Album Notes

Update 7-26/-06 Listen to Lily Afshar on NPR's All Things Considered at
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5581544

HEMISPHERES
Archer Records 31926
Release Date: July 25, 2006

Internationally renowned classical guitarist Lily Afshar has recorded her fourth and most impressive CD to date: Hemispheres. This CD is filled with premieres and introduces, for the first time, Persian traditional music composed for guitar by Reza Vali.

Lily Afshar explains it best in the program notes to Hemispheres:

In my search to play new music, I came across a wonderful array of composers some of whom had never written for the guitar before. This CD introduces, for the first time, Persian traditional music composed by Reza Vali. In order to get accurate pitches of quarter tones used in his piece, Gozaar, I installed ‘fretlets’ (small frets) on my guitar. This created new sounds and notes on the guitar resulting in a truly original sound and feel.

Garry Eister’s inspiration from the traditional Persian Seh-tar piece, Morgh-eh- Sahar (Bird of Dawn) resulted in his Fantasia for the guitar where new techniques of re-tuning the guitar in the middle of the piece to quarter tones opens up another horizon.

In introducing the traditional Persian melody of Morgh-eh- Sahar, I am performing the original version on the ancient Persian instrument, Seh-tar, so that listeners can become familiar with this ancient melody by Morteza Neydavood as well as the instrument.

Introducing for the first time is the Polish composer, Gerard Drozd’s Triptych and Adagio and the arrangement of Asik Veysel’s popular Turkish folk song Kara Toprak (Black Earth) for the guitar by Ricardo Moyano.

Seldom heard works such as Domeniconi’s Schnee in Istanbul (Snow in Istanbul) hopefully will bring more attention to this gem.

John Schneider’s lyrical and virtuosic Prelude and Fugato are exciting additions to the repertory. South American favorites by Brouwer and Bustamante add more flavor to this wide palette of new music. -Lily Afshar

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Public Radio International has described Lily Afshar as “one of the world’s foremost classical guitarists.” She has performed as soloist with orchestras and premiered works to sold out halls around the world. At a recent Wigmore Hall Concert in London, England’s Musical Opinion Magazine praised Lily for her “fresh sense of programming” and “her ability to draw listeners onto the edge of their seats...”

Born in Tehran, Lily was 10 years old when she began learning the guitar. She graduated with a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music degree in guitar performance from The Boston Conservatory and the New England Conservatory of Music. At Florida State University, Lily became the first woman in the world to gain a Doctorate of Music in guitar performance. She has studied at the Banff Centre for Fine Arts and the Aspen Music Festival. She received Diplomas of Merit from the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy.


She was selected to play for Maestro Andrés Segovia in his master classes held at the University of Southern California. Afterwards, Segovia predicted she would become “a beautiful celebrity.”

Lily was honored with the 2000 Orville H. Gibson Award for Best Female Classical Guitarist in Los Angeles. Her other performance awards include the Top Prize in the Guitar Foundation of America Competition and Grand Prize in the Aspen Music Festival Guitar Competition, among others. She received the Tennessee Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship Award in Music and an NEA Recording Award.

Currently, Lily is head of the University of Memphis guitar program where she received the 2000 Board of Visitors Eminent Faculty Award. Lily regularly conducts guitar master classes in conjunction with her touring. Her recordings of 24 Caprichos de Goya, Op. 195 by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco and A Jug of Wine and Thou were released on Summit Records. Possession, her third CD, was released on Archer Records in 2002. Her Five Popular Persian Ballads are published by Mel Bay Editions, Inc.

Visit www.lilyafshar.com or www.archer-records.com

Publicity: Michael Bloom Media Relations
323.258.6342 / musicpr@earthlink.net