Jason Vieaux

One of the “youngest stars of the guitar world” (New York Times, 2010), JASON VIEAUX’s recent and upcoming concert highlights include solo performances at Spivey Hall, Chautauqua Festival, and a return to the Music@Menlo festival, as well as debuts at Caramoor Festival and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Numerous returns engagements for 2011-2012 include the 92nd St. Y “Guitar Marathon”, Peninsula Music Festival, and a Hartt School of Music residency. Two tours with The Curtis Institute of Music are in the works for March and May of 2012. He will also perform concertos with Buffalo Philharmonic, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Ft. Wayne Philharmonic, and the symphonies of Richmond, Kitchener-Waterloo, Elgin, and Amarillo. Vieaux’s programs for Music@Menlo, Strings Music Festival, Grand Teton Festival and Jupiter Chamber Players have forged his reputation as a first-rate chamber musician. Vieaux’s passion for new music has fostered premiéres of works by Dan Visconti, Jerod Tate, Eric Sessler, José Luis Merlin and Gary Schocker.

Among Vieaux’s 11 commercial CDs are a new CD of Astor Piazzolla’s music with bandoneonist Julien Labro and A Far Cry Chamber Orchestra for late 2011, and a new solo disc for early 2012, both on Azica Records. Bach; Works for Lute, Vol.1 hit #13 on Billboard’s Classical Chart after its first week and received rave reviews by Gramophone, The Absolute Sound, and Soundboard. Images of Metheny features music by American jazz legend Pat Metheny, who, after hearing this landmark recording, declared: "I am flattered to be included in Jason's musical world." Sevilla: The Music of Isaac Albeniz made several Top Ten lists the year of its release. Vieaux's CDs and live performances are regularly on the radio and internet, and his work is the subject of feature articles in print and internet media outlets around the world every year, including magazines such as Acoustic Guitar, MUSO and Gramophone. He has recently written a series of blogs on classical music for National Public Radio.

In 2011, Jason Vieaux co-founded The Curtis Institute of Music Guitar Department with guitarist David Starobin, and heads the Guitar Department of the Cleveland Institute of Music. Jason Vieaux is also affiliated with Philadelphia’s Astral Artists, and gives annual outreach concerts for them. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of the Guitar Foundation of America (GFA). Mr. Vieaux’s primary teachers are Jeremy Sparks and John Holmquist. He was the recipient of the prestigious GFA International Guitar Competition 1st Prize in 1992, a Naumburg Foundation top prize, a Cleveland Institute of Music Alumni Achievement Award, and a Salon di Virtuosi Career Grant. In 1995, Vieaux was an Artistic Ambassador of the US to Southeast Asia, and now he regularly concertizes abroad to Europe, the Far East, Australia and New Zealand.