Olaf Van Gonnissen (*1954) war im „Frankfurter Gitarrenduo“ (zusammen mit Michael Teuchert) in den 70er und 80er Jahren mit Konzerten und über 100.000 verkauften Schallplatten eines der weltweit erfolgreichsten Gitarrenduos. Er spielte außerdem u. a. im „Mutare Ensemble Frankfurt“, mit Rosemarie Fendel (Sprache), Friederike Richter (Klavier) und war Gründungsmitglied des „World Guitar Ensemble“ und des „Quartetto MaGiCo“. Aktuell tritt er im Duo mit Cornelia Monske (Marimba) und Johannes Monno (Gitarre) auf. Er unterrichtete mehrere Jahrzehnte an der Musikhochschule in Hamburg, der Akademie für Tonkunst in Darmstadt und bei vielen Meisterkursen und Festivals. Darüber hinaus war er Juror bei internationalen Wettbewerben und Mitglied der Auswahlkommission für den Deutschen Akademischen Austauschdienst (DAAD). Zusammen mit Tilman Hoppstock bearbeitete er über einen Zeitraum von mehreren Jahren sämtliche Lautenwerke John Dowlands für Gitarre. Neben der Musik gelten seine Interessen vor allem seiner Familie, Doppelkopf, Scrabble und Rheingau-Riesling. Darüber hinaus liest er gerne Kriminalromane, Comics (Hägar, Mafalda, Calvin & Hobbes) und schaut gerne französische Filme.
Magic Guitars - A Walk trough the History
Olaf Van Gonnissen is not only an outstanding performer on the modern classical guitar, but also possesses equally extensive knowledge of many other plucked instruments. From the Renaissance lute, through the Spanish vihuela and the French Baroque guitar, to the Classical-Romantic guitar of the era of Giuliani, Sors and Costes, Olaf Van Gonnissen has mastered a wide-ranging repertoire, which he particularly enjoys playing on original instruments (or replicas of historical models). The images above show the four instruments featured in the recital: a replica of a Renaissance lute based on a 16th-century English model (copy by Bernd Holzgruber), alongside a reinterpretation of an old Spanish vihuela (Chambure) by Carl-Hermann Schäfer. Master luthier Hans Herb has crafted a replica of a 17th-century French Baroque guitar, whilst the photograph on the right shows an original instrument from the first half of the 19th century. This is a guitar made by the Italian master luthier Gennaro Fabricatore, dating from around 1830. Alongside a wealth of valuable information and fascinating stories about the history of the instrument, Olaf will, of course, be performing many pieces live. With works by Luis de Narvaez, Alonso Mudarra, Francesco da Milano, John Dowland, Ludovico Roncalli, Robert de Visée, Mauro Giuliani, Pierre Porro and Wenzeslaus Matiegka, history truly comes to life!
Olaf Van Gonnissen (born 1954) was part of the “Frankfurt Guitar Duo” (together with Michael Teuchert) in the 1970s and 1980s; with their concerts and over 100,000 records sold, they were one of the world’s most successful guitar duos. He also played in the “Mutare Ensemble Frankfurt”, alongside Rosemarie Fendel (voice) and Friederike Richter (piano), and was a founding member of the “World Guitar Ensemble” and the “Quartetto MaGiCo”. He currently performs in a duo with Cornelia Monske (marimba) and Johannes Monno (guitar). He taught for several decades at the Hamburg University of Music and Theatre, the Academy of Music in Darmstadt, and at numerous masterclasses and festivals. In addition, he served as a juror at international competitions and was a member of the selection committee for the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). Together with Tilman Hoppstock, he spent several years arranging all of John Dowland’s lute works for guitar. Aside from music, his interests lie primarily with his family, Doppelkopf, Scrabble and Rheingau Riesling. He also enjoys reading crime novels and comics (Hägar, Mafalda, Calvin & Hobbes) and watching French films.
