(Photo courtesy of Sunriver Music Festival)
There is no other flamenco group in the world with a sound quite like this! The band gets its name from the writings of Federico García Lorca who describes art and the creative process as something that requires risk-taking and danger, dancing on the “rim of the well” with the ever-present possibility of the plunge. Rim of the Well duo performs a unique brand of Flamenco Fusion featuring the unusual timbral combination of guitar and marimba. They perform original compositions by Steve Mullins derived primarily from Spanish Flamenco, but with Eastern European, Latin American, jazz, classical, and other influences.
Internationally-renowned marimba and vibraphone artist Doug Walter has been with Sunriver Music Festival since nearly its beginning, making this special concert the perfect way to launch the Festival’s 50th Golden Anniversary Season.
Versatile percussionist DR. DOUGLAS WALTER has developed an excellent international reputation as a marimba and vibraphone artist in both the classical and jazz fields. The only keyboard mallet artist to win a first place prize in the Concert Artists Guild Competition in New York City, Walter has performed over 300 solo recitals and concerti at Carnegie Recital Hall in NYC, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, England, France, Greece, Lithuania, Norway, Switzerland, Ukraine, and 40 states throughout the U.S. He is emeritus Director of Percussion, Drum Set & Jazz Vibraphone Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, working with undergraduate thru DMA percussion students from around the world.
Walter’s achievements in the jazz world include the North Texas State University recording, LAB 75, the first university recording nominated for a Grammy award, the Keystick Duo (vibes and piano), The Modest Jazz Trio (vibes, bass, guitar), and Jazz Asylum (University of Colorado faculty jazz quintet). His unique solo improvisations on the marimba and vibes have received accolades from both musicians and the general public. Dr. Walter studied jazz with David Samuels, David Baker, and Gary Burton.
An accomplished orchestral musician, Dr. Walter has performed with the Dallas, Santa Fe Opera, Fort Worth, Oregon, Colorado Ballet, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, and Boulder Philharmonic Symphony Orchestras, and the Colorado Music Festival, among others. He has toured for 20+ years with the Westminster Brass.
He graduated from the University of North Texas with a double degree in music education and music theory, studied with Charles Owen during his two masters degrees at the University of Michigan, and Alan Abel while he earned his doctorate from Temple University. As director of percussion studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Dr. Walter taught undergraduate through doctoral students from around the world and directed the marimba and percussion ensembles. A Yamaha Artist Clinician since 1986, Doug Walter endorses Encore Mallets & Sabian Cymbals.
DR. STEVEN MULLINS is an accomplished composer, multi-instrumentalist, and ethnomusicologist. He is on the faculty of the college of music at the University of Colorado where he earned his doctorate in ethnomusicology. His doctoral dissertation Flamenco Gestures: Musical Meaning in Motion, delves into aesthetics in Spanish flamenco.
Mullins has performed as guitarist with a number of well-known flamenco artists including Chuscales, Marisol Moreno, Rene Heredia, Jeanette Trujillo, Lia Ochoa, Sali Gutierrez, Maria Vasquez, Daniel Pelegrino, Mina Fajardo, Juan del Valle, Jesus Muñoz, and Pablo Rodarte.
Steve has been featured in a cover story in World Rhythm Magazine and has been a columnist for Mandolin Magazine since its inception in 1999. His compositions have been heard in settings as diverse as television commercials, documentaries, national public radio, silent movies, multi-media flamenco shows, and dancing horse performances at the National Western stock show. He has performed with the Colorado Music Festival orchestra, the Boulder Philharmonic, the Longmont Symphony, Denver Brass, and the Boulder Maher Festival Orchestra.
Dr. Mullins has received numerous grants and commissions to compose for dance productions and other events, including a flamenco suite for orchestra, and has performed in Mexico, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and throughout the United States, including performances at the Newman Center, the Lincoln Center, Boettcher Concert Hall, Chautauqua Auditorium, and the Arvada Center. He is also the author of the first-ever banjola instruction book.
Sunriver Music Festival is thrilled to open its 50th Golden Anniversary Season with this extraordinary and unexpected musical partnership. The vibrant rhythms of flamenco guitar paired with the rich, resonant sounds of marimba promise an evening unlike any other in the Festival’s history. Get your tickets today at sunrivermusic.org for Saturday, September 19 to experience RIM OF THE WELL – a bold celebration of music, creativity, and the spirit of taking artistic risks that has inspired the Festival for 50 years.
RIM OF THE WELL Concert
Saturday, September 19, 7pm | Sunriver Christian Fellowship, 18139 Cottonwood
Featuring Steve Mullins, flamenco guitar and Doug Walter, marimba.
Tickets at sunrivermusic.org or by calling 541-593-1084.
Sunriver Music Festival is a year-round nonprofit presenting world-class orchestral performances and supporting music education throughout Central Oregon. Through a commitment to excellence, collaboration and innovation, the Festival seeks to foster a lifelong love of classical music in its many diverse forms.