Pedro Eustache

Pedro Eustache
Background information
Born August 18, 1959
Origin Caracas, Venezuela
Genres Eclectic
Occupation(s) Musician
Instruments Woodwinds
Years active 37
Labels Gynook Productions Inc.
Website www.pedroflute.com

Pedro Eustache (Caracas born August 18, 1959), is a creative solo flautist - "World Music" woodwinds-reeds-wind synthesizers and composer with extensive academic studies and more than 35 years of professional experience. He has more than seven years of symphonic experience and a collection of around 600 instruments from all over the world, many of which having been created, built, designed, and/or modified by himself.

Biography

Education

Venezuelan-born [1] Pedro Eustache studied first in Venezuela under maestros Michel Eustache (his brother), Ernesto Santini, Antonio Jose Naranjo and Glenn Egner while becoming a member of maestro Jose Antonio Abreu's "Venezuelan Youth National Orchestra" (now known as El Sistema). Upon graduation, he received a scholarship from the Venezuelan government to study in Europe, at the Hector Berlioz Conservatoire and L'Ècole de Musique D'Asnières in Paris, France with maestros Raymond Guiot & Pierre-Yves Artaud, respectively, with advanced studies with maestro Aurèle Nicolet in Basel, Switzerland. He also has a M.F.A. in jazz from the California Institute of the Arts, U.S., where he studied with Dr. James Newton Jr. and Amiya Dasgupta, among other masters, and extensive studies in other music cultures of the world. These include Hindustani classical music and bansuri (North Indian bamboo flute) with Pandits Ravi Shankar and Hariprasad Chaurasia (Pedro is their only Latin-American disciple); Armenian duduk with maestro Djivan Gasparyan, Persian Ney with professor Houman Pourmehdi; classical Arabic music w/maestro Riadh El Fehri and Arabic Ney with Dr. Nabil Abdmouleh; Australian didgeridoo with David Hudson; the Chinese Xiao (trad. Chinese bamboo flute) and Japanese Shakuhachi with the late sensei Mazakazu Yoshizawa; Tunisian Mezoued with maestro Mustapha Ben Romdhane; & more recently in Jordan, Kawala [Middle Eastern oblique folk shepherds' flute] with master Nour Dhin and Arabic Nay with maestro Hamsa El Faqir, respectively, among many others.

Premiere

In Feb 2009 Eustache premiered as composer-soloist his "Suite Concertante for World Woodwinds & Symphony Orchestra"- performing on 21 solo Woodwinds Instruments—under the baton of his fellow-countryman Maestro Gustavo Dudamel, with his "Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar", Caracas, Venezuela.

Solo Concerts

Mr. Eustache performed a "Multidirectional Flute" solo concert (using more than 20 custom world flutes/woodwinds--uniquely developed electric flute, plus computer DAW accompanyment) at the prestigious Conservatoire National Supérieure de Musique et Danse de Paris-France [CNSM] invited by the extraordinary flute soloist, Prof. Sophie Cherrier, in Dec 10th. 2015.

He was the opening soloist of the 3rd. International Spanish Flute Convention "Gala concert", before world renown super-soloists Davide Formisano & Emmanuel Pahud, Seville 2014.

Mr Eustache was a featured soloist with the wind ensemble of the Samford University, under the baton of extraordinary soloist and conductor Demondrae Thurman, Birmingham Alabama, Oct. 2014.

In 2008 gave a solo Christmas concert at the biggest concert-hall in Beirut, Lebanon, the "Palais de L'UNESCO", under the aegis of the Mid. Eastern Bible Society [Lebanon], directed by Michel Bassous, and was one of the guests soloists invited by the Armenian government and Mr. Garik Israelian for the 6-hour long '80 years Anniversary Tribute-Concert' in honor of his duduk master, maestro Djivan Gasparyan, in Yerevan-Armenia. Both events have been widely broadcast in both countries-regions, respectively. In this same year he had his 'come-back' solo concert in his native Caracas, as a soloist & guest teacher for the '2nd. Caracas International Flute Festival', performing the C. Nielsen 'Concerto For Flute & Orchestra', conducted by the young dynamo Christian Vasquez and the "Simon Bolivar Youth Symphony Orchestra".

He has also performed and/or recorded as a featured soloist with the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, L'Orchestre Symphonique Du Bal de Vienne, Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar [principal solo flute ‘chair’ for three years], London Symphony Orchestra, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Venezuela Symphony Orchestra [first flute chair for two years], and the Caracas Symphonietta [founder & principal solo flute ‘chair’ for two years], among many others.

Recordings

As a studio musician, Mr. Eustache has become the first-call world-woodwinds soloist ’de facto’ for the recording studios scene in L.A., having done a large number of studio sessions for movies as a flute/woodwinds instrumentalist --- including being the main world woodwinds soloist for Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ soundscore, written by John Debney.

He was the featured flute, duduk, King bansuri and piccolo soloist in the 2005 Grammy-Award winning Concert For George memorial concert. He won the 2007 Film & TV Music Award for Best Instrumental Performance by a Soloist in a Film or Television Score category for his work in Hans Zimmer's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.

Film scores

He played Middle-Eastern flutes, reeds and Armenian duduk featured in Steven Spielberg's Munich (nominated for both the 2006 Oscars & the 49th. Grammy Awards for 'Best Soundscore'), composed and conducted by Maestro John Williams, as well as King Kenacho & Bs. Persian Ney in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”. He also soloed extensively in Middle-Eastern woodwinds & duduk with the London Symphony Orchestra in the film, The Body. Other film soundtracks include "Kung Fu Panda", "American Gangster", "Rendition", "David & Fatima", "Body Of Lies", "Don't Mess with The Zohan", "Syriana", "The Village", "Blood Diamond", "King Kong", "Tropic Thunder", "The Tale Of Despereaux", "The Stoning Of Soraya M.", "The Mummy 3", "Beverly Hills Chihuahua", among many other.

Collaborations

His world flutes and woodwinds solos are also featured with several artists, including Sir Paul McCartney with the song Jenny Wren, and a duet with in his Chaos and Creation in the Backyard single CDs, and Growing Up Falling Down from his Fine Line single CD. For ten years was the principal flute of Yanni Orchestra. He was a featured soloist in the 2005 Grammy-award winner “Concert For George”, playing for the first time ever the Armenian duduk in a traditional Indian classical music setting, as a member of India’s living legend, his teacher, Pandit Ravi Shankar.

He collaborated in 2014 Persian traditional music album Beyond Any Form.[2]

Game scores

Pedro is also featured prominently in computer games' soundtracks World Of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, a multiplayer title with over 9 million subscribers worldwide (with composers Matt Uelmen, Russell Brower, and Derek Duke), and Sony's "Lair" (by composer John Debney).

Other performances

Mr Eustache was a featured performer [South-American woodwinds, Afro-Venezuelan percussion] in Mtro. Gustavo Dudamel's "Libertador" orchestral suite, with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in the "Noche de Cine" concert special, July 30th 2014. L.A.Times review of this concert

He has been the woodwinds featured soloist with Yanni orchestra since 1995, most recently during the 2003-2004 Ethnicity and 2005 Yanni Live! tours, and appears on several of his live music videos including Yanni Live at Royal Albert Hall, Tribute, and Yanni Live! The Concert Event.

He is the featured flute, sax & world winds soloist with extraordinary Persian-pop diva Googoosh since 2000 to present.

Other recordings, tours and/or performances include jazz flautist/composer extraordinaire Dr. James Newton, Armenian composer/keyboardist Ara Gevorgian, Indian young luminary Anoushka Shankar, as well as in several international Christian crusades with evangelist Luis Palau, Pastor Benny Hinn & in various events with his spiritual father, Pastor Jack Hayford.

Eustache was brass section leader (tenor saxophone), for the Inside Job U.S. West-Coast tour for multiple Grammy-winner singer-songwriter Don Henley. He was also house band member for Edward James Olmos' Americanos Concert with Latin Superstars Cachao Lopez, Gloria Estefan, Paquito D'Rivera, José Feliciano, Juan Luis Guerra, Sheila E., among others, held at the Kennedy Center, Washington D.C., for the PBS Presents series.

Personal collection

He has a collection of around 600 instruments from all over the world, including unique/custom woodwinds, and traditional world flute-based 3D printed Boehm flute headjoints prototypes--designed, modified &/or built by himself-- as well as other strings, percussion and electronic (analogue Eurorack-modular vintage wind synth & digital) & DAW/computer-based.

Teaching

As an educator, and lecturer. Mr. Eustache was invited--to great acclaim--by great flute soloist, Prof. Sophie Cherrier, to give a masterclass-conference ("The Multidirectional Flute") and a solo concert (with DAW assistance) at the prestigious Conservatoire National Supérieure de Musique et Danse de Paris-France [CNSM] in Dec 10th. 2015.

Invited by the great soloist Vicens Pratts--solo chair at the Paris Symphony, president of the National Association of Flautists of Spain, and a former co-disciple of Mtro. Aurèle Nicolet--He gave lectures & masterclasses in improvisation, world music flutes, and more, at the 3rd. International Spanish Flute Convention, in Seville 2014.

He was an artist-in-residence at the prestigious Samford University, teaching master-classes in music fundamentals, musical aesthetics, western classical performance, jazz improvisation, and world music winds, by Dr. K. Fousse, Birmingham Alabama, in Oct 2014.

Mr Eustache has also taught Classical western flute in the Venezuelan National Youth Symphony's Conservatory, the Children's Orchestra Conservatory; Jazz flute in 1993-95 at the California Institute of the Arts, & more recently [in 2008], in a renewed connection with his native country, 'Introduction to Music Technology', 'Improvisation for Non-Improvisers' Parts I & II & 'World Music I: Introduction to The Classical Music of North India' [extension courses] at the Instituto Universitario de Estudios Musicales IUDEM, as well as flute master classes at the FESNOJIV headquarter building in Caracas, Venezuela.

Current

He is involved in researching, designing/modifying and building one-of-a-kind custom wind instruments as well as heavy involvement in applying computer-based audio digital technologies (the last two solo CD projects have been produced, recorded, arranged, engineered, and mixed by him in DAW-based systems).

Discography

As a Soloist:

References

  1. ↑ "Estampas/El Universal"
  2. ↑ "“Neither Angel Nor Devil Am I” Released". Cultural Heritage News Agency. August 12, 2014. Retrieved October 19, 2014.

External links

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