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Classic Feel Magazine
James Grace - "A Sacred Fire"
One of the 20th Century’s most influential classical
guitarists,
Andrés Segovia, once said that the mark of a true performer
is
‘a sacred fire… that love without which, a
performer may
be perfect but nothing else.’ South Africa’s own
James
Grace, as he clearly demonstrates through his concert performances as
well as his four acclaimed CD releases, has that fire in abundance.
An Englishman by birth, he moved to Cape Town with his family when he
was ten years old. He inherited a love for music in general and for the
guitar in particular from his father. ‘My Dad played the
guitar
on an amateur level, so there was always a guitar lying around the
house. I picked it up and just took to it,’ Grace recalls.
He began taking lessons with the late Dietrich Wagner, who taught
guitar at Stellenbosch University. At the age of 15, he returned to
England to complete his schooling. There he was taken under the wing of
Carlos Bonell, first as a private pupil and later as a student at the
Royal College of Music (RCM), where he enrolled as a Foundation Scholar
after finishing high school. Bonell was a pupil of one of the most
celebrated classical guitarists of recent times, John Williams, who
himself studied under Segovia. Thus, Grace is carrying on a
distinguished legacy of classical guitarists.
Upon graduating, Grace became the first guitarist in the history of the
RCM to receive the Tagore Gold Medal, the College’s highest
accolade. After a two-year teaching stint in Doha, Qatar, Grace
returned home to Cape Town in 2003. Since his return, he has
established himself as the country’s preeminent classical
guitarist. His solo performances, his collaborations with other popular
classical musicians – such as pianist Christopher Duigan and
soprano Zanne Stapelberg – and his concerto recitals
alongside
the country’s top orchestras, have made him one of South
Africa’s favourite concert performers.
His 2005 recording debut, Granada: Music of Spain, is a showcase of
some of the best-known pieces in the Spanish repertoire: solo pieces by
Granados, Sor, Albéniz and company. The guitar is so closely
associated with Spain that many people overlook the works written for
the instrument by composers from other countries, such as Italians
Giuliani and Paganini and the 20th Century English composers Britten,
Walton, Arnold and Tippett. While Grace occasionally performs these
works, along with the transcriptions of various Baroque compositions
that have long been popular features of guitar concert programmes, it
is what he refers to as his ‘Spanish passion’ that
forms
the core of his work.
Portrait, his follow-up album, featured a more varied programme of
concert works, including an ntermezzo written by his old
mentor
Dietrich Wagner. His third album, Café Latino is a rich and
fascinating musical journey showcasing the unique developments that
guitar music underwent in its migration from the Iberian peninsula to
Latin America. For the guitarist, this SAMA Award nominated album
provided an opportunity to bring the lesser-known South American works
to his audience and to explore further the melodic, rhythmic and even
percussive potential of the guitar. On his latest album, Sevilla, which
was released earlier this year, he continues his exploration of Spanish
music.
Looking ahead, he already has ideas for the third installment in the
Music of Spain series. He also has ambitions to make a recording of
Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, which he has performed with
every orchestra in the country, but has yet to commit to disc.
Listening to Grace’s recordings, one is struck by his
remarkable
mastery of both form and feel. His well-developed technique combines
with an instinctive feel for the emotional requirements of each piece
and expressive use of phrasing and rubato to create interpretations
that are fresh and new, while at the same time remaining true to the
intentions of the composers as written on the stave.
In 2007, Grace set up his own record label, Stringwise Records, which
is now the exclusive producer of all of his recorded work. By setting
up the label, he gave himself a gift that many artists long for but
don’t often get: complete artistic control. He is personally
involved in all aspects of production from repertoire selection to
cover design to distribution, even going so far as to pack 1000-unit
batches of CDs himself. For him, making music is his passion and every
little part of the process is an expression of that passion.
The
end products of Grace’s meticulous approach to making his
records
are packages that are polished and attractive in both content and
presentation.
Apart from performing, recording and running a record label, Grace also
spends part of his week teaching at the University of Cape Town, where
he is Head of Classical Guitar. ‘I’ve always
enjoyed
teaching. For me, watching students develop musically and being able to
help them nurture their sound is one of the most rewarding
experiences.’
Grace is currently in the process of setting up the Stringwise Young
Artists Trust, which will help young musicians from around the country
to produce their own records and provide them with bursaries for
overseas study. Although he would be extremely happy if some of his own
students became beneficiaries, the Trust is open to all music students,
not just guitarists. And the final decisions are not up to Grace
himself, but will be made by a board of trustees.
After only a few years as a professional in the South African music
industry, Grace’s contribution has already been
considerable. As a first class performer, an entrepreneur and
mentor to aspiring artists, he is a prime example of what one can
achieve with a singleminded pursuit of one’s passion. Let us
hope
that this ‘sacred fire’ continues to blaze for a
long time
to come.
Classic Feel Magazine, 2009