2024 Press Releases: April • May
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2/15/2024
Contact: Ancient-Future.Com Records
1-415-459-1892
info@ancient-future.com
April 14, 2024, 4 PM
Ancient Future Concert at Old St. Hilary's Landmark
Guitar and Pipa Duet Featuring Matthew Montfort and Shenshen Zhang
Video of the First Notes Matthew Montfort and Shenshen Zhang Ever Played Together!
This video captures the very first time that Chinese pipa master Shenshen Zhang and scalloped fretboard guitar pioneer Matthew Montfort played together. They met on August 21, 2011, at an acoustic guitar concert set up by steel string guitarist Mark Kostrzewa with Matthew Montfort on scalloped fretboard guitar and Richard Patterson on classical guitar at The Wine Bar in Half Moon Bay. Mark invited Shenshen Zhang to perform a number by herself. Matthew invited her to jam with him, and this is exactly what happened from their first notes together! After its release on YouTube, the video rose to #1 on the Ethnocloud Top 40 Chart in March 2014.
Ancient Future Guitar and Pipa Duet Concert
Poster (121k .pdf)
Press Photo (135k .jpg)
The world fusion music group Ancient Future features master musicians from many traditions who work together in different ensemble configurations. This improvisatory collaboration between Ancient Future leader Matthew Montfort and Shenshen Zhang showcases the beautiful tone colors of the Chinese pipa and scalloped fretboard guitar in traditional and contemporary arrangements.
- Sunday, April 14, 2024, 4 PM, Ancient Future with Matthew Montfort (scalloped fretboard guitar), and Shenshen Zhang (Chinese pipa), Old St. Hilary's Landmark, 201 Esperanza St., Tiburon, CA 94920. Tix: $25, $20 seniors and under 18, $5 more at door. Advanced sales at Tiburon Town Hall, Landmarks Office, and Ticketleap.com. Info: 415-435-1853. Facebook Event.
Matthew Montfort (scalloped fretboard guitar)
Hi-Res Photo of Matthew Montfort by Julie Marten (2 MB)
The leader of the world music group Ancient Future, Matthew Montfort, is a pioneer of the scalloped fretboard guitar and is recognized as one of the world's 100 Greatest Acoustic Guitarists by DigitalDreamDoor.com, a curated "best of" site, along with such luminaries as Michael Hedges and Merle Travis. He has performed concerts worldwide, from the Festival Internacional de la Guitarra on the golden coast of Spain to the Festival of India in Mumbai. He has performed live on national radio and TV shows such as the Echoes Living Room Concerts on Public Radio International, and the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC. He has worked with many world music legends, including tabla phenomenon Zakir Hussain and Chinese zither master Zhao Hui. Montfort wrote the book Ancient Traditions – Future Possibilities: Rhythmic Training Through the Traditions of Africa, Bali, and India, which has been used by many musicians to improve their rhythm skills.
Shenshen Zhang (pipa)
Hi-Res Photo of Shenshen Zhang (594k)
A native of Wenzhou, China, Shenshen Zhang began playing the pipa at the age of nine. At thirteen, she auditioned and was accepted into the prestigious Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, where in 1992, she was awarded a Bachelor's Degree. In 2005, Ms. Zhang received Master's Degree in Musicology from Xiamen University. As an award-winning concert soloist, she performed and toured extensively throughout Asia and the U.S. Since making her home in SF Bay Area in 2006, Ms. Zhang has combined her lengthy performance career and her vast experience as an educator, preserving the musical heritage of China while also exploring other world cultures. From 2015–2017, Ms. Zhang taught in Stanford University as music instructor and conductor. In 2022, Ms. Zhang joined the Music Department at Santa Clara University as an applied instructor. She also has her own pipa studio in Silicon Valley where she teaches classical Chinese music. Her solo album, ‘Serenity,’ released in 2019, features a collection of traditional pipa masterpieces. Shenshen has been exploring new musical conversations with her ongoing live improvisations and collaborations with the pioneering world music ensemble Ancient Future, and world music artists group Common Sounds Ensemble. She also was selected to the Bay Area pilot program by American Composers Forum, and her original composition will be released early Spring in 2024 on the Innova recording label.
Quotes
"We recently hosted our most exotic Lobby Lounge show to date. You don't often get to hear music by Chinese pipa and 11-string fretless guitar. But that's what we have in the duo of Shenshen Zhang, a concert soloist on the Chinese pipa, and Matthew Montfort, leader of the Marin world music band Ancient Future, playing the seldom-seen fretless guitar and scalloped fretboard guitar. The pipa, sometimes called a Chinese lute, is a pear-shaped, four-stringed instrument that has been played in China for some 2,000 years. Shenshen first picked up the ancient instrument when she was 9, playing music with her mother in her native Wenzhou. Digitaldreamdoor.com listed Montfort among the 100 greatest acoustic guitarists. He and Shenshen first played together during a 2011 round-robin guitar night in Half Moon Bay. They met when he invited her on stage to jam with him. Magic ensued. Their on-the-spot improvisation was spellbinding, a spell they cast once again in their mesmerizing Lobby Lounge performance." - Paul Liberatore, Lobby Lounge, Marin Independent Journal (read full article)
67 Word Radio Announcement
On Sunday, April 14, 2024, at 4 PM, Ancient Future featuring scalloped fretboard guitar pioneer Matthew Montfort and Chinese pipa master Shenshen Zhang will perform at Old St. Hilary's Landmark, located at 201 Esperanza St., in Tiburon, California. Advance tickets are $25 general, $20 seniors and under 18, at Tiburon Town Hall, Landmarks Office, and Ticketleap.com. Tickets are $5 more at door. For more information, call 415-435-1853.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 3/20/2024
Contact: Ancient-Future.Com Records
1-415-459-1892
info@ancient-future.com
May 10, 2024, 8 PM
Global Guitar Summit at S.F. International Arts Fest
Featuring Matthew Montfort and Teja Gerken
Press Photo (987k .jpg)
This Global Guitar Summit presents two international acoustic guitar virtuosos who will perform solo and ensemble pieces: American scalloped fretboard guitar and world fusion music pioneer Matthew Montfort, German fingerstyle guitarist extraordinaire Teja Gerken. The music performed will include new arrangements of classical works, Celtic music, Indian classical, contemporary compositions, popular songs, and much more. The Global Guitar Summit was first formed by Gerken and Montfort in 2016 as a forum to present guitar round robins.
- Saturday, May 10, 8 PM, Global Guitar Summit with Matthew Montfort and Teja Gerken, S.F. International Arts Festival, Community Music Center, 544 Capp Street, San Francisco, CA 94110. Tix: Advance: $25 (20% discount through May 3: use GUITAR20 code), Door: $28. Buy Tix. Facebook Event.
Matthew Montfort (scalloped fretboard guitar)
Hi-Res Photo of Matthew Montfort by Julie Marten (2 MB)
Matthew Montfort YouTube Video
Matthew Montfort released his first solo recording, Seven Serenades for Scalloped Fretboard Guitar, in 2009. He is a pioneer among guitarists who have had their fretboards scalloped in order to play various forms of world music that require intricate note-bending ornaments while still being able to play chords. Montfort immersed himself in an intensive study with vina master K.S. Subramanian in order to fully apply the South Indian gamaka (note-bending) techniques to the guitar. He is recognized as one of the world's 100 Greatest Acoustic Guitarists by DigitalDreamDoor.com, a curated "best of" site, along with such luminaries as Michael Hedges, Leo Kottke, Chet Atkins, John Fahey, Merle Travis, John Renbourn, Tommy Emmanuel, Doc Watson, Pierre Bensusan, Alex De Grassi, and Peppino D'Agostino. The December 2009 Les Paul issue of Guitar Player Magazine includes a full page feature on Matthew Montfort with a corresponding GuitarPlayer.Com video and lesson entitled “The Music of Jimi Hendrix Applied to Indian Raga.”
Teja Gerken (fingerstyle guitar)
Hi-Res Photo of Teja Gerken (2.9 MB). More Hi-Res Photos.
Teja Gerken YouTube Video
German-born Teja Gerken is a contemporary steel-string fingerstyle guitarist whose playing merges the styles of European guitar pioneers such as John Renbourn and Pierre Bensusan with the distinct sounds of American players such as Leo Kottke and Michael Hedges. Known for his original compositions, many of which employ alternate tunings, two-handed tapping, percussive effects, and other extended guitar techniques, Teja will also bring Celtic, jazz, and classical styles to the Global Guitar Summit. Teja recently released his third solo album, "Test of Time," which Acoustic Guitar magazine calls "A sonic marvel from top to bottom."
"Releasing his second CD, Postcards, is San Francisco area fingerstyle guitarist Teja Gerken, who delivers solo instrumental compositions with enough surprises and innovative twists to delight aficionados of the world music and folk genres. His tunes employ physical techniques such as two-handed tapping, alternate tunings, and percussive effects, but his developed sense of melody is what will keep his CD playing in your mind long after the 'stop' button is pressed. Another impressive feature is that Gerken's playing is captured without overdubs; the intricate arrangements delivered as you might hear the artist in concert. Gerken is one of a rare breed - a guitarist's guitarist with equal appeal for the non-musicians out there. His Postcards album is highly recommended." – GUITAR9.COM
68 Word Radio Announcement
On Saturday, May 10, at 8 PM, scalloped fretboard guitar pioneer Matthew Montfort and German fingerstyle guitarist Teja Gerken will perform a Global Guitar Summit at the S.F. International Arts Festival, at the Community Music Center, located at 544 Capp Street, in San Francisco, California. Tickets are $25 for advance (20% discount through May 3 with GUITAR20 code), and $28 at the door. For more information, visit www.sfiaf.org.
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