Grisha Goryachevis a native of St. Petersburg, Russia, Grisha is renowned for his extraordinary musical sensitivity and technical virtuosity in both classical and flamenco styles. He is one of very few guitarists who is reviving the tradition of solo flamenco guitar in a concert setting that was practiced by legendary flamenco masters such as Ramón Montoya and Sabicas.

Grisha began to play the guitar at the age of 6, studying first with his father, Dmitry, an acknowledged master guitar teacher. Following his debut at the age of 9, Grisha enjoyed an extensive career as a child prodigy, performing before large audiences in major cities in the then Soviet Union.

In 1991, Grisha was awarded second prize in the Danny Kaye International Children's Awards in the Hague, Netherlands. Later that year, he performed at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. Afterward, he toured Scandinavia and performed for the royalty of Iceland.

In 1993, Grisha was chosen to represent his native city in the Days of St. Petersburg in Jerusalem Festival, and in 1994, he performed at the Festival International de Colmar held in memory of Andres Segovia in Colmar, France. Following a tour of Spain, Grisha was invited to play for flamenco legend Paco de Lucía, who soon after personally supported his application for an American visa (awarded in 1997 on the basis of “extraordinary ability”).

Since coming to the United States, Grisha has continued his love affair with flamenco while deepening his involvement with the classical style. His repertoire includes classical solos, chamber music, guitar concertos, and flamenco solos by such composers as de Lucía, Vicente Amigo, Manolo Sanlucar, and Rafael Riqueni. As the flamenco repertoire is mostly unpublished, Grisha has transcribed it by ear from recordings.

Grisha strives to keep alive older flamenco masterpieces by performing them in concerts. He exposes the audiences to some of the best guitar compositions flamenco has to offer. Instead of merely copying, he creates his own interpretations of these pieces, using dynamics and tone colors usually associated with classical music.

In 2005 Grisha received a special prize for the Best Performance of Spanish Music at the Sixth International Classical Guitar Competition Julian Arcás in Almería, Spain. As a winner of this prize, Grisha performed recitals in Spain at the Festival de Música Española de Cádiz and the Festival de Música de Jimena de la Frontera.

Grisha received his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor of musical arts degrees from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he studied under famous guitar virtuoso Eliot Fisk. He was one of the  30 people in 2006 to become a fellow of the prestigious Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship, recognizing him as exceptional in his chosen field.

Grisha’s YouTube videos have collected over 2 million views. He has recorded two CDs, Alma Flamenca and Homenaje a Sabicas.

GrishaGuitar.com

wikipedia.org/wiki/Grisha_Goryachev

Saturday Nov 11, 2023 at 7:00 PM

The Church of the Good Shepherd

3741 Garrett Rd, Durham  NC  27707