Mark O'Connor
Encyclopedia
Mark O'Connor is an American bluegrass
, jazz, country
and classical
violin
ist fiddler
, composer
and music teacher
. O'Connor's music is wide-ranging, critically acclaimed, and he has received numerous awards for both his playing and his composition. As a teenager he won national string instrument
championships for his virtuoso playing of the guitar
and mandolin
as well as on the fiddle. His mentors include Texas old-time
fiddler Benny Thomasson
who taught O'Connor to fiddle as a teenager, French
jazz violin
ist Stéphane Grappelli
whom O'Connor toured as a teenager and guitarist Chet Atkins
.
, Warner Bros. Records
, Sony
, and his own CD line OMAC Records.
O'Connor has won two Grammy awards; one for his New Nashville Cats album and another for his Appalachian Journey album he did with Yo-Yo Ma
and Edgar Meyer
. He was named Musician of the Year by the Country Music Association
six years in a row (from 1991–1996). His collaborative single Restless (with Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs and Steve Wariner) won the 1991 CMA Vocal Event of the Year award.
O'Connor has crossed musical genres, composing, arranging, and recording folk, classical and jazz music. His Fiddle Concerto has received over 200 performances making it one of the most performed concertos written in the last 40 years. He has composed eight concertos, string quartets, string trios, choral works, solo unaccompanied works and a new Symphony (See Compositions) . He has worked and recorded with a wide variety of artists, such as Chet Atkins
, James Taylor
, Michelle Shocked
, Alison Krauss
, David Grisman
,
Tony Rice
, Bela Fleck
, Renée Fleming
, Pinchas Zukerman
, Stéphane Grappelli
, Patty Loveless
, The Dixie Dregs, John Hartford
and Wynton Marsalis
. Some of his more recent albums are or contain tributes to his musical mentors and inspirations, including Niccolò Paganini
, Benny Thomasson
, and Grappelli
.
He has contributed music to the PBS Series Liberty! The American Revolution (the companion album is Liberty!). He recorded his "Fanfare For The Volunteer" with the London Philharmonic in 1999 for Sony Classical, and one of his most critically acclaimed orchestral pieces Americans Seasons for Sony Classical 2 as well. O'Connor recorded a 2 1/2 hour double CD of his music with the mandolinist Chris Thile entitled Thirty-Year Retrospective. It celebrates his thirty years as a recording artist on his own OMAC label. He also provided the soundtrack to a 30-minute animated film on the story of Johnny Appleseed
(and released the music on his 1992 album Johnny Appleseed), narrated by Garrison Keillor
, He contributed four tracks to a 1993 album on the theme of The Night Before Christmas
narrated by Meryl Streep
that was recently reissued for Starbucks
. One of his most popular compositions, Appalachia Waltz (appearing on the album of the same title), has been adopted by Yo-Yo Ma as part of his live performance repertoire, and used frequently as music for weddings including two of Vice President Al Gore
's daughters. O'Connor hosts an annual fiddle camp (the Mark O'Connor Fiddle Camp) in Tennessee and an annual Strings Conference in San Diego, California
. O'Connor is currently living in New York City working on new music. One of his recent efforts is his piano trio entitled Poets and Prophets which is inspired by his boyhood hero Johnny Cash
. Currently O'Connor and Rosanne Cash
have teamed up for concert dates premiering their collaboration in New York at Merkin Hall, January 2007. He plays on Ken Burns' The War
.
On April 28, 2009, O'Connor teamed with prominent chamber musicians Kavafian, Neubauer and Haimovitz to present his second and third string quartets, amalgamating bluegrass with classical styles, at Merkin Concert Hall in New York. A recording by the same artists is to be released on O'Connor's OMAC label during May.
On November 16, 2009, Mark O'Connor released books 1 and 2 of his 10-book O'Connor Method - A New American School of String Playing for string teachers and students of the violin designed to "guide students gradually through the development of pedagogical and musical techniques necessary to become a proficient, well-rounded musician through a carefully planned succession of pieces."
Pieces cover a wide range of genres, and include: folk melodies such as "Amazing Grace," "Cielito Lindo" and "Buffalo Gals," American Classical tunes such as Copland's "Hoedown," two themes from Dvorak's New World Symphony, and O'Connor's "Appalachia Waltz." The series also contains short essays about topics including famous American fiddlers such as Thomas Jefferson and Davy Crockett, the history of Gypsies and Mariachi, and various dances. Teacher training sessions based on the method take place around the country.
8 Grammy nominations; 1982-2004.
7 CMA awards; 1991-1996.
7 National & Grand Master fiddling championships; 1975-1984.
2 National Guitar championships; 1975 & 1977.
World mandolin championship; 1982.
Frets Magazine Readers Poll Musician of the year; 1983-1987.
Irish-American Top 100; 2005.
Hundreds of regional, state and local awards; 1972–present.
Americana Symphony "Variations on Appalachia Waltz" for symphony orchestra - 34 min
Triple Concerto "March of the Gypsy Fiddler" for violin, cello, piano and orchestra - 26 min
Double Concerto "For the Heroes" for violin, cello and symphony orchestra - 35 min
Concerto No. 6 "Old Brass" for violin and orchestra - 35 min
Double Violin Concerto for two violins and symphony orchestra - 32 min
Three Pieces for Orchestra for symphony orchestra:
I. Call of the Mockingbird - 20 min
II. Trail of Tears - 16 min
III. Fanfare for the Volunteer - 20 min
Johnny Appleseed Suite - 18 min
The Fiddle Concerto for violin and orchestra - 40 min
Olympic Harvest - overture for symphony orchestra - 6 min
Orchestral - String Orchestra
The Fallen for flute and string orchestra - 20 min
Harmony for violin and string orchestra - 11 min
American Seasons (Seasons of an American Life) for violin and orchestra - 35 min
Surrender The Sword for violin and string orchestra - 10 min
Song Of The Liberty Bell for violin and string orchestra - 7 min
String Quartets
Piano Trio
Piano Trio No. 2 "Strange Rims" - 25 min
Piano Trio No. 1 "Poets And Prophets" - 35 min
Fiddle Sonata for Piano Trio - 20 min
Miniatures for Piano Trio - 5 min
String Trio
In The Summertime - 7 min
Musicopia - 7 min
Blackberry Mull - 9 min
Poem - 7 min
Vistas - 10 min
Caprice For Three - 4 min
Butterfly’s Day Out - 5 min
Misty Moonlight Waltz - 4 min
Emily’s Reel - 5 min
Old Country Fairy Tale - 9 min
Duo
Strings & Threads Suite for violin and guitar - 18 min
When Bidden To The Wake Or Fair for violin and cello - 5 min
Brave Wolfe for trumpet and violin - 5 min
F.C.'s Jig - for violin and cello - 4 min
Solo
Appalachia Waltz (violin/cello) - 7 min
Caprices No.'s 1 - 6 - 24 min
Strings & Threads Suite for violin - 17 min
Bonaparte's Retreat Variations - 7 min
Jazz Ensemble
Anniversary, M&W Rag, Stephane and Django, Fiddler Going Home, Gypsy Fantastic, Funky Swing, In The Cluster Blues, Pickles On The Elbow, Swingin’ On The Ville, Sweet Suzanne, In Full Swing.
Miscellaneous Instrumentals (Fiddle/Bluegrass/Newgrass/Contemporary)
A Bowl of Bula, Across the Ohio Frontier, Beserkley, Bow Tie, Captain's Jig, Cat in the Bag, Changing the Guard, Come Ride With Me, Conversation with a Friend, Cool Winds, Cotton Pickin' Blues, Court Suite, Dance of the Ol' Swamp Rat, Disco Fiddle, Rampsody, Druid Fluid, Ease with the Breeze, Fair Dancer Reel, False Dawn, Fancy Stops and Goes, Flailing, Flight Home, Floating Bridge of Dreams, Fluid Drive, Folktunes, Follow the Scout, From Panama to El Pichincha, Future Man, Get Set, Go, Granny White Special, Hear the Sun Shadows Dance, Hot Tamale, Idle Rain, Improvisations Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, Inns of Granny White, Inside the Stillness, Into the Walls of Mandoness, Irish Maiden, Johnny's Apple Pie, Light the Fire, Macedonia, March of the Pharaohs, Markology, Mark's Ark, Mark's Waltz, Midnight Interlude, My Celebration, Nashville Shuffle Boogie, New Lifetimes, October Impressions, Off to Sea Olympic Reel, On a June Day, One Winter's Night, Pacific Expectations, Pick it Apart, Pickin Parlor Rag, Pickin' in the Wind, Pilgrim's Waltz, Point of Crossing, Queen of the Cumberland, Rampology, Remember Ireland, River Out Back, Road to Appalachia, Rose Among Thorns, Sailor's Jig, Send Rainbows, Shine On, Slopes, Soft Gyrations, Stone from Which the Arch Was Made, Swept Away by Tides, Swing 11:11, Texas Dance Hall Blues, Thai Wat Sai, Thanks and Goodbyes, The Cricket Dance, The Dark Rain, The Emperor's Komponist, The Life and Times of Johnny Appleseed, The Robotic Muso, Three Angel Brides, Through the Lives, Outside the Landscape, Traveler's Ridge, Tubular Explosions, We're Surrounded, When We Talk.
Vocal
Folk Mass for choir - 40 min
Let Us Move for choir - 15 min
Apprenticed under jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli; 1979-1980.
Apprenticed under folk fiddler Benny Thomasson; 1974-1977.
Apprenticed under Barbara Lamb, John Burke; 1973-1974.
Independent Research and Training - Various musical styles and composition
including Classical, Flamenco, Bluegrass, Jazz, Western Swing, Appalachian, Cajun,
Country, Texas fiddling, Gospel/Spiritual, Blues, Rock, Fusion; 1974–present.
Guitar
Edmonds Community College, WA, Calvin Christ, Normando Brenez, Dudley Hill; 1966-1975.
Vocal Instruction and Theory
Edmonds Community College, Frank DeMiero; 1976-1977.
Recording Engineering Training
Seattle, WA - certificate of completion; 1981.
Keyboard, Theory, Bass and Percussion
private teachers, secondary school, WA; 1978-79.
Ensembles - Member and Apprenticed under:
Composer and Bandleader David Grisman of the David Grisman Quintet; 1979-1981.
Composer and Bandleader Steve Morse of The Dregs; 1981-1982.
Post-Doctoral Training
Honorary Doctorate, Sage Colleges, NY, Public Service Degree; 2002.
In 2008/2009 O'Connor was Artist-in-Residence at UCLA and in 2009/2010 he was Artist-in-Residence at the University of Miami.
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
, jazz, country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist fiddler
Fiddler
A fiddler is a person who plays a fiddle or violin.Fiddler may also refer to:*Fabrangen Fiddlers, an American musical group founded in 1971*Tupolev Tu-28 "Fiddler", a fighter aircraft*Fiddler , a DC Comics villain...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and music teacher
Music education
Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...
. O'Connor's music is wide-ranging, critically acclaimed, and he has received numerous awards for both his playing and his composition. As a teenager he won national string instrument
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
championships for his virtuoso playing of the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
and mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
as well as on the fiddle. His mentors include Texas old-time
Old-time music
Old-time music is a genre of North American folk music, with roots in the folk music of many countries, including England, Scotland, Ireland and countries in Africa. It developed along with various North American folk dances, such as square dance, buck dance, and clogging. The genre also...
fiddler Benny Thomasson
Benny Thomasson
Benny Thomasson was an American fiddler in the Texas style of old-time fiddling.Thomasson was born in Runnels County, Texas and raised in Gatesville, one of 10 children in a family where music was not only encouraged, it was a key ingredient of life. His parents were Lucas "Red Luke" and Sarah...
who taught O'Connor to fiddle as a teenager, French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
jazz violin
Jazz violin
Jazz violin is the use of the violin or electric violin to improvise and perform utilizing scales and chord progressions unique to the compositions of Jazz musicians . The earliest references to jazz performance using the violin as a solo instrument was during the first decades of the 20th century...
ist Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli was a French jazz violinist who founded the Quintette du Hot Club de France with guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1934. It was one of the first all-string jazz bands....
whom O'Connor toured as a teenager and guitarist Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
.
Early life
At an early age Mark O'Connor was considered a child prodigy winning national titles on the fiddle, guitar and mandolin as a teenager. In 1975 at age thirteen, O'Connor won the prestigious Grand Masters Fiddle Championships in Nashville against amateur and professional competitors of all ages. Later that year in 1975, after turning to age 14, he accomplished the same feat on acoustic guitar at the National Flatpick Guitar Championships in Winfield, KS. At age 19, he won the Buck White International Mandolin Championship in Kerrville, TX. He is a four-time grand champion at the National Oldtime Fiddlers Contest in Weiser, Idaho —1979, 1980, 1981 and 1984.Musical career
He has recorded solo albums for RounderRounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
, Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
, Sony
Sony BMG Music Entertainment
Sony BMG Music Entertainment was a recorded music company, which was a 50–50 joint venture between the Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann AG...
, and his own CD line OMAC Records.
O'Connor has won two Grammy awards; one for his New Nashville Cats album and another for his Appalachian Journey album he did with Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma is an American cellist, virtuoso, and orchestral composer. He has received multiple Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 2001 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011...
and Edgar Meyer
Edgar Meyer
Edgar Meyer is a prominent contemporary bassist and composer. His styles include classical, bluegrass, newgrass, and jazz. Meyer has worked as a session musician in Nashville, part of various chamber groups, a composer, and an arranger...
. He was named Musician of the Year by the Country Music Association
Country Music Association
The Country Music Association was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of only 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre...
six years in a row (from 1991–1996). His collaborative single Restless (with Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs and Steve Wariner) won the 1991 CMA Vocal Event of the Year award.
O'Connor has crossed musical genres, composing, arranging, and recording folk, classical and jazz music. His Fiddle Concerto has received over 200 performances making it one of the most performed concertos written in the last 40 years. He has composed eight concertos, string quartets, string trios, choral works, solo unaccompanied works and a new Symphony (See Compositions) . He has worked and recorded with a wide variety of artists, such as Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
, Michelle Shocked
Michelle Shocked
Michelle Shocked is the stage name of Michelle Karen Johnston, an American singer-songwriter.-History:Shocked received her first international exposure in Europe, particularly Britain, with her debut album The Texas Campfire Tapes .Her first U.S...
, Alison Krauss
Alison Krauss
Alison Maria Krauss is an American bluegrass-country singer, songwriter and fiddler. She entered the music industry at an early age, winning local contests by the age of ten and recording for the first time at fourteen. She signed with Rounder Records in 1985 and released her first solo album in...
, David Grisman
David Grisman
David Grisman is an American bluegrass/newgrass mandolinist and composer of acoustic music. In the early 1990s, he started the Acoustic Disc record label in an effort to preserve and spread acoustic or instrumental music.-Biography:Grisman grew up in Hackensack, New Jersey...
,
Tony Rice
Tony Rice
Tony Rice is an American acoustic guitarist and bluegrass musician. He is considered one of the most influential acoustic guitar players in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and acoustic jazz.Rice spans the range of acoustic music, from traditional bluegrass to jazz-influenced New...
, Bela Fleck
Béla Fleck
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck is an American banjo player. Widely acknowledged as one of the world's most innovative and technically proficient banjo players, he is best known for his work with the bands New Grass Revival and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones.-Early life and career details:Fleck was born in...
, Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming is an American soprano specializing in opera and lieder. Fleming has a full lyric soprano voice.Fleming has performed coloratura, lyric, and lighter spinto soprano repertoires. She has sung roles in Italian, German, French, Czech, and Russian, aside from her native English. She also...
, Pinchas Zukerman
Pinchas Zukerman
Pinchas Zukerman is a world-renowned violinist, violist, and conductor. He is considered one of the greatest violinists of the 20th and 21st centuries, and his ongoing 45-year career has seen him perform with the world's best-known orchestras and record over 100 works...
, Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli was a French jazz violinist who founded the Quintette du Hot Club de France with guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1934. It was one of the first all-string jazz bands....
, Patty Loveless
Patty Loveless
Patty Loveless , is an American country music singer.Since her emergence on the country music scene in late 1986 with her first album, Loveless has been one of the most popular female singers of the Neotraditional country movement, although she has also recorded albums in the Country pop and...
, The Dixie Dregs, John Hartford
John Hartford
John Cowan Hartford was an American folk, country and bluegrass composer and musician known for his mastery of the fiddle and banjo, as well as for his witty lyrics, unique vocal style, and extensive knowledge of Mississippi River lore...
and Wynton Marsalis
Wynton Marsalis
Wynton Learson Marsalis is a trumpeter, composer, bandleader, music educator, and Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Marsalis has promoted the appreciation of classical and jazz music often to young audiences...
. Some of his more recent albums are or contain tributes to his musical mentors and inspirations, including Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini
Niccolò Paganini was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. He was one of the most celebrated violin virtuosi of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique...
, Benny Thomasson
Benny Thomasson
Benny Thomasson was an American fiddler in the Texas style of old-time fiddling.Thomasson was born in Runnels County, Texas and raised in Gatesville, one of 10 children in a family where music was not only encouraged, it was a key ingredient of life. His parents were Lucas "Red Luke" and Sarah...
, and Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli was a French jazz violinist who founded the Quintette du Hot Club de France with guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1934. It was one of the first all-string jazz bands....
.
He has contributed music to the PBS Series Liberty! The American Revolution (the companion album is Liberty!). He recorded his "Fanfare For The Volunteer" with the London Philharmonic in 1999 for Sony Classical, and one of his most critically acclaimed orchestral pieces Americans Seasons for Sony Classical 2 as well. O'Connor recorded a 2 1/2 hour double CD of his music with the mandolinist Chris Thile entitled Thirty-Year Retrospective. It celebrates his thirty years as a recording artist on his own OMAC label. He also provided the soundtrack to a 30-minute animated film on the story of Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed
Johnny Appleseed , born John Chapman, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois...
(and released the music on his 1992 album Johnny Appleseed), narrated by Garrison Keillor
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio personality. He is known as host of the Minnesota Public Radio show A Prairie Home Companion Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (born August 7, 1942) is an American author, storyteller, humorist, and radio...
, He contributed four tracks to a 1993 album on the theme of The Night Before Christmas
A Visit from St. Nicholas
"A Visit from St. Nicholas", also known as "The Night Before Christmas" and "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously in 1823 and generally attributed to Clement Clarke Moore, although the claim has also been made that it was written by Henry...
narrated by Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
that was recently reissued for Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
. One of his most popular compositions, Appalachia Waltz (appearing on the album of the same title), has been adopted by Yo-Yo Ma as part of his live performance repertoire, and used frequently as music for weddings including two of Vice President Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
's daughters. O'Connor hosts an annual fiddle camp (the Mark O'Connor Fiddle Camp) in Tennessee and an annual Strings Conference in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. O'Connor is currently living in New York City working on new music. One of his recent efforts is his piano trio entitled Poets and Prophets which is inspired by his boyhood hero Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
. Currently O'Connor and Rosanne Cash
Rosanne Cash
Rosanne Cash is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of the late country music singer Johnny Cash and his first wife, Vivian Liberto Cash Distin....
have teamed up for concert dates premiering their collaboration in New York at Merkin Hall, January 2007. He plays on Ken Burns' The War
The War (documentary)
The War is a 2007 American seven-part documentary television mini-series about World War II from the perspective of the United States that premiered on September 23, 2007...
.
On April 28, 2009, O'Connor teamed with prominent chamber musicians Kavafian, Neubauer and Haimovitz to present his second and third string quartets, amalgamating bluegrass with classical styles, at Merkin Concert Hall in New York. A recording by the same artists is to be released on O'Connor's OMAC label during May.
O'Connor Method
Official Wikipedia PageO'Connor Method
The O'Connor Method is a method of teaching string instruments and music, developed and authored by Mark O'Connor and first released in 2009.-Background:...
On November 16, 2009, Mark O'Connor released books 1 and 2 of his 10-book O'Connor Method - A New American School of String Playing for string teachers and students of the violin designed to "guide students gradually through the development of pedagogical and musical techniques necessary to become a proficient, well-rounded musician through a carefully planned succession of pieces."
Pieces cover a wide range of genres, and include: folk melodies such as "Amazing Grace," "Cielito Lindo" and "Buffalo Gals," American Classical tunes such as Copland's "Hoedown," two themes from Dvorak's New World Symphony, and O'Connor's "Appalachia Waltz." The series also contains short essays about topics including famous American fiddlers such as Thomas Jefferson and Davy Crockett, the history of Gypsies and Mariachi, and various dances. Teacher training sessions based on the method take place around the country.
Awards/honors
2 Grammy awards; 1992 & 2001.8 Grammy nominations; 1982-2004.
7 CMA awards; 1991-1996.
7 National & Grand Master fiddling championships; 1975-1984.
2 National Guitar championships; 1975 & 1977.
World mandolin championship; 1982.
Frets Magazine Readers Poll Musician of the year; 1983-1987.
Irish-American Top 100; 2005.
Hundreds of regional, state and local awards; 1972–present.
Compositions
Orchestral - Full OrchestraAmericana Symphony "Variations on Appalachia Waltz" for symphony orchestra - 34 min
Triple Concerto "March of the Gypsy Fiddler" for violin, cello, piano and orchestra - 26 min
Double Concerto "For the Heroes" for violin, cello and symphony orchestra - 35 min
Concerto No. 6 "Old Brass" for violin and orchestra - 35 min
Double Violin Concerto for two violins and symphony orchestra - 32 min
Three Pieces for Orchestra for symphony orchestra:
I. Call of the Mockingbird - 20 min
II. Trail of Tears - 16 min
III. Fanfare for the Volunteer - 20 min
Johnny Appleseed Suite - 18 min
The Fiddle Concerto for violin and orchestra - 40 min
Olympic Harvest - overture for symphony orchestra - 6 min
Orchestral - String Orchestra
The Fallen for flute and string orchestra - 20 min
Harmony for violin and string orchestra - 11 min
American Seasons (Seasons of an American Life) for violin and orchestra - 35 min
Surrender The Sword for violin and string orchestra - 10 min
Song Of The Liberty Bell for violin and string orchestra - 7 min
String Quartets
- String Quartet No. 3 "Old-Time" - 25 min (2007)
- String Quartet No. 2 "Bluegrass" - 36 min (2005)
- String Quartet No. 1 (with double bass) - 30 min (1990; revised in 2006 for 2 violins, viola and cello)
Piano Trio
Piano Trio No. 2 "Strange Rims" - 25 min
Piano Trio No. 1 "Poets And Prophets" - 35 min
Fiddle Sonata for Piano Trio - 20 min
Miniatures for Piano Trio - 5 min
String Trio
In The Summertime - 7 min
Musicopia - 7 min
Blackberry Mull - 9 min
Poem - 7 min
Vistas - 10 min
Caprice For Three - 4 min
Butterfly’s Day Out - 5 min
Misty Moonlight Waltz - 4 min
Emily’s Reel - 5 min
Old Country Fairy Tale - 9 min
Duo
Strings & Threads Suite for violin and guitar - 18 min
When Bidden To The Wake Or Fair for violin and cello - 5 min
Brave Wolfe for trumpet and violin - 5 min
F.C.'s Jig - for violin and cello - 4 min
Solo
Appalachia Waltz (violin/cello) - 7 min
Caprices No.'s 1 - 6 - 24 min
Strings & Threads Suite for violin - 17 min
Bonaparte's Retreat Variations - 7 min
Jazz Ensemble
Anniversary, M&W Rag, Stephane and Django, Fiddler Going Home, Gypsy Fantastic, Funky Swing, In The Cluster Blues, Pickles On The Elbow, Swingin’ On The Ville, Sweet Suzanne, In Full Swing.
Miscellaneous Instrumentals (Fiddle/Bluegrass/Newgrass/Contemporary)
A Bowl of Bula, Across the Ohio Frontier, Beserkley, Bow Tie, Captain's Jig, Cat in the Bag, Changing the Guard, Come Ride With Me, Conversation with a Friend, Cool Winds, Cotton Pickin' Blues, Court Suite, Dance of the Ol' Swamp Rat, Disco Fiddle, Rampsody, Druid Fluid, Ease with the Breeze, Fair Dancer Reel, False Dawn, Fancy Stops and Goes, Flailing, Flight Home, Floating Bridge of Dreams, Fluid Drive, Folktunes, Follow the Scout, From Panama to El Pichincha, Future Man, Get Set, Go, Granny White Special, Hear the Sun Shadows Dance, Hot Tamale, Idle Rain, Improvisations Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, Inns of Granny White, Inside the Stillness, Into the Walls of Mandoness, Irish Maiden, Johnny's Apple Pie, Light the Fire, Macedonia, March of the Pharaohs, Markology, Mark's Ark, Mark's Waltz, Midnight Interlude, My Celebration, Nashville Shuffle Boogie, New Lifetimes, October Impressions, Off to Sea Olympic Reel, On a June Day, One Winter's Night, Pacific Expectations, Pick it Apart, Pickin Parlor Rag, Pickin' in the Wind, Pilgrim's Waltz, Point of Crossing, Queen of the Cumberland, Rampology, Remember Ireland, River Out Back, Road to Appalachia, Rose Among Thorns, Sailor's Jig, Send Rainbows, Shine On, Slopes, Soft Gyrations, Stone from Which the Arch Was Made, Swept Away by Tides, Swing 11:11, Texas Dance Hall Blues, Thai Wat Sai, Thanks and Goodbyes, The Cricket Dance, The Dark Rain, The Emperor's Komponist, The Life and Times of Johnny Appleseed, The Robotic Muso, Three Angel Brides, Through the Lives, Outside the Landscape, Traveler's Ridge, Tubular Explosions, We're Surrounded, When We Talk.
Vocal
Folk Mass for choir - 40 min
Let Us Move for choir - 15 min
Composing commissioning organizations
Academy of Saint Martin-In-the-Fields - Library of Congress - Lila Wallace Reader's Digest Commissioning Program - Santa Fe Music Festival - La Jolla Music Festival - Hudson River Quadricentennial Music Project - Gloriae Dei Cantores - Kathryn Gould and Montalvo - Blueridge Parkway 75th Anniversary Appalachian State University - Bridgehampton Chamber Music Associates - Musicians for Harmony (NY) - Troy Savings Bank Hall 2000 Celebration - Tennessee Bicentennial Committee - Cabrillo Music Festival - Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra - Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra - San Diego Symphony Orchestra - East Texas Symphony Orchestra - Nashville Symphony Orchestra - Colorado Symphony Orchestra - Dubuque Symphony Orchestra - Fargo Moorhead Symphony Orchestra - Fox Valley - Symphony Orchestra - Greater Anderson Musical Arts Consortium - Tennessee Dance Theater - Imperial Symphony Orchestra - Garrett Lakes Arts Festival - Musicopia/Strings in the Schools (Philadelphia)Education, Training and Research
ViolinApprenticed under jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli; 1979-1980.
Apprenticed under folk fiddler Benny Thomasson; 1974-1977.
Apprenticed under Barbara Lamb, John Burke; 1973-1974.
Independent Research and Training - Various musical styles and composition
including Classical, Flamenco, Bluegrass, Jazz, Western Swing, Appalachian, Cajun,
Country, Texas fiddling, Gospel/Spiritual, Blues, Rock, Fusion; 1974–present.
Guitar
Edmonds Community College, WA, Calvin Christ, Normando Brenez, Dudley Hill; 1966-1975.
Vocal Instruction and Theory
Edmonds Community College, Frank DeMiero; 1976-1977.
Recording Engineering Training
Seattle, WA - certificate of completion; 1981.
Keyboard, Theory, Bass and Percussion
private teachers, secondary school, WA; 1978-79.
Ensembles - Member and Apprenticed under:
Composer and Bandleader David Grisman of the David Grisman Quintet; 1979-1981.
Composer and Bandleader Steve Morse of The Dregs; 1981-1982.
Post-Doctoral Training
Honorary Doctorate, Sage Colleges, NY, Public Service Degree; 2002.
In 2008/2009 O'Connor was Artist-in-Residence at UCLA and in 2009/2010 he was Artist-in-Residence at the University of Miami.
Albums
| Year | Album | Peak chart positions | Label | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Classical Crossover | US Classical | US Jazz | US Country | US Heat Top Heatseekers Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical... |
US Bluegrass | |||
| 1974 | National Junior Fiddling Champion | Rounder | ||||||
| 1975 | Pickin' in the Wind | |||||||
| 1978 | Markology | |||||||
| 1979 | On the Rampage | |||||||
| Soppin' the Gravy Soppin' the Gravy Soppin' the Gravy is an album by Mark O'Connor. It consists mostly of traditional Texas Fiddle music, with O'Connor's own piece, "Misty Moonlight Waltz", and an instrumental version of "Over the Rainbow". O'Connor can be seen on the cover with the white-painted fiddle that he used for competition... |
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| 1982 | False Dawn | |||||||
| 1982 | Industry Standard Industry Standard Industry Standard is a 1982 album by The Dregs. It is their only album featuring vocals and garnered the group their fourth Grammy nomination.-Track listing:All tracks are written by Steve Morse, except where noted.#"Assembly Line" – 4:25... (with Dixie Dregs Dixie Dregs The Dixie Dregs are an American band formed in the 1970s. Their mostly instrumental music fuses jazz, southern rock, bluegrass and classical forms in an often unique style.-Formation and early years:... ) |
Arista | ||||||
| 1985 | Meanings Of | Warner | ||||||
| 1986 | Stone from Which the Arch Was Made | |||||||
| 1988 | Elysian Forest | |||||||
| 1989 | The Championship Years | CMF | ||||||
| On the Mark | Warner | |||||||
| 1990 | Retrospective | Rounder | ||||||
| 1991 | The New Nashville Cats The New Nashville Cats The New Nashville Cats is a country album by Mark O'Connor, in conjunction with a variety of other musical artists. O'Connor selected a group of over fifty Nashville musicians, many of who had worked with him as session musicians. The album was intended to "showcase the instrumental side of the... |
44 | 14 | Warner | ||||
| 1992 | Johnny Appleseed | Rabbit Ears | ||||||
| 1993 | Heroes | 46 | 14 | Warner | ||||
| The Night Before Christmas | Rabbit Ears | |||||||
| 1994 | The Fiddle Concerto The Fiddle Concerto The Fiddle Concerto is an album by Mark O'Connor. It contains two pieces written by O'Connor, the first of which is a violin concerto in American fiddle style, commissioned by the Santa Fe Symphony and premiered in 1993... |
6 | Warner | |||||
| 1996 | Appalachia Waltz Appalachia Waltz Appalachia Waltz is the first album from the trio of fiddler and composer Mark O'Connor, double-bassist and composer Edgar Meyer, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Sony Classical released the disc in 1996. The album announces a new kind of Americana-styled Western art music, with ancestry in old-timey,... (with Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma is an American cellist, virtuoso, and orchestral composer. He has received multiple Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 2001 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011... and Edgar Meyer Edgar Meyer Edgar Meyer is a prominent contemporary bassist and composer. His styles include classical, bluegrass, newgrass, and jazz. Meyer has worked as a session musician in Nashville, part of various chamber groups, a composer, and an arranger... ) |
Sony | ||||||
| 1997 | Liberty! Liberty! (album) Liberty! is an album by Mark O'Connor, which comprises his soundtrack to the six part PBS series Liberty!. The album is composed mostly of period songs arranged by O'Connor, with the exception of "Freedom" and the theme for the series, written by O'Connor, entitled "Song of the Liberty Bell".-Track... |
8 | ||||||
| 1998 | Midnight on the Water | 5 | ||||||
| 1999 | Fanfare for the Volunteer Fanfare for the Volunteer Fanfare for the Volunteer is an album of three pieces for violin and orchestra by composer and violinist Mark O'Connor with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Steven Mercurio. Originally conceived as O'Connor's second "fiddle concerto", the three movements became separate... |
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| 2000 | Appalachian Journey Appalachian Journey Appalachian Journey is the second album from the string trio of bassist and composer Edgar Meyer, fiddler and composer Mark O'Connor, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. James Taylor and Alison Krauss join the trio individually on two Stephen Foster songs arranged for the trio. Sony Classical released the disc... (with Yo-Yo Ma and Edgar Meyer) |
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| 2001 | The American Seasons The American Seasons The American Seasons is an album by Mark O'Connor, recorded with the Metamorphosen Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Scott Yoo. It is composed of three original orchestral works by O'Connor... |
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| Hot Swing! Hot Swing! Hot Swing is a live swing jazz album by Mark O'Connor, Frank Vignola, and Jon Burr. The trio later released two more similarly themed albums, one live and one in the studio, under the name of "Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing Trio", In Full Swing and Live in New York... |
Omac | |||||||
| 2003 | Thirty-Year Retrospective | |||||||
| Hot Swing Trio: In Full Swing Hot Swing Trio: In Full Swing In Full Swing is the sequel to Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing Trio's album Hot Swing!.-Track listing:All songs except "One Beautiful Evening" were either written by or arranged by Mark O'Connor.#"In Full Swing" – 3:55... |
4 | Sony | ||||||
| 2004 | Crossing Bridges Crossing Bridges Crossing Bridges is a live 2004 album by Mark O'Connor, Carol Cook, and Natalie Haas. It was recorded at May 22 - May 24 performances in Spivey Hall, Clayton College, and State University, Morrow, Georgia. It contains pieces written by O'Connor's for the earlier Appalachia Waltz and Appalachian... |
19 | Omac | |||||
| 2005 | Hot Swing Trio: Live in New York Hot Swing Trio: Live In New York Hot Swing Trio: Live In New York is the third and final album by Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing Trio. It was recorded at live performances in Merkin Hall, New York City, New York on September 21-22, 2004... |
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| Double Violin Concerto | ||||||||
| 2006 | Folk Mass | |||||||
| 2007 | The Essential Mark O'Connor | Sony | ||||||
| 2008 | Americana Symphony | Omac | ||||||
| 2009 | String Quartets No. 2 & 3 | |||||||
| 2010 | Jam Session | |||||||
| 2011 | An Appalachian Christmas | 15 | 28 | 4 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Country | |||
| 1991 | "Restless" (w/ Vince Gill Vince Gill Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a... , Steve Wariner Steve Wariner Steven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records... and Ricky Skaggs Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee "Ricky" Skaggs is a country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, and banjo.-Early career:... ) |
25 | 19 | The New Nashville Cats |
| 1992 | "Now It Belongs to You" (w/ Steve Wariner) | 71 | 62 | |
| 1994 | "The Devil Comes Back to Georgia" (w/ Charlie Daniels Charlie Daniels Charles Edward "Charlie" Daniels is an American musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer... , Travis Tritt Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt is an American country music singer from Marietta, Georgia. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 2000s, he released two albums on Columbia Records and one for the defunct... , Marty Stuart Marty Stuart John Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music... and Johnny Cash Johnny Cash John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century... ) |
54 | — | Heroes |
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Bowtie" | Gustavo Garzon |
| 1991 | "Restless" (with Steve Wariner Steve Wariner Steven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records... , Ricky Skaggs Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee "Ricky" Skaggs is a country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, and banjo.-Early career:... and Vince Gill Vince Gill Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a... ) |
|
| "Now It Belongs to You" (with Steve Wariner Steve Wariner Steven Noel "Steve" Wariner is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has released eighteen studio albums, including six on MCA Records, and three each on RCA Records, Arista Records and Capitol Records... ) |
Gustavo Garzon | |
| 1993 | "The Devil Comes Back to Georgia" (with Charlie Daniels Charlie Daniels Charles Edward "Charlie" Daniels is an American musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer... , Johnny Cash Johnny Cash John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century... , Travis Tritt Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt is an American country music singer from Marietta, Georgia. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 2000s, he released two albums on Columbia Records and one for the defunct... and Marty Stuart Marty Stuart John Martin "Marty" Stuart is an American country music singer-songwriter, known for both his traditional style, and eclectic merging of rockabilly, honky tonk, and traditional country music... ) |
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| 1997 | "Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier" (with James Taylor James Taylor James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.... ) |
External links
- Official personal site
- Official Sony Classical site
- [ Mark O'Connor] - on Allmusic