COMPOSER/MODERN GUITARIST LAWRENCE BLATT
ANNOUNCES THE RELEASE OF
EMERGENCE – MARCH 15th, 2014
PRODUCED BY WILL ACKERMAN
Award winning guitarist Lawrence Blatt, continues with his passion for blendng science and music with his new album Emergence. As Blatt explains “the natural world is full of complex patterns and seemingly unexplainable order. From the migration patterns of birds and butterflies, to the beauty of an individual snowflake, our world is filled with endless expressions of mathematical complexity.”
“Scientists who study these natural phenomenon have begun to understand the concept that diverse patterns can be derived from simple rules, which often lead to unexpected outcomes. This scientific concept has been given the name, Emergence and is now a central theme in the exploration of varied biological, as well as inorganic systems. I became intrigued by the biological applications of emergence several years ago and I have now utilized the underling tenants of this theory to produce my new musical project entitled, Emergence. For each composition, I wrote the basic guitar part by strictly adhering to musical rules of chord progression and scale theory. For the solo instrumentals that played on the album, no written music was given to individual performers. Instead, I instructed them on the “allowable” movement based on guidance from musical theory and practice. What emerged from this exercise was far greater than I could have ever imagined …”
Blatt’s unique and pure acoustic sound is often created on a single guitar and other times features layers of lush acoustic instrumentation. His music can feature subtle counter-melodies, rhythmic interplays or even multiple parts played simultaneously on one guitar (lead, rhythm and bass at the same time, for example). Blatt’s exceptional technique mixes delicate nuances one moment with passionate fire the next. On the album Emergence, Blatt played all of the guitar parts as well as several other instruments including acoustic bass, mandolin and accordion. He also composed and arranged all compositions. Blatt’s style bridges many genres including acoustic, neo-classical, folk and world music with subtle other flavors including Celtic, Latin, Mid-Eastern, and jazz.
Produced by Will Ackerman, Emergence has an A-list of solo instrumentalists including Charlie Bisharat and Lila Sklar on violins, EugeneFriesen on Cello, Sam Bevan on double bass, Jill Haley on English horn, Richard "Gus" Sebring on French Horn and Jim Rothermel on Penny Whistle
A rising star in the world of instrumental music and acoustic guitar finger-picking, Lawrence Blatt won an international radio Life Style Music Award and was named “Best New Artist” by Zone Music Reporter (ZMR) for his debut CD, the Top 10 airplay Out of the Woodwork. In addition, the album was selected as a finalist for the 2007 Independent Music Awards’ (IMA) and ultimately won the IMA Vox Populi award. Both of his other previous releases were also great successes with Blatt’s Fibonacci’s Dream and The Color of Sunshine earning top spots on the ZMR charts and the Color of Sunshine winning the IMA Vox Populi award. All of Blatt’s music can be purchased online at CDbaby.com, Amazon.com, and digital download locations such as iTunes.
Blatt has studied under guitar players and recording artists such as Laurence Juber, Pierre Bensusan and Brian Gore. Following the technique used by those teachers, Blatt picks the strings using his fingertips rather than utilizing real or fake fingernails. Blatt uses both standard and open tunings on his guitars. Blatt also believes in “complete takes” when recording (rather than seeking perfection with patched-together solos), and does only minimal studio manipulation of the sound after it leaves his instrument.
Lawrence grew up initially in the Los Angeles-area (Van Nuys) through grade school, and then moved to Indiana, where he attended junior and senior high school. He began classical violin studies at age eight (immersed in Mozart, Bach, Mendelssohn and Bernard Heiden) which continued through his senior year (although Lawrence also played classical bass for several years and learned basic piano skills). While still in junior high, he became the youngest member of the Indianapolis Youth Symphony (conducted by Jackson Wiley). In addition, when Blatt was twelve, he began learning guitar, and over the next decade became a part of the Indiana folk scene as a singer-songwriter-guitarist while continuing to study classical music.
In high school, Blatt was influenced by singer-songwriters such as Neil Young, James Taylor, Cat Stevens, Carole King, Jesse Colin Young, Van Morrison, Dan Fogelberg, America and Boz Scaggs. Blatt went on to graduate from Indiana University where he studied both microbiology and music (Leonard Bernstein was on the adjunct faculty giving lectures and concerts). Lawrence’s musical interest expanded to include artists such as John Lee Hooker, Al Jarreau, Joe Jackson and Chicago. Blatt moved to Los Angeles and earned his MBA and a PhD degree in science (“it was something I enjoyed and had an aptitude for”), and listened to a lot of folk (Steve Earle, Steve Goodman, John Prine, Lyle Lovett) and jazz (Larry Carlton, Brandon Fields). Blatt went to Boulder, Colorado, for five years, began his “serious music career,” and delved deeply into finger-style playing. In addition to studying with Juber at this time, Blatt was influenced by other finger-pickers including Dave Wilcox, Leo Kottke, Will Ackerman, Michael Hedges, Ottmar Liebert and The Netherlands’ Harry Sacksioni. In 2001 Blatt moved to San Francisco (where he now lives) and started performing regularly, recording and studying intensely with Brian Gore.
Shortly after Blatt released his first CD, Out of the Woodwork, several tunes received airplay on John Rothman’s current-affairs nationally-syndicated radio program, and listener response and sales were immediate. The album went on to be one of the most-played albums in its genre on radio stations around the world for several months. The title tune was chosen to appear on the compilation CDs Care Packages (distributed to American troops in Iraq) and GOA Chill Zone. “Here We Go” was licensed to appear in a Tom Green film (“Shred II”); “Under the Sun” appeared on the CD No Cover’s Best New Bands; “Z Squared” was included on the Java for Javelins compilation; and “Keiki Lullaby” will be used on the PBS/Showtime-TV magazine show “This American Life.”
On his latest release Emergence, Blatt once again teamed up with Grammy-award winning producer Will Ackerman who helped to guide Lawrence through the recording process. Blatt’s ability to perform multiple parts on a guitar without overdubs is showcased on the tunes “Entering the East Gate” (influenced by Laurence Juber), “Illuminations’ and on the jazz inspired “A Promise in the Woods.” In addition to these single-guitar spotlights, Blatt also creates wondrous multiple-instrumental arrangements including full string ensembles on “Gare Du Nord” and “Say Hello Again” Blatt’s childhood passion for violin can be seen on the guitar violin duet pieces including the title track “Emergence” as well as on “The Place where Monarchs Go”, “Green Corn” and “Polonoye”.
As with all of his previous releases, Blatt explains that, “I didn’t set out to make an album of any particular genre. My music includes simple tunes, ones that are harmonically and rhythmically complex, some with a modern-sounding edge, and others with a mysterious quality and feeling that could have been written in the 18th century. As a solo instrumentalist, my guitar is my voice, and I have a lot I want to say.”
For further information please contact:
212.772.2050
917-916-2626