Scott Cmiel

Scott Cmiel is Chair of the guitar and musicianship departments at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Preparatory Division and Director of the guitar program at San Francisco School of the Arts.

Articles By This Author

Review

Marc Teicholz’ Winning Ways on Guitar

Scott Cmiel - January 25, 2011

Marc Teicholz of the San Francisco Conservatory gave an exquisitely sensitive and skillful recital there on Saturday, featuring new transcriptions, music associated with Segovia, and extraordinary contemporary compositions.

Review

Reclaiming the Renaissance

Scott Cmiel - January 18, 2011

The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet brought charisma and virtuosity to a program of mostly Renaissance music (bookended by 19th-century opera arrangements and leavened by a modern classic) at a recital presented on Saturday.

Review

Beijing Duo Shimmers and Sizzles

Scott Cmiel - December 6, 2010

Excitement was high on Friday when the Omni Foundation for the Performing Arts presented the San Francisco recital debut of Meng Su and Yameng Wang at the Green Room.

Review

Exhilarating World Tour With Guitarist John Williams

Scott Cmiel - October 19, 2010

Classical music advocates often take a Eurocentric view of music history that leads them to question the importance of the guitar and its repertoire. John Williams deftly reverses the logic, maintaining that a global 20th- and 21st-century perspective the guitar makes a more vital contribution than any other instrument. Williams made his case on Sunday in a recital received by a packed audience.

Review

Master Guitarist Manuel Barrueco Spotlights Two Protégés

Scott Cmiel - May 3, 2010

Manuel Barrueco gave a panoramic view of the history and future of the classical guitar in the 20th and 21st centuries in a marvelous recital Thursday at San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre.

Review

Guitarmen Always Ring Twice

Scott Cmiel - March 1, 2010

A well-known guitar legend quotes Chopin as saying, “Nothing is more beautiful than a guitar, save perhaps two.” Mark Eden and Christopher Stell, the Eden Stell Guitar Duo, gave evidence on Saturday at the Veterans Building Green Room with their magnificent sound, vivid interpretations, and telepathic ensemble.

Review

Songs of His Fathers and Forefathers

Scott Cmiel - January 12, 2010

The San Francisco Bay Area has one of the largest and most enthusiastic audiences in the country for the classical guitar. Internationally acclaimed artists are regularly featured by San Francisco Performances and the Omni Foundation, while young talent is often presented by smaller organizations.

Preview

Xuefei Yang

Scott Cmiel - November 10, 2009

When Chinese guitarist Xuefei Yang was 15, John Williams heard her play in Beijing and was so impressed that he gave her his own guitar. Yang has g

Review

Inspired Guitar

Scott Cmiel - October 19, 2009

Pixinguinha is a name revered in Brazil but relatively unknown elsewhere. Alfredo da Rocha Vianna Filho, better known as Pixinguinha, was the first and most influential musician in Brazilian popular music.