Related Links:
Conductor’s Retreat at Medomak
U-M School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Ithaca College (B.M., M.M.)
Eastman School of Music (D.M.A.)
Other related links:
Mark Bunce, recording
engineer (producer &
engineer of Mazurka!)
community music school in Worcester, MA run by my
parents, Richard and Wendy Ardizzone
architect, graphic designer,
theatre set designer, my
brother and designer of
this website
(download PDF version of full press packet)
Short Bio:
Matthew Ardizzone has performed throughout North America as a soloist, with orchestra, and in a variety of chamber music settings. The Pittsburgh Tribune has described his “sensitive nuances” and the NYC Guitar Society his “incredible tone, marvelous technical facility, and poetic phrasing.” He has collaborated with such major artists as flutist Leone Buyse, violinist Movses Pogossian, soprano Audrey Luna, and with members of the faculty at the University of Michigan.
Matthew Ardizzone has performed and taught master classes at schools throughout the country, including the Cleveland Institute of Music, Brooklyn College, Houston Baptist University, Ball State University, Eastern Michigan University, and Bethany College. Recordings include a CD with violinist Movses Pogossian (Duo Forza) and a solo guitar CD titled “Mazurka!” which won a 2001 Communicator Crystal Award of Excellence. Other awards include First Prize in the 1995 Rantucci Guitar Competition and fifth place in the 1997 Stotsenberg International Guitar Competition.
In addition to his guitar studies at Eastman with Nicholas Goluses, he has studied with Angel Romero and Eliot Fisk, and has performed in master classes for Sergio & Odair Assad, Manuel Barrueco, and lutenist Paul O’Dette, with whom he studied Baroque performance practice. The first guitarist to receive a doctorate in performance from the Eastman School of Music, he has been on the guitar faculties of Bowling Green State University, Nazareth College of Rochester, and the Eastman Community Music School. He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife, conductor Rachel C. Lauber and their daughter Siena.
“Guitarist Matthew Ardizzone was an expert in the intricacies of his role, always playing with sensitive nuances.”
Mark Kanny, Pittsburgh Tribune
“...incredible tone, marvelous technical facility, and poetic phrasing.”
Don Witter, New York Classical Guitar Society
"Your [Duo Forza] performance was extraordinary, confirmed by the standing ovation."
Dr. Benjamin Benjaminov
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute, IN
“What an incredible evening! I can’t begin to tell you how magically you captured the audience with your superb talents. Each selection was sheer beauty and delight.”
Marge Dembowski, Manor House, Toledo Metroparks
“The audience was wildly enthusiastic!”
Firebrand Musical Arts Series, Port Clinton, OH
“Please accept my heartfelt congratulations on a fine performance of the Rodrigo and the encore [Recuerdos de la Alhambra].”
Dr. Richard Sowers
Music Director, Anderson Symphony Orchestra, IN
“Thanks again for doing such a wonderful concert of the Etudes. It was a pleasure to work together and get to know you. I hope you'll do the pieces many times again.”
John Anthony Lennon, composer
“Thank you once again for a wonderful and nuanced performance of “Tesserae.” It is always a thrill to hear one's own music, but particularly to hear it played by sympathetic and engaged players. I very much enjoyed hearing your delicate guitar playing during the performance, and it added beautifully to the ensemble.”
Andrew E. Simpson, composer
Matthew Ardizzone has performed throughout North America as a soloist, with orchestra, and in a variety of chamber music settings. The Pittsburgh Tribune has described his “sensitive nuances” and the NYC Guitar Society his “incredible tone, marvelous technical facility, and poetic phrasing.” The Ann Arbor-based guitarist has appeared in Michigan at the Max M. Fisher Center for Music, Chamber Music at the Scarab Club, the Detroit Institute of Art, the Village Theatre at Cherry Hill, and several Ann Arbor venues, including Hill Auditorium, and the Kerrytown Concert House. National venues include Zipper Hall in Los Angeles, the Proscenium Theatre at Cornell University, Duncan Recital Hall at Rice University in Houston, Slee Hall in Buffalo, and Kilbourn Hall (Rochester, NY).
Guitar festival appearances include the Eastman GuitarFest, GuitarHouston, and the Ithaca College Winter Guitar Festival. Ardizzone has performed and taught master classes at schools throughout the country, including the Cleveland Institute of Music, Brooklyn College, the University of Michigan, Houston Baptist University, Ball State University, Eastern Michigan University, and Bethany College in Kansas where he conducted a week-long residency, visiting area schools and performing chamber music with the college faculty. Outreach is an important component of his activities, and he has complemented his appearances with school visits in Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, Kansas, and California. Other performances of note include the inaugural concert of the Beveridge Webster Recital Series in Hanover, NH (the concert pianist and Juilliard professor was Ardizzone’s grandfather) and a private performance at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY for Isabella Rossellini.
In addition to solo concerts, Ardizzone has collaborated with some particularly outstanding performers, including flutist Leone Buyse (Rice University, formerly Boston Symphony Orchestra), violinist Movses Pogossian (Tchaikovsky, USSR, and Lipizer Competition winner), soprano Audrey Luna, and faculty members of the University of Michigan School of Music. He has appeared as a guest artist with Brave New Works, the Phoenix Ensemble, Envision Chamber Consort, and Chamber Music Ann Arbor. His performances at new music festivals have earned him the praise of composers such as Robert Beaser, John Anthony Lennon, Paul Lansky, Andrew Stimpson, and Leslie Bassett. Concerto performances with orchestra include Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez with the Anderson Symphony Orchestra, the Livingston Symphony Orchestra, and the orchestra of the Conductor’s Retreat at Medomak (with members of the Portland Symphony Orchestra).
Recordings include a CD of music for violin and guitar with violinist Movses Pogossian (Duo Forza) and a solo guitar CD titled “Mazurka!” which won a 2001 Communicator Crystal Award of Excellence. Other awards include First Prize in the 1995 Rantucci Guitar Competition and fifth place in the 1997 Stotsenberg International Guitar Competition in Malibu. He was one of twelve semi-finalists in the 1996 Walter W. Naumburg Competition for Guitar, and was a semi-finalist in the 1991 (Miami), 1996 (St. Louis), and 1998 (Montréal) Guitar Foundation of America International Competitions. In 1997 he became the first guitarist to receive a doctorate in performance (with the coveted Performer’s Certificate) from the Eastman School of Music.
In addition to his guitar studies at Eastman with Nicholas Goluses, he has studied with Angel Romero and Eliot Fisk, and has performed in master classes for Sergio & Odair Assad, Manuel Barrueco, and lutenist Paul O’Dette, with whom he studied Baroque performance practice. The first guitarist to receive a doctorate in performance from the Eastman School of Music, he has been on the guitar faculties of Bowling Green State University, Nazareth College of Rochester, and the Eastman Community Music School, and he has taught music appreciation at Washtenaw Community, St. John Fisher, and Nazareth Colleges. At the 2007 ASTA National Conference in Detroit, he introduced a new workshop titled: “Total Recall: Harnessing the Power of the Mind to Enjoy Playing by Heart.” He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife, conductor and violinist Rachel C. Lauber and their daughter Siena.
© 2008 Moonbeams Artist Group, Ann Arbor, MI