Zachary Carrettín, Mina Gajlc & Bach Festival
Biography Zachary Carrettín, Mina Gajlc & Bach Festival
Zachary Carrettín
has performed as orchestral and choral conductor, violinist, violist, and cellist da spalla in more than twenty-five countries on four continents, and has established a reputation for presenting thoughtful, dynamic and diverse programs which feature repertory from the sixteenth to the twenty-first centuries. He performed as soloist at the opening ceremonies of the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, the Dayton Center for the Performing Arts, the Museo del’ Arte Rovereto-Trentino (Italy), and was featured at the Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts Face of America Series, the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House, at the Stavanger Festival (Norway), and in a private concert for the Sultan and Royal Family of Oman, in Muscat, in the capacity of Music Director of Project Bandaloop, (1999-2004). He has since conducted orchestras across the United States, Germany, the Czech Republic, Romania, and the National Symphony Orchestras of Moldova and Bolivia. He conducted the first recording of Bolivian composer Gustavo Navarre’s Sinfonía, and conducted the first known performance of Capuzzi’s ballet music, L’Impostore punito. Carrettin has performed and recorded numerous works in manuscript following several research trips to archives in Bergamo, Milan and Venice.
In the field of historically inspired period instrument performance, Carrettin appeared several times as concerto soloist with the American Bach Soloists, and as guest concertmaster and soloist with numerous baroque period instrument ensembles including the GRAMMY-nominated recording of Hasse’s Marc’ Antonio e Cleopatra with Ars Lyrica Houston, the U.S. premiere of Vivaldi’s rediscovered opera Montezuma with Musica Angelica and Long Beach Opera, critically-acclaimed recording of baroque chamber music from the New World Villancicos y Cantidas with El Mundo, and several productions of opera, oratorio, and instrumental music with American Bach Soloists. He toured internationally performing Mexican baroque instrumental and vocal chamber music with the ensemble El Mundo, and toured the California mission churches performing baroque music of the New World with renowned choir, Chanticleer. Carrettin’s recording of Schubert sonatas on original instruments with pianist Mina Gajić was released in March, 2020 on the Sono Luminus label, and the following month hit No. 9 on Billboard Charts "Traditional Classical."
He recently recorded Bach Cello Suites #'s 1, 2, and 3 (on baroque viola) during Covid-19 pandemic lockdown. That recording, titled "Metamorphosis," is now available on all platforms. ...
Mina Gajlc
has garnered an international reputation for insightful and dynamic performances of a vast and ever-evolving repertoire including many new works by living composers, concertos and recitals performed on historic Romantic Era pianos, and collaborations on harpsichord and fortepiano. She started her education and music career in Yugoslavia and subsequently performed as concerto soloist and recitalist in Italy, France, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Montenegro, China, Bolivia, and across the United States. As duo partner with violinist Zachary Carrettin, she has appeared on four continents, focusing on a diverse repertoire spanning the centuries and various styles—on historic period pianos in addition to modern concert instruments, and including new works composed for the duo.
Notable performances have included critically-acclaimed period instrument renditions of works by Chopin, Brahms, Britten, Ives, Berg, Antheil, and Bartók. Her doctoral dissertation and subsequent research on the work of Yugoslav composer Josip Slavenski connect Balkan folkloric traditions and approaches to twentieth century music between the two World Wars.
Her performances of Brahms and Schumann (Érard piano, 1895) can be heard on the audio book Escapement, by award-winning author Kristen Wolf. Additionally, Gajic and Carrettin's recording of Schubert sonatas on historical instruments (Érard piano, 1835), Boundless, was released in 2020 and became a Top 10 on Billboard Charts "Traditional Classical" the following month. Her recording of Balkan Dances & Tango Nuevo, Confluence was released in 2022 on the Sono Luminus label. She performs as harpsichord concerto soloist on the 2023 Boulder Bach Festival album, also on Sono Luminus, and her album titled Sonic Alchemy is released in October, 2023.
Gajic holds degrees from the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgrade, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, and holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Colorado-Boulder.
Gajic is the founder and Artistic Director of Boulder International Chamber Music Competition—Art of Duo. Former faculty at Sam Houston State University, in 2019 she became Artistic and Executive Director of Boulder Bach Festival.
Boulder Bach Festival
is an annually occurring concert series that focuses on 500 years of music composition, "navigating the waters of music history with J.S. Bach as a compass."
The mission of the Boulder Bach Festival is to celebrate the music of Johann Sebastian Bach by providing high quality performances and educational opportunities that will not only satisfy those who already love Bach’s music, but will also introduce Bach’s music to others. It is the vision of the Boulder Bach Festival board of directors that the BBF be the premier festival in the Rocky Mountain Region dedicated to the propagation of the legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach. The Boulder Bach Festival offers a concentrated series of concerts, symposia, and educational events each spring, focused on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, arguably the greatest composer of Western music, augmented by a number of outreach concerts and other events for youth, seniors and various community groups throughout the year. The Festival features prominent artists from the region as well as nationally recognized Bach virtuosos. The high quality of the performances has built the outstanding reputation of the Festival and placed it among the top festivals of its kind in the state and nation.
