Joseph_Brent

Joseph Brent

Joseph Brent

Musical artist


Joseph Frederick Brent (born April 6, 1976) is an American composer, mandolinist, multi-instrumentalist,[1] and teacher. He is known for his performances and arrangements of rock and indie songs, as well as his original compositions with the ensemble 9 Horses.[2][3] He teaches classical mandolin at Mannes College.[4]

Quick Facts Background information, Born ...

Brent attended the Berklee College of Music, and studied the mandolin under Carlo Aonzo in Savona, Italy.[5] He also received instruction from Barry Mitterhoff[6] and Adam Steffey.[7]

Joseph Brent with 9 Horses (l-r Sara Caswell, Brent, Andrew Ryan)

In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Brent is active as a sideman in several rock, jazz, bluegrass,[8] and folk ensembles, most notably with Regina Spektor,[9] Jewel, Kishi Bashi,[10] Gary Smulyan,[11] and various artists centered on the Brooklyn folk music scene.

Brent also records[12][13] and has performed with symphony orchestras such as the Seattle Symphony, San Francisco Symphony,[14] Chicago Symphony,[15] International Contemporary Ensemble,[16] nunc,[17] and the New World Symphony.[18][19]

Joseph Brent in 2013 with his custom-made 10-string mandolin, named Kumi.

On October 16, 2015, Brent's improvising ensemble 9 Horses, featuring violinist Sara Caswell and bassist Shawn Conley released their debut album Perfectest Herald on Sunnyside Records,[20] and in 2016 were the winners of the 21CM LAUNCH: Emerging Artists Competition.[21]

In 2022 Brent founded Adhyâropa Records along with 9 Horses bandmate Andrew Ryan. In addition to releasing Omegah and subsequent material by 9 Horses and its associated members, Adhyâropa has also released albums by Sam Sadigursky, Dallas Ugly, and others.[22]

Brent has published two books of mandolin pedagogy, Scales and Arpeggios for Mandolin and Orchestral and Chamber Excerpts for Mandolin, and his book of transcriptions of the lute music of John Dowland for two mandolins, conceived with Alon Sariel, was published in 2015 by paladino music.[23]

Customized instruments

In 2008, Brent collaborated with Nova Scotia-based luthier Brian Dean to design a grand concert mandolin he named 'Pähkinä', which is Finnish for 'nut', a reference to the walnut top of the instrument. Among the instrument's many distinctive features are the walnut/maple/spruce wood combination, a zero fret, a semi-lute construction with minimal bracing, a built-in tone guard with a sound pressure relief hole cut into the back, and ornate f-holes which reach around the sides of the instrument.[24] Dean has since built a 10-string version of this model nicknamed 'Kumí', which is currently Brent's primary acoustic instrument.[25] In 2016, Vermont-based luthier Adam Buchwald built him a 5-string, fanned fret electric mandolin.[26]

Discography

Solo

  • Point of Departure (2007)[27]
  • Nocturnes and Caprices by David Loeb (Vienna Modern Masters) (2011)
  • solo. EP (2011)
  • An Englishman In New York (2013) with Alon Sariel

With 9 Horses

  • Joe Brent & Sara Caswell EP (2013)
  • Perfectest Herald (2015)
  • Blood From A Stone EP (2019)
  • Omegah (2021)

With others

More information Year, Artist ...

Books

  • Scales and Arpeggios for Mandolin. Lulu Publishing. 2007.[43]
  • Orchestral and Chamber Excerpts for Mandolin. Lulu Publishing. 2007.[43]
  • An Englishman in New York: Famous Lute Pieces Arranged for Two Mandolins. paladino media gmbh. 2015.[44]

References

  1. "Mannes College faculty page". Archived from the original on 2012-03-21. Retrieved 2012-02-10.
  2. "Us | Regina Spektor". uploaded by Carlos Vilaró Nadal
  3. "Gary Smulyan/Dominic Chianese: Bella Napoli". All About Jazz. by DAN BILAWSKY. 10, 2015
  4. "SF Symphony review: 'Beethoven Project' begins". SF Gate By Joshua Kosman May 3, 2013
  5. "ICE @ Music Mondays | ICE". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-07-26.
  6. "Music review: Nunc at Mannes | TMI Arts Page". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-01-09.
  7. "MTT, New World present different sides of Beethoven’s genius". South Florida Classical Review, By Lawrence Budmen
  8. "Music review: Nunc at Mannes | TMI Arts Page". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-01-09.
  9. Sunnyside Cafe Archived 2015-09-25 at the Wayback Machine. 9 Horses: Perfectest Herald
  10. 21CM Archived 2016-08-31 at the Wayback Machine. 21CM: LAUNCH Competition Winners
  11. An Englishman In New York Paladino Sheet Music.
  12. "Joseph Brent Interview". Mandolin Cafe November 20, 2011
  13. Grand Concert - Brian Dean. Brian N Dean, luthier
  14. "Roadside [Original Cast Recording] - credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  15. "Enter Laughing - credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  16. "Manifestra - Erin McKeown". Allmusic. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  17. "Live Music at Jalopy with Kelli Rae Powell". Jalopy. Archived from the original on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  18. "Bella Napoli - credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  19. Bailey, C. Michael (20 February 2014). "Lauren Kinhan: Circle In A Square (2014)". All About Jazz. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  20. "Beautiful Songs - credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  21. Laurent, Fintoni. "Kishi Bashi: The Man Behind 'The Fourth Phase' Music". Red Bull. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  22. "I Only Listen to the Mountain Goats: All Hail West Texas". Merge Records. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
  23. "Playbill.com". Playbill. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  24. "Amazon.com". Amazon. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  25. "James Moore". James Moore, guitarist and composer. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  26. "Books by Joseph Brent". Goodreads. Retrieved August 18, 2015.

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