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October 13, 2008 - Last week ABC recorded a segment with John Aielli at Studio 1A in Austin, Texas. He is currently playing songs from that session on his show "Eklektikos", which airs Mon - Fri, 9 - 10 am and 10:30 am - noon. You can tune in and catch a song, at 90.5 FM in Austin, Texas OR, just go to the KUT website and listen to the podcast in its entirety. To hear the broadcast and to read John's blog, go to http://kut.org/items/show/14336 or click the KUT logo below.
Austin Bella Corda Players Sweep Mid America Guitar Camp Competition
August 1, 2008 - Congratulations to the winners of the MAGC 2008 Solo Guitar Competition
1st Place - Ryan Voldstad, 16, who performed the Fantasia on themes from La Traviata by Tarrega
2nd Place - Tyler Rhodes, 14, who performed Hungarian Fantasy by Mertz
3rd Place - Mark Lindberg, 16, who performed Etude #11 by Villa-Lobos
All three of the winners are from Austin and are members of Austin Bella Corda.
In addition to playing two pieces of their own choosing, each competitor also was required to perform a set piece. This year the set piece was "Prelude No. 4" by Heitor Villa Lobos.
This competition is held annually at the Mid America Guitar Camp in St. Louis, MO. The camp is open to pre-college students between the ages of 10 and 17. The solo competition is open to those campers who are 14 and over.
Ryan Voldstad Takes Fourth at the GFA Youth Solo Competition
August 10, 2008 – Ryan Voldstad Takes Fourth at the GFA Youth Solo Competition
Ryan Voldstad, 16, won fourth place at the 2008 Guitar Foundation of America Youth Solo Competition, which was held Aug. 8-10 in San Francisco. This competition is open to guitarists between the ages of 15 and 18 from around the world. There were 25 contestants in the preliminary round. They were required to play one Villa-Lobos piece of their choice, plus one free choice piece. Four finalists were announced at the end of the day.
The final round of the contest was held on August 10. Each finalist was required to play two solo pieces of contrasting style. Ryan played Bach 3rd Lute Suite, Sarabonde and Gavottes 1 & 2, Tarrega Fantasia on La Traviata, and Dyens Tango En Skai. He played second in the program held on Sunday afternoon.
Ryan attends Westwood High School in Round Rock, Texas, and plays with the Austin Bella Corda guitar ensemble. His instructor is Slobodan Vujisic, with the Childbloom Guitar Program.
Austin Bella Corda Welcomes Three New Members
July 23, 2008, Austin, Tx. --- Austin Bella Corda Director Kevin Taylor announced the addition of three new members to the group last week. This classical guitar ensemble has been comprised of eight members under the age of 17 for many years. But, after the end of the season in the Spring, three of the members graduated and/or moved on, necessitating the need to bring in new guitarists for the first time in two years. Auditions were held throughout late spring and early summer, and finally three talented players were identified. Mark Lindberg, Katie Sanchez and Ian Green have all begun practicing with the group, and will perform with ABC starting in the new Fall season. Congratulations and welcome to the newest members of Austin Bella Corda.
Austin Bella Corda Members Win At Eastfield Guitar Competition
July 10, 2008, Austin, Tx. --- Three members of Austin Bella Corda competed in the Fifth Annual Collegiate Classical Guitar Competition & Festival at Eastfield in Mesquite in June. Two won their divisions, and the third placed third in his division.
Ryan Voldstad, 15, won 1st place in the Jr. College division. He performed Francisco Tarrega’s “Themes from ‘La Traviata’”. Ryan won the high-school division last year and was therefore ineligible to compete in that division again.
Eliot Wilde, 15, came in 1st in the high-school division. Eliot performed J.K. Mertz’s “Hungarian Fantasy.” One of the newest Austin Bella Corda members, Mark Lindberg, 15, won 3rd place in the high-school competition.
The Eastfield Festival is the largest youth guitar competition in the Southwest and is attended by guitar players from across Texas.
