Nigel Kennedy is an English violinist and violist.
Arturo Sandoval is a Cuban-American jazz trumpeter, pianist, timbalero, and composer. While living in his native Cuba, Sandoval was influenced by jazz musicians Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie. In 1977 he met Gillespie, who became his friend and mentor and helped him defect from Cuba while on tour with the United Nations Orchestra. Sandoval became an American naturalized citizen in 1998. His life was the subject of the film For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story (2000) starring Andy García.
Yiannis Chryssomallis, known professionally as Yanni, is a Greek composer, keyboardist, pianist, and music producer.
Rachel Carmel Hakim, better known as Rachel Z, is a jazz and rock pianist and keyboardist. She has recorded 10 solo albums as a jazz musician. Her musical style, especially her improvisation, has been described as adjacent to Herbie Hancock and McCoy Tyner Recognized as an international leader of women in music The Guardian affirmed “Rachel Z is an improviser whose spontaneous playing is by no means eclipsed by the work of presiding geniuses such as Herbie Hancock and McCoy Tyner”,John Fordham in The Guardian ".
Midori Goto, who performs under the mononym Midori, is a Japanese-born American violinist. She made her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11 as a surprise guest soloist at the New Year's Eve Gala in 1982. In 1986 her performance at the Tanglewood Music Festival with Leonard Bernstein conducting his own composition made the front-page headlines in The New York Times. Midori became a celebrated child prodigy, and one of the world's preeminent violinists as an adult.
Anne-Sophie Mutter is a German violinist. Born and raised in Rheinfelden, Baden-Württemberg, Mutter started playing the violin at age five and continued studies in Germany and Switzerland. She was supported early in her career by Herbert von Karajan and made her orchestral debut with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1977. Since Mutter gained prominence in the 1970s and 1980s, she has recorded over 50 albums and performed as a soloist with leading orchestras worldwide and as a recitalist. Her primary instrument is the Lord Dunn–Raven Stradivarius violin.
The Odeon of Herodes Atticus is a stone Roman theatre structure located on the southwest slope of the Acropolis of Athens, Greece. The building was completed in AD 161 and then renovated in 1950.
Bradley Joseph is an American composer, arranger, and producer of contemporary instrumental music. His compositions include works for orchestra, quartet, and solo piano, while his musical style ranges from "quietly pensive mood music to a rich orchestration of classical depth and breadth".
Diane Joan Schuur, nicknamed "Deedles", is an American jazz singer and pianist. As of 2015, Schuur had released 23 albums, and had extended her jazz repertoire to include essences of Latin, gospel, pop and country music. Her most successful album is Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra, which remained number one on the Billboard Jazz Charts for 33 weeks. She won Grammy Awards for best female jazz vocal performance in both 1986 and 1987 and has had three other Grammy nominations.
Live at the Acropolis is the first live album and concert film by the Greek keyboardist, composer, and producer Yanni, released on March 1, 1994, on Private Music. It was recorded at the Herodes Atticus Theatre in Athens, Greece during his 1993 tour in support of his eighth studio album, In My Time (1993). The concert took a year and a half to organise and cost Yanni $2 million of his own money to fund. He performs with his six-piece band and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Shahrdad Rohani. The album was mixed and produced by Yanni in his studio, and was made into a television special which aired in the United States on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).
In My Time is the ninth studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released on the Private Music label in 1993. This album is a gentler collection of piano-focused pieces. The album attained Platinum status and was the second Grammy nomination for Yanni. It peaked at #1 on "Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart and at #24 on the "Billboard 200" chart in the same year.
Dare to Dream is the eighth studio album by Greek keyboardist and composer Yanni, released in March 1992 on Private Music. The album peaked at number 2 on Billboard's Top New Age Albums chart and at number 32 on the Billboard 200 chart in the same year. It went gold within two months of its release and was nominated for a Grammy.
Tribute is the second live album and third concert film by Greek keyboardist and songwriter Yanni, released in November 1997 on Virgin Records. It was recorded at the Taj Mahal, India in March 1997 and the Forbidden City, China, in May 1997, both featuring Yanni performing with a seven-piece band, choir, and 27-piece orchestra.
Live at Royal Albert Hall is the second concert film by Yanni, recorded in November 1995 at the Royal Albert Hall and featuring the Royal Albert Hall Organ in performance with Yanni's own symphony orchestra. The corresponding concert tour for 1995 was Yanni Live, The Symphony Concerts 1995.
Anne Akiko Meyers is an American concert violinist. Meyers was the top-selling classical instrumentalist of 2014 on Billboard's traditional classical charts.
Lindsay Ann Deutsch is an American violinist. A native of Houston, Texas, Deutsch moved to Los Angeles at age 15 to pursue her musical career.
The Private Years is a box set released by Private Music in 1999. It features five of Yanni's albums for Private Music: Reflections of Passion, In Celebration of Life, Dare to Dream, In My Time, and Live at the Acropolis, as well as the DVD of his concert film, Live at the Acropolis.
Two Worlds is a classical music album by jazz musicians Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin. Guests include Renée Fleming, Gil Shaham, and Julian Lloyd Webber.
Ryu Goto is an American concert violinist. Goto gained attention as a child prodigy, first performing at the age of seven in the Pacific Music Festival held in Sapporo, Japan. In 2006, his debut tour of 12 cities of Japan was sold out.
Quartet San Francisco is a non-traditional and eclectic string quartet led by violinist Jeremy Cohen. The group played their first concert in 2001 and has recorded five albums. Playing a wide range of music genres including jazz, blues, tango, swing, funk, and pop, the group challenges the traditional classical music foundation of the string quartet.
