ACOUSTIC ARTISANS opening soon I am excited to announce the opening of a second studio in the center of the Arts District in downtown Portland Maine. The new location will be at One Forest Ave. - At the corner of Forest Ave and Congress St. Acoustic Artisans will be a collaboration with Conley Guitars. Our workshops and retail space will be located in this beautifully renovated building. We will also offer a range of teaching workshops in violin, guitar and mandolin making as well as seminars on varnishing, design and other subjects related to acoustic instrument making. We are currently planning to open by August 1, 2008. Please visit our website at www.acousticartisans.com for updates as we progress. www.acousticartisans.com www.conleyguitars.com Made In Maine On May 26th, “Made in Maine,” a PBS series, aired an episode covering instrument making in our great state. Jon is filmed and interviewed in his shop by fiddler Frank Ferrell. Watch Jon’s Segment. Click below to view a clip! View Segment 1 (10M) View Segment 2 (8M) Strings Magazine Feature Strings Magazine just featured Jon’s five string viola in its June/July issue. Erin Shrader dubbed the instrument, “Twice as Nice: A single instrument for players of both violin and viola.” Read the article. Also check out “Something New...How to chose a contemporary instrument.” The article includes a great picture of Jon at work in his studio. Read the article. www.stringsmagazine.com Daniel Pearl Violins Awarded The Daniel Pearl Memorial Violins were awarded to two deserving young fiddlers this July at the 2006 Mark O’Connor Strings Conference in San Diego, California. The instruments are passed along each year to active musicians in hopes that their music will cross borders and open listeners’ hearts and minds to progress towards peace. Jonathan would ultimately like to have an entire string quartet of his instruments dedicated to this wonderful purpose. If you are interested in commissioning a viola or cello, please contact Lauren at cooperviolins@mac.com The 2006 recipients are Phoebe Hunt from Austin, Texas, and brothers John and James Abrams from Kingston, Ontario. www.jcooperviolinmaker.com/instrument_gallery/daniel.asp www.danielpearl.org Phoebe Hunt Awarded DPMV Phoebe Hunt grew up in Austin, participating in Suzuki music programs such as the String Project at UT Austin as well as the Austin Youth Orchestra and TMEA (Texas Music Educators Association).  Currently, she teaches Suzuki violin at the Austin Montessori School.  Phoebe is enrolled at University of Texas at Austin where she is currently studying History, Spanish, and Music.  Phoebe will graduate from UT this December with a history degree, and she plans to spend her time playing music.  Phoebe believes that her participation at the Mark O’Connor Fiddle camp has changed her musical life.  She says “I have never been so inspired on my instrument.  This camp offered me a chance to learn fiddle styles that she didn’t even know exist.  I sat in a class where Johnny Gimble taught Charlie Parker’s blues head ‘Elevation’ and the classic swing tune ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’ just one hour before I sat in a class with my fiddle held against the heel of my foot, and learned how the violin is used in the improvisational music style of India.”  At the end of the camp, Phoebe was humbled by the award of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Fiddle.  She was brought to tears when Mark O’Connor awarded her the fiddle at the closing concert.  “I didn’t know why they would choose me, a classical violinist who knows very little about fiddling.”  Although she is new to the fiddle world, she is confident about one thing.  She believes the fiddle is a symbol of peace.  When asked about her feelings about the award she said “This fiddle has led me to a realization that I believe every musician comes to at one point or another:  Music is the one pure force that can bridge the differences between people.  When music is played, race, gender, and religion can all be overlooked.  Without saying a word, two people who speak different languages can find a deep connection through a single note.  This truth is obvious at a camp where so many different styles of music are interwoven without words.” John and James Abrams awarded DPMV The Abrams Brothers have been touring around the world with their bluegrass gospel band and earning praise everywhere they perform, whether at an acclaimed venue or a street corner in Switzerland. John Abrams, 16, is already a seasoned musician. He started violin at the age of 8, and also plays mandolin and sings lead and harmony vocals in his family band. James Abrams, 13, began fiddle lessons at the age of 6, and is a natural on stage. Like his brother, James also plays mandolin and sings vocals when performing with their bluegrass gospel band, comprised of three generations of Abrams men. The boys cite the the gift of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin as an honor and one of the most meaningful moments since they started playing music. www.theabramsbrothers.ca Job Opportunity Jon is looking for a trained instrument maker with two to three years of experience to work as his assistant with him in the shop. Please send your resume to 61 Middle Jam Road Gorham, Maine 04038. Any questions please call the shop (207.893.1866) or email Jon. jcooper@maine.rr.com Daniel Pearl Violins Awarded The Daniel Pearl Memorial Violins were awarded to two deserving young fiddlers this July at the 2005 Mark O’Connor Strings Conference in San Diego, California. A second violin was anonymously commissioned in hopes that its music would cross borders and open listeners’ hearts and minds to progress towards peace. Jonathan would ultimately like to have an entire string quartet of his instruments dedicated to this wonderful purpose. The 2005 recipients are Alex Hargreaves from Oregon, and Samantha Robichaud from New Brunswick, Canada. www.jcooperviolinmaker.com/instrument_gallery/daniel.asp Alex Hargreaves Awarded DPMV Alex Hargreaves has been playing violin and fiddle music for more than nine years. Along the way, he has studied a wide variety of string music styles including classical, jazz, bluegrass, newgrass, Scottish, Texas style, and western swing. A boundless enthusiasm and open minded approach to string music has led Alex to pursue musical study from a wide variety of mentors, in an array of settings including the Mark O'Connor Strings Conference; as well as many others. Although his main instrument is violin, he aspires to be a multi-instrumentalist and has been studying the mandolin, piano and guitar, as well as singing in a choir. As a classical player, Alex has performed as concert master with the Willamette Chamber Orchestra, and as a guest soloist. “I can't believe how many times I've started jamming with someone I don't really know, and then suddenly it feels like we're best friends. I can't think of a better way to bring people together than through music." Alex Hargreaves in regards to his responsibility as an ambassador of peace. www.alexhargreaves.net Samantha Robichaud Awarded DPMV Over the course of her 12 year career, Maritime fiddler Samantha Robichaud has earned over 200 awards and is classed as one of Canada’s best. Samantha has demonstrated a strong love for all styles of music, enriching her deep Acadian roots fiddle playing. Her drive to perfect her own unique feel and style has also been influenced through classical training. Samantha is Principal of the second violin section in the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra. In June of 2003 Sam played with the Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in New York City. www.samantharobichaud.ca New Addition: Lauren Rioux, a violinist and violist began representing Jon in March of 2005. Lauren grew up in Downeast Maine and moved to Gorham to attend the University of Southern Maine as a music major. Her primary teachers include Ronald Lantz of the Portland String Quartet and Graybert Beacham of the Nordica Trio. Lauren is now a private studio teacher with over thirty violin and viola students and serves on the Maine chapter of the American String Teachers Association as president-elect. She performs professionally with the Obligato Violin Duo and the Chronic Drifters String Band. Lauren loves to play unaccompanied Bach Partitas, anything by Brahms, and Bluegrass, Cape Breton, and Old Time fiddle styles. Her job includes working with Jon on publicity, sales, editing the website, and just about everything else that needs doing! Please write to Lauren about playing a Cooper instrument today. cooperviolins@mac.com Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin Kailin Yong, 2004 recipient of the Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin, and the Boulder Acoustical Society have composed a new piece of music dedicated to the memory of the former Wall Street journalist. “Karma,” written for acoustic quartet and symphony orchestra includes elements of free improvisation, world music, and the western classical tradition. The piece premiered on May 15th in a concert with the Boulder Youth Symphony Orchestra. Students of BYSO were taught to reach beyond their expectations of orchestra music and asked to speak a mantra calling, “Peace, For Humanity, Through Music.” Shouts out to Kailin and BAS! www.boulderacousticsociety.net The Portland String Quartet The Portland String Quartet recently performed on an unmatched quartet of Cooper instruments at the benefit for their 2005 Colby Workshop. Audience members were delighted by performances of Mozart, Walton, Mendolssohn, and thrilled by a particularly fabulous rendition of Andante cantabile from the opus 11 Tchaikovsky. www.portlandstringquartet.org American String Teachers Association National Convention Jon and Lauren attended the busy American String Teachers Association National Convention in Reno, Nevada, hosting a booth showcasing Jon's violins, violas, cellos, in addition to his latest and greatest, the 5-string viola!  His instruments were a hit among educators and performers, as well as other exhibitors.  (Many of the clinicians and attendees already use Jon’s instruments-Darol Anger, Jesus Florido, Mark O’Connor, Lauren Rioux, Susan Oden, Kailin Yong, Fred Carpenter). Thanks to everyone who stopped by and visited us.  We’ll see you again next March in Kansas City. www.astaweb.com