This unique instrument, developed by guitarist Paul Galbraith and London luthier David Rubio, is both a clever and pragmatic embellishment of the standard six-string guitar. This new version has an extra bass string tuned a fifth lower than the normal low E and an extra top string four notes higher than the usual high E. Classical guitarist Paul Galbraith named it the “Brahms Guitar” because its invention was a result of trying to transcribe a piano piece by Brahms for the standard guitar, and realizing he needed a wider range of available notes.
After testing its premiere versions, which he played in the standard horizontal position, he concluded it would sound even better if he placed it vertically and found a way to connect the guitar to another resonator. So he constructed a cello-style metal endpin, and connected it from the body of the guitar to a box which amplified it naturally. Voila! The rich sound of the Brahms Guitar can be projected into the room’s acoustics to you without a microphone.
All this tech talk is fun, but let’s talk about Mr. Galbraith. Born in Scotland in 1964 and now living in Brazil, he’s a stunningly accomplished artist who has played all over the globe, to great acclaim. In London, at age 17, he was the youngest competitor of 50 guitarists from 14 countries in the 1981 Andres Segovia Guitar Competition. Segovia, after awarding him the silver medal, said: “Paul is magnificent. He will be a great artist.” This has come true, and the international press agrees:
“Exhilarating beyond compare, a joy...” --Guitar Review
“Gracefully phrased, beautifully balanced...” --The New York Times
“Worth traveling long distances to hear.” --The Guardian
Six months after the Segovia award, Galbraith entered BBC television’s “Young Musician of the Year” competition, winning the string section. His performance of Rodrigo’s “Concierto de Aranjuez” with the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra launched his solo career that year. “The most mature artist, and the one most capable of moving an audience was Paul Galbraith,” stated the critic from The Guardian.
Engagements followed with the Royal Philharmonic, the BBC Philharmonic and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. In September 1982, he began studies at the Royal Northern College of Music, graduating four years later. He meanwhile continued giving concerts on a regular basis throughout Britain and Europe. “He is the best guitarist of his generation,” affirmed Classical Guitar magazine.
The Greek pianist and conductor George Hadjinikos became one of his musical mentors, whose influence made him experiment with alternative playing positions for the guitar. One was sitting cross-legged on the floor and perching the instrument almost diagonally between both legs, thus freeing up his (right) playing arm. But the Brazilian guitarist and luthier Sérgio Abreu commented that Paul was actually dampening the sound of the guitar by burying it in his lap. That’s when the idea of a totally vertical position seemed like a good solution to liberate the resonance. So, in 1984, Galbraith debuted his new posture on his first trip to Brazil.
In 1989, the Sunday Times dubbed his new posture “revolutionary. ... The results were truly remarkable, with an amazing clarity and a huge dynamic range. ... The audience was held spellbound.” He returned to England that year and launched into the project of transcribing Brahms’ music and worked with Rubio to develop the Brahms Guitar. After the 1994 debut of this new instrument, Galbraith started transcribing more music and concertizing with it.
In 1995, in a concert at the Philadelphia Bach Festival, Galbraith performed his own transcriptions of the Sonatas and Partitas by Bach -- a repertoire which he would later present again at the 1996 Edinburgh Festival in Scotland. “His Bach is deeply felt and his technique allows those feelings to come across to us with a wonderful easiness,” reviewed the national daily paper The Scotsman. Galbraith’s subsequent recording of the same also received rave reviews: “Magnificently played. ... A landmark in the history of guitar recordings,” exclaimed Gramophone magazine. The result was a nomination for a Grammy Award.
Ever since that first tour of Brazil in 1984, Galbraith had a gut feeling he’d like to live there. He not only met his future wife Célia at that time, but it was the land of the Abreu brothers, Sergio and Eduardo, guitarists who were his idols as a child. So, in September of 1996, Paul Galbraith moved with his wife and new-born daughter to São Paulo, Brazil, where he still lives and also works with the Brazilian Guitar Quartet.
Mr. Galbraith’s İstanbul debut is hosted by İstanbul Recitals, which presents monthly concerts featuring superb international soloists in the spacious venue at the Mustafa Kemal Center (MKM) in Akatlar. Devoted to classical music and musicians, the series also offers free admission to university students who arrive at 7 p.m.
Paul Galbraith performs on 8-string guitar
F. JOSEPH HAYDN: C# minor piano sonata (trans. E minor)
LENNOX BERKELEY: Theme and Variations
J.S. BACH: Cello Suite No. 6, BWV 1012
MANUEL PONCE: Prelude on “La Folia de España,”
Variations and Fugue Wednesday, Nov. 18, 8 p.m.
Mustafa Kemal Center Uğur Mumcu Caddesi, No. 8 Akatlar, Beşiktaş
Program notes in English and Turkish:
www.istanbulrecitals.com/0910/galbraith.html
Tickets can be purchased at Biletix sales points.
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