Michael Fogler, Guitarist
SPECIALIZING IN CLASSICAL PERFORMANCES AND INSTRUCTION.
A native of North Carolina, Michael spent his college years majoring in guitar performance at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with summer studies at the North Carolina School for the Arts in Winston-Salem. At UNC, Michael studied with David Barison, a former student of Alexander LaGoya; and at the North Carolina School for Arts, he studied with a renowned Segovia protégé from Mexico, Jesus Silva. Silva had been personal friends with Segovia and the guitar composers Heitor Villa-Lobos and Manuel Ponce. In 1976, Michael graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in guitar performance from UNC.
From 1976-1978, Michael earned his Master’s Degree in guitar performance from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, where he served as graduate assistant with Bruce Holzman.
During his college time, Michael performed in a number of masterclasses with world-renowned players including Oscar Ghiglia (at the Aspen Music Festival during the summer of 1977 and at other times), Eduardo Fernandez, Eliot Fisk, Robert Guthrie, Manuel Barrueco, and many others. Michael considers Oscar Ghiglia to be the guitarist who has influenced him in the most profound ways musically.
Since moving to Kentucky, Michael has been an active solo and chamber music performer, and a college faculty member. Michael has taught for the University of Kentucky and 3 other smaller colleges in the Lexington area.
For a number of years, Michael was a performer with a professional voice and guitar duo with soprano Margaret Kennedy. This duo performed for the annual Guitar Foundation of America Festival among many other venues. In addition, Michael has performed with numerous music faculty at the University of Kentucky involving guitar with violin, flute, cello, and bassoon. He has also performed Romancero Gitano for guitar and chorus by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco with the professional choral group of the region, the Lexington Chamber Chorale.
The LEXINGTON GUITAR TRIO is a major priority these days. This exciting new ensemble has performed in several states, won a top prize in a rare national chamber guitar competition, and produced its first CD. Its competition triumph was being a finalist and third-place winner of the Mid-America Chamber Guitar Competition at the Festival by the same name held in the Chicago area in March of 2003. Original members Duane Corn and Michael Fogler have recently been joined by Dennis Davis, guitar professor at Eastern Kentucky University.
There are recent activities of note. Michael has begun playing with Lexington Philharmonic flutist, Merrilee Elliott, a most gratifying musical collaboration. And, Michael was recently selected to be on the Kentucky Arts Council's Performing Artist Directory.
After playing a 1976 Kohno for 31 years, Michael now plays a 2007 Jose Marin Plazuelo. (See the links "Changing Updates!" and "Photos" for more about this.)