The Musicians

Gunnar Madsen

Gunnar Madsen (composer, piano) The grammy-nominated composer of Spinning World is also an accomplished singer, writer, filmmaker and actor. He is well known as the co-founder and songwriter and performer with the legendary acapella group The Bobs. His solo efforts have yielded critically acclaimed albums across dramatically different genres. He has received commissions from Lincoln Center, the Los Angeles Theater Center, the Minnesota Opera, Oberlin Dance Collective, ISO Dance Theater, National Public Radio and many others. He is a featured performer on the soundtrack of "At Play in the Fields of the Lord," in the National Geographic Special "Asteroids: Deadly Impact," and is the emotionally charged voice of Sammy Davis, Jr. in the Emmy-award winning HBO film, "The Rat Pack."

Gunnar's new stage musical based on the outsider group The Shaggs (with collaborator Joy Gregory) premiered in Los Angeles in November of 2003 to thunderous critical and popular acclaim. It set new box office records and won Best Original Score from Entertainment Today (beating out Mel Brooks' The Producers), and won 6 Garland Awards, 3 LA Drama Critic's Circle Awards and 4 LA weekly awards, including Musical of the Year and Best Score.

Gunnar's family CDs have received numerous prestigious national awards, including Parents' Choice Gold Award, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold, NAPPA Gold, Scholastic Teacher's Pick Award, and the CMW Best Recording for Older Children award. His new storybook adaptation of his song Old Mr. Mackle Hackle will be published by Little, Brown in Spring 2005.

Gunnar journeyed to Russia to film a documentary on a remarkable farming community for disabled people. The film, Svetlana Village: The Camphill Experience in Russia, was an official selection of the Ojai International Film Festival. More information on all Gunnar's activities is available at: www.GunnarMadsen.com

Kent Sparling (co-producer) is a composer of highly original ambient/electronic music, and is a sought-after mixer in the indie world of film. His film credits include Sofia Coppola's "Lost in Translation" and "The Virgin Suicides", and Spike Jonez' "Adaptation". His discerning ear and impeccable musical taste were an indelible part of recording and mixing Spinning World: 13 Ways of Looking at a Waltz.

Chuck Deardorf (bass) has toured the United States, Canada, The Caribbean, and Australia with such Jazz greats as saxophonists Bud Shank and Don Lanphere, pianists George Cables and Kenny Barron, vocalist Ernestine Anderson, drummer Winard Harper, and guitarists Larry Coryell and Charlie Byrd. As the first call bassist in Seattle for the last twenty years, he has been chosen to perform with a long list of legendary artists including Chet Baker, Zoot Sims, Art Farmer, Howard Roberts, Monty Alexander, Kenny Burrell, Marian McPartland, Mel Lewis, Pete Christlieb, Joe Williams, Kenny Werner, Carl Fontana, Joe LaBarbara, and Tal Farlow.

Chuck is a current member of the Bud Shank quartet, the exciting new Brazilian Jazz group the Jovino Santos Neto Quartet, pianist Dave Peck's trio, The Bill Ramsay Big Band, and the Barney McClure Quartet. An accomplished studio musician, Chuck's bass has been heard on several first run movie soundtracks, dozens of albums and C.D. projects, and numerous Broadway and touring shows. Chuck's bass instructional video, "Bass Tips; Jazz, Funk and Fusion", is available from Warner Publishing.

Jeffrey Sick (violin) has played on-stage violin and percussion in the Broadway and road productions of "M. Butterfly" with Tony Randall, and has also performed and toured with Imago recording artist Suzanne Rhatigan. Some of the people with whom he has shared the stage include Buddy Miles, Jimmy Buffett, The Meters, and Bireli Legrene. Jeff's solo compositions have been heard on NPR's All Things Considered and on CBS's 48 Hours series.

Roger Nelson (piano) has been on the faculty of Cornish College of the Arts since 1979, where he's taught piano, history, theory, composition, and conducting. He co-founded and conducts the Seattle Creative Orchestra, a forty member group devoted to works of living composers. Now in their 3rd season, they have presented many U.S. and world premieres.

Roger, with Karen and daughter Ariana, spent the 1997-98 year teaching in China at Qufu Teacher's University in the Shandong Province. Roger taught piano, conducting, and coached the chorus in their first attempt in singing in English. Roger decided to arrange Haydn's "Surprise Symphony" for orchestra, but due to the lack of western orchestral instruments, this orchestra included many erhus- the Chinese 2-string fiddle, and featured 8 accordion players!
Conducting highlights include Minnesota Opera "New Music Theatre Ensemble" in 2 world premiere operas. Roger was a leader of the 'Floating Opera" on Puget Sound, Seattle. Involving contributions by 6 composers, it featured 30 performers performing on a barge floating through Puget Sound. The audience watched from shore as the musicians, dressed in survival suits finished by jumping into the icy water, still playing!

Karen Iglitzin (violin) established her reputation as the first violinist of the Philadelphia String Quartet, and with the quartet performed an average of 80 concerts each year, including many college residencies. They made two major international tours, to India and South America, and performed extensively around the Northwest. The Philadelphia Quartet brought hundreds of new listeners to chamber music with their Olympic Music Festival, now a renowned summer concert series in a barn on the Olympic Peninsula.

A tenured professor at Western Washington University in Bellingham for 12 years, Karen developed outstanding string and chamber music programs , and founded the Preparatory Music Program for kids in the community.
Karen received her training with Josef Gingold at Indiana University, and her Masters with Joseph Silversein at Yale School of Music. Now she plays everything from Beethoven quartets, to Indonesian gamelan music, to fiddle tunes.

Dr. Florie Rothenberg (clarinet) is a regular member of the Tacoma Symphony and the Tacoma Opera, and freelances with many other groups, including the Pacific Northwest Ballet, the Auburn Symphony, the Northwest Chamber Orchestra, and the Seattle Choral Company. She enjoys playing musicals at the Paramount and the Fifth Avenue Theaters, and does chamber music whenever the opportunity arises. Before coming to Seattle, Florie was a member of the Tucson Symphony and the Arizona Opera.

Florie’s formal education includes a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Arizona, a Master of Music from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor of Music from the University of the Pacific. She teaches privately and in association with The Music Center of the Northwest, MusicWorks Northwest, and the University of Puget Sound Community Music School.

John Bishop (drums) is a regular feature at all of the leading music festivals, clubs and studios in the Northwest, playing with Bobby McFerrin, Slide Hampton, Benny Golson, George Cables, Kenny Werner, Eddie Daniels, Joanne Brackeen, Carla Bley, Steve Swallow, Kenny Rankin and countless others. He’s appeared on over 60 albums & videos with projects including: CD sessions with Rudy Van Gelder, Ernie Watts, Ralph Towner & Teo Macero; a Grammy nominated CD with Mark Murphy for RCA; educational videos for REH/Warner Bros., and documentaries for PBS.

Claude Ginsburg (violin) From an early age, Claude was immersed in classical music. After studying piano for three years and classical violin for seven, Claude branched out into acid rock, jazz fusion, and then into various folk music genres. He brings a broad knowledge of both classical and world music to his playing. Claude currently performs with KGB, a contra dance band with 5 recordings, and Tangoheart, an Argentinian tango sextet, as well as various gypsy jazz groups around Puget Sound.