• 1993 The Journey
• 1993 The Journey Continues
• 1995 Initiation
• 1995 Terra Firma (with Phil Emmanuel)
• 1995 Classical Gas
• 1996 Can't Get Enough
• 1997 Midnight Drive (US release of Can't Get Enough)
• 1997 The Day Finger Pickers Took Over The World (With Chet Atkins)
• 1998 Collaboration
• 2000 Only
• 2001 The Very Best of Tommy Emmanuel
• 2004 Endless Road
• 2005 Live One
• 2006 Happy Hour (with Jim Nichols)
• 2006 The Mystery
• 2008 Center Stage
• 2009 Just Between Frets (with Frank Vignola)
• 2010 Little by Little
• 2010 Tommy Emmanuel Essential 3.0
• 2011 All I Want For Christmas (Holy day Album)^[10]

Emmanuel released the DVD "Live At Her Majesty's Theatre, Ballarat, Australia" on 11 July 2006 and also the "Center Stage" accompanying DVD in late 2008.

Emmanuel has produced 3 instructional videos: Guitar Talk (1993), Up Close (1996), Emmanuel Labor (2008)

Awards[link]

"Smokey Mountain Lullaby", a duet with Chet Atkins, was nominated for the 1998 Grammy award for Country Instrumental Performance but did not win. His song "Gameshow Rag/Cannonball Rag" won "Instrumental of the Year" at the 35th Tamworth Country Music Festival on Saturday, 27 January 2007,^[11] and also was nominated that year for a Grammy for "Best Country Instrumental Performance".^[12]

References[link]

External links[link]

• TommyEmmanuel.com
• Tommy Emmanuel page on The Party Of The Century project
• 2011 Tommy Emmanuel Interview on FingerstyleGuitarists.com
• Emmanuel playing "Over the Rainbow" on WGN

Frank Turner
Frank Turner at a radio session for XFM in London.
Background information
Birth name	Francis Edward Turner
Also known as	Frank 'Dave' Turner
Born	(1981-12-28) 28 December 1981 (age 30) Manama, Bahrain
Origin	Meonstoke, England
Genres	Folk, folk-punk, hardcore punk, alternative rock
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, Vocals
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Xtra Mile Recordings (UK), Epitaph, Paper + Plastick
Associated acts	Million Dead, Reuben, The Record Buying Public, Kneejerk, Badger Doritos, Albuquerque Meat Hat, Dive Dive
Website	frank-turner.com

Frank Turner (born 28 December 1981) is an English^[1] folk/punk singer-songwriter from Meonstoke, Winchester. Initially the vocalist of post-hardcore band Million Dead, Turner embarked upon a primarily acoustic-based solo career following the band's split in 2005. To date, Turner has released four solo albums, two rarities compilation albums and four EPs. Turner began recording for his new album England Keep My Bones, in January 2011. It was released on 6 June 2011 in the UK, and 7 June 2011 worldwide.

Early life[link]

Turner was educated on a scholarship at Eton College, where he studied alongside Prince William,^[2] and later went on to attend the London School of Economics where he read History. His father, Roger Turner, is the son of Sir Mark Turner, formerly chairman of high street retailer BHS, and had himself also attended Eton before becoming a City investment banker, while his mother, Jane, the daughter of a bishop, is a primary school headmistress.

Musical career[link]

Beginnings and Million Dead (Up to 2005)[link]

Turner's musical career began at school, with the short-lived alternative band Kneejerk. The band released three records and played several shows around the UK (including a support slot for Boysetsfire), before disbanding in November 2001. The last record, their only full length, was entitled 'The half life of kissing' and was released by Yorkshire DIY hardcore label Sakari Empire after the band had actually broken up.^[3]

In 2001, Turner joined London post-hardcore band Million Dead at the invitation of former Kneejerk drummer Ben Dawson.^[4] In 2005, after four years and two albums, the band announced that they were parting ways, as "irreconcilable differences within the band mean that it would be impossible to continue."^[4]

[edit] Sleep is for the Week and Love Ire & Song (2005-2008)

Turner's first solo shows took place prior to the break-up of Million Dead, with a set at the Smalltown America all-dayer at 93 Feet East in London. After the band's split, Turner felt that "it seemed like the logical thing to do to try my hand at playing these songs more publicly and more concertedly than before".^[5] Turner states that "when Million Dead finished, I wanted to stay on tour, but I didn’t want the hassle of putting a band together."^[6]

After a split EP with rock band Reuben, Turner's first solo EP, Campfire Punkrock, was released in May 2006 on Xtra Mile Recordings, with him being recorded and backed by Oxford band Dive Dive who he had met while out on tour with Reuben.^[5][7] Band members Tarrant Anderson, Ben Lloyd and Nigel Powell would become his backing band from this point on, with most of his subsequent UK headline tours being full band shows. After touring in support of American singer-songwriter Jonah Matranga, the two released a split EP in August 2006. In September, he was the last act to appear on Steve Lamacq's "Lamacq Live" show on BBC Radio 1.^[8] Turner's debut full-length studio album, Sleep Is for the Week was released in January 2007, again recorded at Dive Dive's studio, produced by their guitarist Ben Lloyd^[9] and featuring drummer Nigel Powell.

After an extensive tour, including dates supporting yourcodenameis:milo and Biffy Clyro, and an appearance at SXSW,^[10] Turner released an EP, The Real Damage, in May 2007. After a further tour with Jonah Matranga and Jacob Golden, the "All About The Destination" DVD was released in October, before returning to the studio in Hampshire to record his second album. The album, Love Ire & Song again saw Ben Lloyd from Dive Dive in the producer's seat,^[11] and was released on 31 March 2008, followed by an extensive UK tour with Andy Yorke and Chris T-T. T-T also joined the live lineup on keyboards through summer 2008.

During summer 2008, Turner made several festival appearances, including sets at Y Not Festival, Two Thousand Trees Festival, the Cambridge Folk Festival, Truck, Glastonbury, Jam By The Lake (in Durham) and the Reading and Leeds Festivals.

In October/November, during his 2008 UK Tour for the Love, Ire and Song album, he became ill with gastroenteritis, and was forced to leave the stage in Nottingham halfway through his set. All remaining shows, which included Nottingham, Liverpool and Ireland, were cancelled - the first time that Turner had cancelled any show in ten years.^[12] He went on to reschedule all cancelled shows in January 2009.

[edit] Poetry of the Deed (2008-2010)

In December 2008 Turner released The First Three Years, a compilation of demos, b-sides and covers that are not featured on either of his studio albums. In January 2009, he released a combined package of The First Three Years and Love Ire & Song, and supported The Gaslight Anthem on their tour of the UK and Europe, demoing several new songs and announcing his plans to record a new album in May. The album was produced by Alex Newport, as previously suggested in interview by Turner.^[13] His band at the time still consisted of Ben Lloyd, Tarrant Anderson and Nigel Powell from Dive Dive, with keyboardist Matt Nasir having been added on the Love, Ire and Song tour.

Prior to recording Poetry of the Deed, Turner stated that:^[14]

Turner was announced as the support act on The Offspring's summer tour, during which he documented his travels with a blog on British music website NME.^[15] Regarding the support slot, Turner stated: "Smash was one of the first punk records I ever bought, and I’m blown away to even be considered for the shows. From a “career” point of view, it’s also great - playing to many thousands of people a night across the States is an opportunity not to be sniffed at."^[16]

On 28 April, Turner signed with Epitaph Records for releases outside the UK.^[17]

Preceded by the single "The Road", Turner's third studio album, Poetry of the Deed, was released on 7 September 2009 and reached #36 in the UK album chart. The following month he embarked upon a UK tour with his band in support of the album (with singer/songwriter Beans On Toast and US band "Fake Problems" as support acts), culminating in a sell-out show at the O2 Shepherds Bush Empire on 29 October 2009. A live DVD/CD, entitled Take to the Road, documenting two shows from the tour - Shepherds Bush Empire and the Union Chapel - was released in the UK in March 2010. In November 2009, Turner began a tour of the US which moved to Europe from 28 November and returned to the UK on 19 December. He completed the year with a New Year's Eve show at The Spiegeltent in Gloucester.

In early 2010, Turner played several more UK gigs, with Chuck Ragan and Crazy Arm supporting. He also accompanied Flogging Molly and The Architects on the 2010 Green 17 Tour, and announced via his Twitter that he was working on new songs.^[18]

In June, he supported Green Day on their stadium shows, and also featured as the cover star of Kerrang! magazine for the first time, with an article inside documenting his solo career up to that point.

[edit] Rock & Roll EP and England Keep My Bones (2010-present)

Turner played at many festivals throughout the summer, including his headlining appearance at the Two Thousand Trees Festival, playing his new song I Still Believe. The song was released first as a single and then appeared on his Rock and Roll EP. I Still Believe appeared on Turner's most recent album, England Keep my Bones, released on 6 June 2011.^[19] Turner also contributed one song, a cover of Build Me Up Buttercup, to Centrepoint's 2010 Charity cover album 1969 Key to Change.^[20] On 25 January 2011 he was nominated for two Shockwaves NME Awards, for best Solo Artist and best Band Blog or Twitter.^[21]

Turner announced on his Twitter on 24 February 2011 that his fourth studio album would be called England Keep My Bones and that it would be released in the UK on 6 June 2011 and worldwide on 7 June 2011. He also announced details of solo tours in Australia, Germany, UK, and the US & Canada.^[22] Frank started recording of this album on 10 January 2011 ^[23] and finished recording on 20 January 2011,^[23] with mixing completed in February 2011. In March 2011, Turner stated that:^[24]

On 21 March 2011, it was announced that Turner would be making the step up to the main stage at Reading and Leeds in August 2011.^[25] He spoke about the "perks" of playing Reading in a recent interview with 6 Towns Radio.^[26] He will also be playing Download, Blissfields and Cambridge Folk festivals, as well as many other festivals across Europe.

Several songs from England Keep My Bones were debuted at Playfest (a new music festival in Norfolk) on 28 May.

Turner leaked new song, "I Am Disappeared" to YouTube on 29 March 2011, later making it available for free download through Xtra Mile. He also announced on the 29th that he would soon be releasing "Peggy Sang the Blues" as the first single from the album.

In early 2011, Turner was booked to play as a headliner at Blissfields Festival.

During his May 2011 tour, Turner played a new song, tentatively titled "Rod Stewart." This song later became retitled as "Sailors Boots" and features as the B-side to "If Ever I Stray".

England Keep My Bones entered the UK chart at number 12 on its week of release, Turner's highest charting album to date.^[27]

Turner later released a rarities compilation, titled The Second Three Years, on 18 November 2011 through Xtra Mile Recordings and 16 January 2012 through Epitaph Records. The album compiles material recorded after the release of Turner's first compilation, The First Three Years, that does not appear on either of Turner's two successive studio albums, including tracks from EPs, singles, covers and unreleased material.

On 21 April 2011 Frank played his 1000th solo show at the Strummerville festival in Shoreditch, London.

In spring 2012, he is scheduled to play several dates in Canada as an opening act for Joel Plaskett.^[28]

On Friday 13th April 2012, Frank headlined Wembley Arena to a sold out crowd of 12,000^[29][30]. Support for the show came from Beans On Toast, dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip and Billy Bragg.

Backing band[link]

Turner's band, 'The Sleeping Souls',^[31] both live and in the studio, consists of:

• Ben Lloyd - guitar, harmonica, mandolin
• Tarrant Anderson - bass
• Matt Nasir - piano, organ, guitar, backing vocals
• Nigel Powell - drums, percussion, backing vocals

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

• Sleep Is for the Week (2007)
• Love Ire & Song (2008)
• Poetry of the Deed (2009)
• England Keep My Bones (2011)

TBA (2013)

Videography[link]

• Casanova Lament (unaired)
• Vital Signs (2006)
• The Real Damage (2007)
• Photosynthesis (2008)
• Reasons Not to Be an Idiot (2008)
• I Knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous (2008)
• Long Live the Queen (2008)
• The Road (2009)
• Poetry of the Deed (2009)
• Isabel (2010)
• Try This at Home (2010)
• I Still Believe (2010)
• Peggy Sang the Blues (2011)
• If Ever I Stray (2011)
• Sailor's Boots (2011)

DVDs[link]

• All About the Destination (22 October 2007)
• Take to the Road (22 March 2010)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

Interviews[link]

• Frank Turner Interview
• Frank Turner on England Keep My Bones, libertarianism, Brian May and more
• Frank Turner invites Virgin Red Room to his gorgeous garden for an interview on England Keep My Bones.
• YuppiePunk Q&A on pop songwriting, punk rock capitalism and social media
• 26 Sept. 2009 Interview with ThePunkSite.com
• Stereokill Interview: 29 October 2008
• Stereokill Interview: 4 April 2009
• GiggingNI.com talks to Frank Turner
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfT0b2INxO4&feature=avmsc2
• Frank Turner Photo Interview
• Stereoboard Interview: March 2011
• Frank Turner on 6 Towns Radio with Terry Bossons: 20 May 2011
• A snapshot into the mind and musings of Frank Turner
• Folk-punk musician Frank Turner - PRI's The World interview with Marco Werman: 19 April 2011