Fresh from a recent concert tour spanning Italy, France, Monaco, Spain and Croatia, Perth-based classical guitarist, Duncan Gardiner, is an international artist, having also performed across Scotland, England, Germany and the Czech Republic, in addition to concerts within his homeland of Australia. Duncan has been described as “an excellent ambassador for the classical guitar”, and is a gifted musician with talents in both performance and composition fields. His playing has been described as “delicate, serene and magical” as well as atmospheric and full of nuance. Meanwhile, his compositions have attracted similar praise: “Duncan Gardiner’s extraordinarily attractive music is not only a pleasure to listen to but a delight to play”.
Duncan released his debut album titled Of Dreams and Fantasy in mid 2009. Chris Dumigan (Classical Guitar Magazine, UK) exclaimed, “I must say that this CD is one of the very best CDs of guitar music to ever come my way… …I have returned to this CD more than most others just for the sheer pleasure of it.” It is no wonder that it was voted ‘CD of the Week’ in the West Australian newspaper. Duncan has since released two more albums: Incense and Arabie (2012) and Tangos and Latin Dances (2013). His music is often played nationally on Australia’s most respected classical music station, ABC Classic FM.
In 2009 he published a book of music sharing the same name as the album. It serves as a companion to the album and features in print all of the original compositions and arrangements that appear on the recording. In addition to this his music is enjoying increasing popularity insofar as his works are being performed by other local artists and attracting international interest. Duncan was delighted to have several of his works chosen for the exam syllabi of the Australian Guild of Music and Speech as well as the Australian and New Zealand Cultural Arts. Recent commissions include composing two tangos for a WA tango recording project and writing a short work for the Western Australian Youth Music Association’s Sinfonietta string orchestra.
Combining his love for performance and education, Duncan (along with Pascale Whiting, violin, and Sophie Curtis, cello) is a proud member of the In Schools education performers team at Musica Viva Australia where he and his group ‘Fiddlesticks’ will to tour to schools all over Western Australia until 2018, inspiring teachers and students through live music performance.
Duncan holds a First Class Honours degree in Music Performance from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. During his time at WAAPA, he was the recipient of both the Helen Court Scholarship and the Faculty Medal – an award given for outstanding scholarship within the Faculty of Education and Arts at Edith Cowan University. Duncan has also received the Licentiate of Music Diploma (with distinction) from the Australian Music Examinations Board, and won the J.B. Vincent Memorial Prize for being the most outstanding candidate.
Web: http://www.duncangardiner.com/biography/ (2014)