http://www.paul-classicalguitarist.com
Classical guitarist Paul Bowman, is one of today's passionate avatar's of new music for the guitar. Over 70 works have been written for him by such composers as John Eaton, Ursula Mamlok, Charles Norman Mason, Craig First, Alain-Michel Riou, Dorothy Hindman, Easley Blackwood, Joshua Cody, Yehuda Yannay etc. New works for him, either solo or with other instrumentalist's in 2008-09 include from composers Aaron Gervais, Nicholas Deyoe, Paolo Cavallone, Kirsten Broberg, Alessandra Ciccaglioni, Yotam Haber, C.P. First, Harvey Sollberger, Andrew Mead, Charles N. Mason, Jeff Nichols. Mr. Bowman won 1st Prize at the VIth International Competition for Classical Guitar in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was Finalist at the Guitar Foundation of America Competition in Milwaukee. Solo appearances in New York, Chicago, Boston, Birmingham, San Diego, Champaign-Urbana, Milwaukee, Berlin, Darmstadt, Dresden, Cologne, Giessen, Marburg, Paris, Orléans, Rome, Brindisi, Geneva, Cyprus, Tokyo, Singapore, among others. Ensemble appearances with New Yorker groups include The Group for Contemporary Music; New Music Consort; Musician's Accord, The Bowery Ensemble, Ensemble Sospeso in venues such as Carnegie Recital Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Alliance Français. Other new music groups include: CUBE; Chicago 21st Century Ensemble; Ensemble Noamnesia, red fish blue fish; notabu Düsseldorf; Mosaik Berlin. Festivals for new music: "Podewil neue Musik Messe" Berlin; "Tage für neue Musik" Darmstadt; "Musik Ohne Grenzen" Düsseldorf, "Nuovi Spazi Musicale" in Rome and Spring Festival at U.C.S.D. Has worked with composers Elliott Carter, George Crumb, Jason Eckardt, Pierre Boulez, Roger Reynolds, Helmut Lachenmann, Matthias Spahlinger, Phillipe Manoury, Charles Wuorinen. Worked with conductors Stefan Asbury, Heinz Holliger, Harvey Sollberger, Steven Schick, Jeffrey Milarsky. Currently, he has joined forces with flutist and new music guru Harvey Sollberger in ensemble “3 for 2”, as well as collaborations with virtuoso violinist/violist Karen Bentely Pollick and mandolinist Dimitris Marinos. He has B.M and M.M. degrees in Classical Guitar Performance from Manhattan School of Music in New York and is currently a D.M.A. Scholar in Contemporary Performance at University of California San Diego. Recorded for SEAMUS, Albany, Vienna Modern Masters, Capstone, Hungaroton, Univ. Illinois Experimental Music and Mode Records.
PRESS REVIEWS
PAUL BOWMAN, GUITAR
pbowman@ucsd.edu
“The concert had Bowman busy on all six works, four of them premieres. Exceptionally versatile musician, he negotiated a pastiche of styles with ease.
- Birmingham News, 10 November 2007
“Übrigens, er gehört der besten Gitarristen der Welt”
“By the way, he belongs among the best guitarist’s in the world”
- Rheinische Post (Düsseldorf, Germany), 1. November 1999
“It’s refreshing to know there are still courageous musicians like Paul Bowman. Unafraid to present dissonant sounds and unpredictable rhythms at a time when ‘accessibility’ is the perceived savior of new music… Bowman showed, as he did all evening, that high performance standards exist as much for new music as for old”.
- The Birmingham News, 11. May 2003
“Bowman’s kraftvoll-markante Spieltechnik lies bei erstaunlich präsentem Klangvolumen nicht einmal interpretorisch ausgelebte Innigkeit vermissen”.
“Bowman’s marked powerful technique and astounding volume of sound should not be mistaken for his sense of inner interpretation”
- Giessener Allgemeine Zeitung (Giessen, Germany) 27. June 2005
“Paul Bowman faszinierte das Publikum durch meisterhafte Beherrschung des mehrstimmigen Spiels, eine nuancenreiche Artikulation, virtuose Verzierungen und sensible Gestaltung”.
“Paul Bowman fascinated the audience through masterful conquering of the guitar’s polyphonic properties, his rich sense of nuanced articulation, virtuosic Baroque Ornaments and pleasant presentation”.
- Hessisch Niedersächsisches Allgemeine, (Germany) 21. February 2002
“In Elliott Carter’s ‘Changes’, Bowman hinterlässt trotz aller Vielschichtigkeit und Komplexität des satztechnischen ‘Innenlebens’ den Eindruck eines Werkes, in dem sich der Komponist zurücknimmt und sich eher von dem Geist des Instruments führen lässt”.
“In Elliott Carter’s ‘Changes’, Bowman leaves behind despite its many layers and introverted complexity, an impression of the work in the true spirit of the guitar itself”.
- Mainz Allgemeine Zeitung, (Mainz, Germany) 22. February 2000
“Kompendium der modernen Gitarren-Spieltechnik – Paul Bowman riss sein Publikum mit gewohnter Souveränität und interessanten Stücken hin”
“A compendium of modern guitar playing technique – Paul Bowman brings his audience his usual virtuosity with interesting pieces”.
- Giessener Anzeiger, (Giessen, Germany) 27. August 1996
“Das Publikum fordete und erhielt zwei Zugaben und zeigte sich mehr als angetan von diesem poetischen wie farbenreichen Konzert”
“The audience demanded and received two encores and showed itself more than convinced from Bowman’s poetic and richly colored concert”
- Giessener Anzeige (Giessen, Germany) 18. June 1996
“Ein Konzert auf internationalem Niveau. Mit drei Zugaben – dismal mit klassische Werken – musste der Künstler dem donnerndem Applaus des Publikums Rechnung tragen”.
“A concert of international niveau. With three encores, this time with standard classic guitar works, the artist had the burden of carrying the thunderous applause of the audience”.
- Giessener Allgemeine (Giessen, Germany) 9. January 1996
“Er erreicht scheinbar mühelos Tiefen der klanglichen und expressiven Differenzierung”.
“He reached apparently effortlessly, depths of sound and differences of expression.”
- Giessener Anzeiger (Giessen, Germany) 25. March 1997