Heather DeRome began her career in Toronto, Canada, arranging music and performing with the theatre. She also gave solo recitals, performing her own compositions as well as the standard guitar repertoire, and toured with Czechoslovakian cellist Vit Fiala as well, playing their own arrangements of classical repertoire and ancient Slavic gypsy music.

She pursued her studies at the University of Victoria, majoring in performance and composition with high honours, having received the President’s Scholarship awarded to the student holding the highest GPA in the university, as well as the Murray Adaskin Prize in Composition, and the Judith Harrema Performance Award.

In recent years, Ms. DeRome has been focusing her expertise on the music of J.S. Bach, developing an approach to interpreting his music on the guitar, based on her own historical and theoretical findings — and on her work with Frank Koonce. She is presently active as a recording artist, an instructor, a theorist and scholar.

Heather DeRome’s lineage of teachers: Michael Strutt, a student of José Tomas, who was a student of Émilio Pujol, who was a student of Tárrega, who was taught by his father. Lynne Gangbar, a student of Eli Kassner who was a student of Andrés Segovia, who was largely self taught. Scott Tennant, a student of Pepe Romero, who was a student of Celedonio Romero, who was a student of Joaquin Turina, who was a student of Vincent D’indy who was a student of César Franck, himself a close friend of Beethoven, student of Haydn, who was largely self taught. (D’indy also played a role in the premiere of Bizet’s Carmen, was at the premiere of Wagner’s ring, was friends with Liszt and Brahms.)

For more information about recordings, lessons and lectures, please visit www.heatherderome.com

Frank Koonce is internationally acclaimed as a performer, teacher, and writer. He holds degrees from the North Carolina School of the Arts and from Southern Methodist University, studying first with Jesus Silva and then with Robert Guthrie. In 1974-75, he was a Fulbright Scholar and performer in Italy where he studied with Sergio Notaro and Alirio Diaz.

Mr. Koonce’s creative output includes an authoritative guitar edition of Johann Sebastian Bach’s complete solo lute works (Kjos Music) and many other editions with Mel Bay Publications and Productions d’Oz. He made the world-premiere recording in English of Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s “Platero and I” for narrator and guitar (Summit, DCD 1002) followed by another version in Spanish (Soundset, SR1026) and a DVD animated video made in Spain (Cuentos Musicales). He also recorded an album entitled “A Southwest Christmas” with the Phoenix Bach Choir (Soundset, SR 1005) and is featured in a live concert video with the renowned composer/guitarist, Nikita Koshkin (Mel Bay 99231VX). As a founding partner of Soundset Recordings he has produced and co-produced other classical compact discs, including a premiere recording of orchestral works by Alan Hovhaness, which was part of the soundtrack for Paramount’s award-winning film “There Will Be Blood.”

A Professor of Music, Frank Koonce directed the guitar program at Arizona State University from 1978-2018. He was Director of “Guitar Festival 1987” an international event jointly sponsored by the Guitar Foundation of America and the American String Teachers Association, and later served as Chair the GFA Advisory Board. As a performer, he has recitals to his credit in England, Korea, Macedonia, Taiwan, China, Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Mexico, Spain, The Czech Republic, Austria, and throughout the United States.

For more information about publications and recordings please visit www.frankkoonce.com