Staff

CHRIS - DIRECTOR

Chris Acquavella - graduated First Class Honors from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. Chris studied mandolin under the instruction of Alison Stephens and composition with Andrew Poppy. He won the Wolfsan Foundation Music Award; was awarded the TCM Trust Silver Medal for String Studies and won 1st Prize at the 2016 Call For Scores hosted by the Kalamazoo Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra. Chris Acquavella has released four CDs and is currently a recording artist for America’s oldest and largest independent classical label, Centaur Records, Inc. Chris has performed and taught workshops at the Classical Mandolin Society of America Conventions, River of the West Camp, the David Grisman & Mike Marshall Mandolin Symposium, the annual course of the Austrian Federation of Amateur Musicians (VAMÖ) and the Summer School of the British BMG Federation. Acquavella is a published composer of new mandolin repertoire through Joachim-Trekel-Musikverlag, Hamburg and Astute Music Ltd, UK. 2014 by C. Acquavella: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdoBIvMjeMM

FLORIAN - GUEST ARTIST

Florian Klaus Rumpf - decided at the age of 7 to make the mandolin the center of his life. He studied at the Cologne University of Music and Dance, Wuppertal location with Prof. Caterina Lichtenberg, Valerij Kisselev and Silke Lisko.
The goal of his pedagogical work is aimed at creating basic literature for the mandoloncello and the octave mandolin, which are only rarely performed as solo instruments.
The focus of his solo work is the diversity of mandolin instruments from baroque mandolin to octave mandolin to liuto cantabile. He constantly works with composers, writes himself, researches and arranges in order to expand the literature for his instruments.
Rumpf's recording "A Mandolin's Guide To Hamburg" was nominated for the Opus Klassik Award in three categories in 2023.

DANIEL - GUEST ARTIST

Daniel Ahlert - studied mandolin and baroque mandolin with Prof. Marga Wilden-Hüsgen at the Musikhochschule Köln/Wuppertal from where he graduated with the highest possible degree. Since then he has pursued a successful international solo and chamber music career looking back on hundreds of concerts throughout Europe and the US.

Daniel Ahlert regularly performs at prestigious venues and renowned festivals such as the Internationales Bodenseefestival, the Bachfest Leipzig and the Festival La Guitarra California as well as at the Zeughaus Neuss, the Steinfurter Bagno Konzertgalerie, and the Preston Bradley Hall/Chicago.

From 1992 to 2022 he performed with Birgit Schwab (lute/guitar) as the Duo Ahlert & Schwab that ranked among the most important duos worldwide for 30 years. Since 2018 he also performs with Léon Berben (harpsichord and square piano). In 2022 he founded a new duo together with Nicola Yasmin Stock (guitar).

In order to enrich the mandolin repertoire, he works together with composers who write new music for him and thus he has already premiered more than a hundred pieces.

Many of these new compositions he recorded with Naxos, Claudio Records und Antes on 6 CDs.

GARY - CO-ADMINISTRATOR

Gary Payne - A photographer by profession, Gary has been playing the mandolin for a number of years. He has mainly studied with Chris Acquavella for much of that time. He has also participated in a number of workshops and classes with Caterina Lichtenberg, Carlo Aonzo, Mike Marshall, Evan Marshall, and Paulo Sá--at events like The Mandolin Symposium and the Classical Mandolin Society of America (CMSA) annual conventions. Gary's main area of interest is the classical mandolin; it's instruments, techniques and repertoire. Gary has also recently taken up the violin, with a particular interest in Baroque music. 

Gary was concert master of the New Expression Mandolin Orchestra (NEMO) in San Diego, and has performed as a trio and a duo in a number of local events and concerts. Gary also plays violin in the Kensington Baroque Orchestra--which he helped found. He also promotes and hosts concerts in San Diego. Gary is president of the Board of Directors of the Bach Collegium San Diego, a professional early music ensemble dedicated to performing vibrant historically informed music. Gary was also a board member of the national organization Early Music America.

Gary's website: www.garypaynephoto.com

Bach Collegium San Diego: www.bachcollegiumsd.org

Kensington Baroque Orchestra: Facebook

Early Music America: www.earlymusicamerica.org