Cameron Carpenter
Organ
"His brilliance, originality, phenomenal playing and seriousness are, by now, well known. (...) Carpenter is already the most gifted organist in many a generation. And he’s only just begun." Los Angeles Times
Cameron Carpenter has quickly developed from being an insider tip to one of the most sought-after organists of our time. He revolutionises and modernises the perception of the instrument like no other organist before him. Carpenter sells out concert halls and continues to inspire, in particular young audiences for his instrument.
Whether original compositions, transcriptions, film music or the great works of the traditional organ repertoire: Carpenters approach captivates, amazes and has led many instruments to reach the limits of their technical capabilities. As a result, he plans to build his own design of a portable digital organ which will give him the greatest possible artistic as well as logistical freedom. The project also represents a milestone in digital organ construction.
Cameron Carpenter performs at the most prestigious music venues world wide. Highlight in 2011/12 include the Philharmonie Berlin, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Konzerthaus Vienna, Tonhalle Zurich, Walt Disney Concert Hall Los Angeles, Davies Hall San Francisco, Opera Sydney and Town Hall Melbourne.
Carpenter’s first major work for organ and orchestra The Scandal, Op. 3 was commissioned by the Cologne Philharmonie and premiered on New Year’s Day 2011 by the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie under Alexander Shelley. The next performance takes place at the Musikfest Bremen. Further appearances include the Deutsche Symphonie-Orchester at the Musikfest Berlin, the Copenhagen Philharmonic under Marc Soustrot (Saint Saens organ symphony, plus his own transcription of Horowitz' Variations on a theme of Carmen) and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra under Sir Andrew Davis (Poulenc organ concerto).
Cameron Carpenter was born in 1981 in Pennsylvania, USA. As a keyboard prodigy, he performed Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier at age 11 before joining the American Boychoir School in 1992 as a boy soprano. During his time at high school, the North Carolina School of the Arts, he made his first studies in orchestration and orchestral composition, and transcribed more than 100 major works for the organ, including Gustav Mahler's complete Symphony No. 5. Cameron continued composing after moving to New York City in 2000 to attend the Juilliard School. He also arranged a number of piano works by composers such as Chopin, Liszt, Ives, Medtner, Rachmaninoff, Schumann, Godowsky for the organ. Parallel to his studies at the Juilliard, he received piano lessons by Miles Fusco.
Cameron Carpenter was the first organist ever to receive a Grammy nomination for his album Revolutionary including music by J.S. Bach, Bach-Carpenter, Chopin, Demessieux, Dupré, Ellington, Liszt, Horowitz, the world premiere of Cameron's Love Song No. 1 and Homage to Klaus Kinski (Telarc 2008). His most Bach recording is called Cameron Live! (Telarc 2010).
Since 2010, Cameron Carpenter’s compositions are published exclusively by Edition Peters.
SEASON 2011/2012
