Biography

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During 2007 Carlos Bonell has been touring and teaching in Japan, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, and Europe, including an extended tour with the Philharmonia of the Nations Orchestra. He has been helping ex-Beatle Sir Paul McCartney by arranging, notating and recording the guitar part of a concerto he is composing for guitar and orchestra. Also during this year Carlos has recorded an album of new arrangements of music by the group Queen for solo guitar and symphony orchestra.

Carlos Bonell is celebrated for a distinguished career which includes TV, Film and CD recordings, worldwide tours, concertos with the major orchestras, and the creation of his own Ensemble. He can be heard on the sound tracks of the Hollywood films City of Angels and The Honest Courtesan and on the BBC TV productions Inspector Morse and The Politician's Wife.

Carlos Bonell was born in London of Spanish parents and studied at the Royal College of Music with John Williams, where he was appointed the youngest ever professor in 1972. He gained prominence in 1981 through his recording for Decca of Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Charles Dutoit. It was hailed as a "magnificent triumph" by Classical Music Magazine, UK, and awarded a coveted rosette by the Penguin CD guide. Since that time it has been repeatedly singled out as the finest version available. In 2007 he was awarded the prestigious Spanish prize Premio Trujamán for his work for the solo guitar.

In addition to his Decca recordings, Carlos Bonell has recorded for EMI, ASV, CBS and Upbeat Classics. At the beginning of his recording career his 1976 CBS recording with John Williams and Friends received a Grammy nomination, while his 1998 solo CD release The Private Collection was described as "a masterclass in magic" by the BBC Music Magazine. His 1997 CD The Sea in Spring was chosen as Pick of the Week by Classic FM. The 2000 CD Kinkachoo, I love you is a unique musical journey through 1000 years of musical history, and premières a number of works. His DVD Classical Guitar performance released in 2005 contains a one hour live performance with spoken introductions in English and Spanish by Carlos himself. It has met with universal acclaim.

Carlos Bonell has formed musical associations with a wide variety of musicians including guitarist John Williams, flamenco guitarists Paco Peña and Juan Martîn, jazz guitarist Martin Taylor, violinists Salvatore Accardo, Pinchas Zukerman and Levon Chilingirian, and singers Patricia Rozario, Teresa Berganza, Cleo Laine and Philip Langridge.

Carlos Bonell's programmes reflect a wide musical interest beyond Spanish music. His association with various composers, and interest in contemporary music, has led to programmes which include music by Barrington ("Inspector Morse" music) Pheloung, the late Stephen Oliver (who composed a guitar sonata for him), Ottavio Nègro, Armand Coeck, and John Tavener. His specially devised programmes including Millennium Guitar: the first 1000 years" and Mystery, Myth and Magic have proved very popular around the world.

His concert tours extend to many parts of the world including most European capitals as well as the United States, Israel, and South Africa. During the 1980s he formed his own ensemble, the Carlos Bonell Ensemble, which includes some of Britain's finest musicians. The Ensemble, which has toured in more than 20 countries, is widely regarded as the most innovative and entertaining guitar-based ensemble in the world today. Carlos has appeared regularly with all the major British orchestras and at many international Festivals including The City of London, Aldeburgh, Helsinki, Israel, Tanglewood, Sydney, Istanbul, Hong Kong, and New York's Mostly Mozart Festival. Since 2000, Carlos's concert schedule has expanded to include regular tours through Australia, the Far East and South America

2005 included the world première of Ophelia, a work specially composed for Carlos by the Australian composer Phillip Houghton. This work will appear in a new publishing venture: the Carlos Bonell Edition, which focuses on new music for guitar. A performance highlight of the season was the London International Guitar Festival in July (of which he is the Artistic Director) where he played concerts with John Williams and the Chamber Ensemble of London. As well as teaching and lecturing 2005 also saw the first book about the guitar by Carlos. Guitar - An Easy Guide was published in April 2005 by New Holland Publishing and contains an introduction to playing, a brief history of the acoustic guitar, and a recommended listening guide.

In 2006 Carlos undertook an extended tour of the USA which included Fort Worth, Dallas, Atlanta and Las Vegas, presenting his acclaimed solo programme Millennium Guitar, the first 1000 years. In Venezuela he was awarded the Catedra Internacional de Guitarra Carlos Bonell in recognition of his teaching activities there since 2000 which have included workshops and masterclasses throughour the country. The Catedra receives financial support from numerous organisations and institutions, and is recognized by Universities as a valuable part of student studies.

He is also greatly in demand as an outstanding teacher. Every year he conducts international teaching courses in Italy, Spain, the UK and Venezuela, as well as masterclasses during many of his concert tours.