"When a performer masters his instrument to the point it becomes an extension of his own voice, you know you are in the presence of a master. And if that performer also feels the call to create new music, the result is frequently entrancing. Chopin mastered the piano in such a way. Gary Schocker masters the flute with similar passion and skill." Anna Vorhes for the South Dakota Symphony

"He has musical ideas...he also has fleet fingers, ample breath control and a sort of body english that goes along with his phrasing attractively." The New York Times

"...the music was gloriously alive, with glowing crescendos and hauntingly beautiful soft passages..." The Washington Post

"Schocker's extraordinary breath control, subtle shadings of color and dynamics and witty timing at the cadenzas were highlights of his performance."
Telegram & Gazette

Gary Schocker, Flutist/Composer

Biography

Gary Schocker is a world-renowned flutist and award-winning composer with over 200 compositions in publication, primarily with Theodore Presser. He has published more pieces for the flute than any other living composer.His engagements have included performances with the New York Philharmonic (under Michael Tilson Thomas), the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony, the West German Sinfonia and an extended tour with I Solisti Italiani as well as solo recitals in New York, Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, Washington, and elsewhere. Schocker has collaborated with many artists on stage, including Pinchas Zuckerman, Michael Tilson Thomas, Earl Wild, Jessye Norman, Julius Baker, James Levine, James Galway, Bruno Canino, Oscar Shumsky, Eduardo Fernandez, Jean-Philippe Collard, and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He concertizes in duo with internationally acclaimed guitarist Jason Vieaux.

Among the artists who have played his compositions, James Galway gave the American premiere of Green Places with the New Jersey Symphony. Schocker’s earlier association with that orchestra came when he replaced, for several concerts, an ailing Jean-Pierre Rampal, on a mere two hours’ notice. Winner of the 1985 Young Concert Artists Auditions, Schocker is also First Prize winner of the National Flute Association, the New York Flute Club and the East-West Artists Competitions. Internationally, he has toured and taught in Japan, Colombia, Panama, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, Germany, France, Hungary Italy and New Zealand.

His upcoming cd with Azica with Emily Mitchell, Garden in Harp features all-Schocker chamber works with harp, and release date is March 2012. His music can also be heard fluting on two music minus one discs with Hugh Sung, piano. For Dad (also Azica) again pairs Sung and Schocker, performing his own work as well as classics by Hindemith Poulenc and others. Healing Music is another Azica CD of all-Schocker works and includes performances with guest artists Mathieu Dufour (flute), Cliff Jackson (piano) and Jason Vieaux (guitar). A solo CD, Flute Forest, features the Schocker composition as the title track, along with other solo flute selections. Arioso includes baroque music for flute and guitar, recorded with Jason Vieaux. The Mozart Flute Quartets is on the Chesky label, which also released a Gary Schocker solo CD of Bach, Handel and Telemann. Dream Travels (Azica) again features Schocker with guitarist Jason Vieaux. Schocker's award-winning musicals, Far From the Madding Crowd and The Awakening, can be heard on Original Cast Records. His music can be heard on the Sazas, Troy, Koch, MHS, SNE, Elysium, Gionata, Flying Frog, Jonathan Digital, and MMO labels.

You can learn more about Gary Schocker at his website: www.garyschocker.com