ABOUT

Brad DeRoche is an active concert artist, appearing as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral soloist.  His repertoire spans from Renaissance lute pieces to modern works by living composers.  Throughout his career, he has been drawn to dramatic, lyrical, and virtuosic music; with the works of Bach and Spanish composers ever present in his concert programs.  He has recently become a recording artist for the Centaur Records label, with “Serenata Espanola: Spanish Guitar Classics” as his first release. 

He is a graduate of the prestigious Eastman School of Music where he holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Classical Guitar Performance, studying under Nicholas Goluses.  In addition to his degrees, he participated in many masterclasses with prominent concert guitarists including David Russell, Raphaëlla Smits, Paul Galbraith, Fabio Zanon, Denis Azabagic, Scott Tennant, and many others.

He has premiered several new works including a solo composition written for him by Prix de Rome prizewinner Vincent Frohne. He has performed, taught, or presented seminars at the Eastman Guitar Festival, the Las Vegas Guitar Festival, the Alexandria Guitar Festival, the Cleveland International Guitar Festival, and others.  Additionally, he served as the Artistic Director of the Interlochen Classical Guitar Workshop and the Michigan Classical Guitar Workshop.

As an educator, Dr. DeRoche teaches guitar, guitar ensemble, music history, and music theory courses.  He is chair of the music department at Delta College and has directed the guitar programs at Central Michigan University, Saginaw Valley State University, and the Interlochen Arts Academy, Arts Camp, and Adult Arts Camps.  In 2017 he won the Bergstein Award for Teaching Excellence, the highest award given to a faculty member at Delta College, and in 2020 won the Barstow-Frevel Award for Scholarly Achievement.   In addition to his collegiate teaching, he has adjudicated various music competitions including the James Stroud Classical Guitar Competition in Cleveland, OH.

Dr. DeRoche has enjoyed a wide variety of activities in his professional life.  In addition to being a performer and educator, he and his brother owned and operated the successful online retail business “Strings By Mail.”  In 2015 he wrote a music appreciation textbook titled “An Introduction to Art Music” published by Kendall-Hunt, and serves as the Publication Reviews Editor for the scholarly journal Soundboard. He is a founding member of the Mid-Michigan Classical Guitar Society, an active local group nearing its tenth season.  Dr. DeRoche frequently gives presentations to various organizations on scholarly topics related to music history, guitar performance and technique, performance anxiety, and other related subjects.  He also serves on the board of trustees for the Guitar Foundation of America, an organization that promotes the classical guitar nationally and internationally.  Dr. DeRoche is passionate about the classical guitar and has dedicated himself to the beauty and artistry of this fine instrument and its repertoire. 

Here is a link to an interview on Meet the Artist:

https://meettheartist.online/2023/02/13/brad-deroche-guitarist/

About My Guitars

My primary instrument is made by Matthias Dammann (Germany, 1996). It is a lovely cedar-top guitar with a dark, velvety sound that projects very well. It is responsive to slightest touch and offers unlimited color and nuance. It is truly a remarkable instrument! I have been playing Dammann guitars since the mid 1990’s, and have owned this particular guitar since 1999. My other guitar is relatively new to me, and completely different than the Dammann. It is made by Bertrand Ligier (France, 2023) and has a European spruce top. It is beautiful, full and rich sounding, with an earthy, harp-like quality to the sound. Both of these guitars are as beautiful and wonderful as anyone could ever hope for, and I am fortunate to be their caretaker!

I have owned many guitars and wished I could have kept them all, but time only allows for me to regularly play a couple of instruments. Some of the guitars I’ve owned in the past included: Matthias Dammann, Andreas Kirchner, Antonio Marin, Paco Santiago Marin, Robert Ruck, Daniel Friederich, Darragh O’Connell, Paulino Bernabe, Jose Ramirez, Manuel Velazquez, among others.

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