James Crabb
Encyclopedia
James Crabb, is a classical accordion
player.
Scottish born James Crabb is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading ambassadors of the classical accordion. He studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen
with classical accordion pioneer Mogens Ellegaard and was awarded the Carl Nielsen Music Prize, Denmark
in 1991. In 2008 he was awarded the Fredriksborg Culture Centre's Artist Prize.
James’ acclaimed London debut in 1992 launched him on to the concert platform and critics internationally have praised him for his breathtaking virtuosity and versatile musicianship. Since then he has performed worldwide as soloist with orchestras and ensembles including the BBC Symphony Orchestra
, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Sydney and Melbourne Symphonies, the Philharmonia
, the London Philharmonic Orchestra
, the London Symphony Orchestra
, The Hallé
, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the London Sinfonietta
, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
, the Paragon and Nash Ensemble
s.
His solo, chamber music and concerto repertoire ranges from original contemporary works, frequently commissioning new works and collaborating with composers, to transcriptions from Baroque through to the 21st Century, Tango Nuevo and folk music. He also performs and directs chamber orchestras from the instrument with amongst others, the Scottish Ensemble, Northern Sinfonia, English and Irish Chamber Orchestras, Kuhmo Virtuosi and Camerata Salzbug. James has also worked extensively with the Australian Chamber Orchestra.
James’ great passion and acclaimed authority for the music of Astor Piazzolla has been highlighted by several concert performances with the original members of Piazzolla’s own quintet along with two highly acclaimed recordings, one as soloist and arranger with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the second with Richard Tognetti and the quintet named Tango Jam. In 2005 he directed from the accordion Piazzolla’s Maria de Buenos Aires at the Royal Danish Opera. A selection of James' acclaimed solo arrangements of Piazzolla's music was published in 2009 by Boosey & Hawkes.
James has recorded with his accordion duo colleague Geir Draugsvoll for EMI Classics transcriptions of Stravinsky’s Petrouchka and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. This duo performs regularly worldwide and collaborates frequently with the Tero Saarinen Dance Company from Finland.
He has been professor of classical accordion at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen since 1995 and has held a long-standing guest professorship at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz, Austria. He regularly gives master-classes at music institutions worldwide.
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
player.
Scottish born James Crabb is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading ambassadors of the classical accordion. He studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
with classical accordion pioneer Mogens Ellegaard and was awarded the Carl Nielsen Music Prize, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
in 1991. In 2008 he was awarded the Fredriksborg Culture Centre's Artist Prize.
James’ acclaimed London debut in 1992 launched him on to the concert platform and critics internationally have praised him for his breathtaking virtuosity and versatile musicianship. Since then he has performed worldwide as soloist with orchestras and ensembles including the BBC Symphony Orchestra
BBC Symphony Orchestra
The BBC Symphony Orchestra is the principal broadcast orchestra of the British Broadcasting Corporation and one of the leading orchestras in Britain.-History:...
, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra is a broadcasting symphony orchestra based in Glasgow, Scotland. One of five full-time orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation , it is the oldest full-time professional orchestra in Scotland...
, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Sydney and Melbourne Symphonies, the Philharmonia
Philharmonia
The Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
, the London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Orchestra
The London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...
, the London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
, The Hallé
The Hallé
The Hallé is a symphony orchestra based in Manchester, England. It is the UK's oldest extant symphony orchestra , supports a choir, youth choir and a youth orchestra, and releases its recordings on its own record label, though it has occasionally released recordings on Angel Records and EMI...
, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the London Sinfonietta
London Sinfonietta
The London Sinfonietta is an English chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble specialises in contemporary music and works across a wide range of genres, performing modern classics alongside world premieres, and includes music by electronica artists as well as folk and...
, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group is a chamber orchestra based in Birmingham, England. BCMG specialises in the performance of new and contemporary music. BCMG performs regularly at the CBSO Centre and Symphony Hall in Birmingham...
, the Paragon and Nash Ensemble
Nash Ensemble
The Nash Ensemble of London is an acclaimed English chamber ensemble. It was founded by Artistic Director Amelia Freedman in 1964, while she was a student at the Royal Academy of Music, and was named after the Nash Terraces around the Academy...
s.
His solo, chamber music and concerto repertoire ranges from original contemporary works, frequently commissioning new works and collaborating with composers, to transcriptions from Baroque through to the 21st Century, Tango Nuevo and folk music. He also performs and directs chamber orchestras from the instrument with amongst others, the Scottish Ensemble, Northern Sinfonia, English and Irish Chamber Orchestras, Kuhmo Virtuosi and Camerata Salzbug. James has also worked extensively with the Australian Chamber Orchestra.
James’ great passion and acclaimed authority for the music of Astor Piazzolla has been highlighted by several concert performances with the original members of Piazzolla’s own quintet along with two highly acclaimed recordings, one as soloist and arranger with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the second with Richard Tognetti and the quintet named Tango Jam. In 2005 he directed from the accordion Piazzolla’s Maria de Buenos Aires at the Royal Danish Opera. A selection of James' acclaimed solo arrangements of Piazzolla's music was published in 2009 by Boosey & Hawkes.
James has recorded with his accordion duo colleague Geir Draugsvoll for EMI Classics transcriptions of Stravinsky’s Petrouchka and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. This duo performs regularly worldwide and collaborates frequently with the Tero Saarinen Dance Company from Finland.
He has been professor of classical accordion at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen since 1995 and has held a long-standing guest professorship at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz, Austria. He regularly gives master-classes at music institutions worldwide.