Cyrpress Duo
The Cypress Guitar Duo is one of the most exciting ensembles on the international guitar scene today. Composed of Russian virtuoso Grisha Goryachev and Mexican multi-talent Zaira Meneses, the duo combines spellbinding technical brilliance and musical poetry. Each member of the Boston Guitar Duo is a brilliant soloist yet the fusion of their combined abilities produces something wholly new and exciting. The Duo first met in Boston while both were pursuing degrees at the New England Conservatory of Music where they were coached by Eliot Fisk .The great success of their first performances soon led to engagements on both sides of the Atlantic and an increasingly full season of concert bookings. Future plans include an upcoming European tour and CD and video recordings to add to their acclaimed individual performances already available on You-Tube and on audio CDs. Website for Grisha Goryachev and Zaira Meneses:
www.grishagorachev.com, ( Zaira Meneses, underconstrution)
Zaira Meneses
Zaira Meneses was born in Xalapa in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. From an early age she showed great talent for music, studying both classical guitar and voice and appearing frequently in a wide variety of public performances both as guitarist and singer. She traveled widely, performing with the famed Orquesta de Guitarras founded by MaestroAlfonso Moreno in concert tours around the world. During this time she was the recipient of numerous prizes for guitar performance nationally and internationally.
At the age of 17 she won first prize in a national competition as the youngest competitor in the contest, subsequently performing Joaquin Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez and Concierto Madrigal with Orchestra throughout Mexico.
She has participated in numerous international festivals studying in master classes led by Ivan Rijos , Joaquin Clerch, Manuel Barrueco, Leo Brouwer, Roberto Aussel Adam Holzman and Eliot Fisk among others.
Zaira Meneses is also a passionate devotee of Opera and has studied voice under Armando Mora and Cecilia Ladron de Guevara . She has participated in international vocal classes at the Academia Chigiana in Siena, Italy, the Wiener Meisterkurse in Vienna , Austria and at the Universitaet Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria . She has appeared on stage as vocal soloist along side such internationally recognized figures as Armando Mora and Jesus Suaste and has also sung inVerdi’s Rigoletto under Mo. Francisco Savin . A further interest is flamenco dancing which she has pursued in special summer courses in Granada ,Spain.
She now lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with her husband, internationally famed guitarist Eliot Fisk, and their 4 –year-old daughter Raquel. She continues to perform world-wide to public and critical acclaim as guitar soloist and as a member of various chamber music ensembles. She is a founding member of the Boston Guitar Quartet.
Grisha Goryachev
A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, guitarist Grigory Goryachev has been acclaimed the world over for his blinding virtuosity and extraordinary musical sensitivity. As a master of both flamenco and classical styles, he has created a new genre all his own and garnered praise from such guitar luminaries as Paco de Lucía, Christopher Parkening, and Eliot Fisk.
Grisha at the outset of his performing career in Russia. Photo from a Belorussian newspaper, 1989. Following his debut at the age of nine, Mr. Goryachev enjoyed an extensive career as a child prodigy, performing regularly before large audiences in the most prestigious concert halls of St. Petersburg, Moscow, Minsk, Riga, and other major cities in the then Soviet Union. He also appeared regularly on Soviet television and radio and was featured in numerous major newspapers and magazines. His participation at the age of 13 in the T.V marathon, Revival of St. Petersburg, was transmitted live to more than one hundred countries worldwide.
Grisha performing for the Royalty of Iceland at her residence. Reykjavik, Iceland, 1992. In 1991, Goryachev was awarded second prize in the Danny Kaye International Children’s Awards held in the Hague, Netherlands. Sponsored by UNICEF, this competition featured participants on all instruments from twenty-six countries. Later that same year, Mr. Goryachev was invited to perform at the UN headquarters in New York City. Directly thereafter, he toured Scandinavia and performed by special invitation for the Royalty of Iceland. In 1993, Mr Goryachev was chosen to represent his native city in the “Days of St. Petersburg in Jerusalem” Festival, and in 1994 at the invitation of Vladimir Spivakov, he performed at the “Festival International de Colmar” held in memory of Andres Segovia in Colmar France.
Grisha meeting Paco de Lucía after his concert at Symphony Hall. Boston, MA, 1999. Following a tour of Spain, Goryachev was invited to play for flamenco legend, Paco de Lucía, who soon after personally intervened in support of his application for an American visa (subsequently awarded in the year 1997 on the basis of “Extraordinary Ability”).
Grisha at the recording studio producing his first album. Winter 1997, Merrimack, NH. Since coming to the United States, Mr. Goryachev has continued his lifelong love affair with flamenco while deepening his involvement with the classical style. His repertoire now includes classical solos, chamber music and guitar concertos and more than six hours of flamenco solos by such composers as Paco de Lucía, Vicente Amigo, Manolo Sanlucar and others. As the flamenco repertoire is for the most part unpublished, Mr. Goryachev has performed the somewhat incredible feat of transcribing it all himself by ear from the recordings.
Grisha playing in the Christopher Parkening masterclass. Summer 1996, Bozeman, Montana. Grigory Goryachev began to play the guitar at the age of seven, studying first with his father, Dmitry, an acknowledged master teacher of the instrument. Since coming to the United States he has also performed in master classes taught by Christopher Parkening, Manuel Barrueco , José María Gallardo del Rey, Sharon Isbin and John Williams. At present he continues to balance international concert obligations with study at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he is earning his Doctor of Musical Arts degree under American virtuoso, Eliot Fisk.
In May 2005 Mr. Goryachev received a special prize for the Best Performance of Spanish Music at the VI International Classical Guitar Competition "Julian Arcás" in Almería, Spain. As a winner of this prize, Mr. Goryachev performed recitals in Spain at "Festival de Música Española de Cádiz" and "Festival de Música de Jimena de la Frontera".
Grigory Goryachev was one of the 30 people to become a fellow of the prestigious Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans in 2006. The purpose of this special Fellowship is to provide opportunities for continuing generations of able and accomplished New Americans to achieve leadership in their chosen fields.
In June 2006 Mr. Goryachev produced a new CD, Alma Flamenca, under VGo Recordings label, which is available from online stores.
