about
The Olson/De Cari Duo, a husband-and-wife ensemble, is dedicated to performing and expanding the repertoire for classical guitar and voice. Their unique and intimate approach to song performance comes from soprano Gioia De Cari’s background as both a film/theater actor and a classical singer, and guitarist John Olson’s sensitive and intelligent approach to both new and traditional repertoire. NYlon Review described a recent performance as “superb … served up with style and elegance.”
They recently released their debut CD, Quiet Songs, which features the world premiere recording of David Leisner’s song cycle Outdoor Shadows, as well as the first American recordings of John W. Duarte’s Five Quiet Songs and his arrangements of Gershwin songs. According to Urban Guitar, “fresh interpretations … make this a CD worth listening to.” The Duo has performed throughout the United States at venues and series that include the MIT Chapel Concert Series, The Monkey in New York City, and the Hamptons Guitar Festival.
The Olson/De Cari Duo is actively creating new music for voice and guitar through their Science/Music Commissioning Project, which seeks to further public understanding and appreciation of science by exploring the process of scientific discovery, celebrating the insights of a science-informed worldview, and illuminating the human side of science through song. The Project’s first commission, Abyss of the Stars: A Mass for Voice and Guitar, was written by noted composer Terry Champlin, faculty member at Mannes College of Music and Vassar College. The piece sets texts by renowned scientists Albert Einstein, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and Richard Feynman in the context of the traditional mass. The juxtaposition of these texts alongside the Latin words of the mass highlights the sense of wonder and celebration that accompanies the scientific understanding of physical laws, human origins, and the evolution of the cosmos.
Read an interview with the Olson/De Cari Duo at Urban Guitar.
John Olson is a guitarist, research scientist, and President of the New York City Classical Guitar Society. As a guitarist, he has performed across the United States in solo performances and in duet with his wife, soprano Gioia De Cari. He has studied with David Leisner of the Manhattan School of Music and Benjamin Verdery of Yale University, and has performed in masterclasses with William Kanengiser, David Tanenbaum, Raphaella Smits and others. He has also studied organ and baroque performance practice with experts such as Rick Erickson of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in New York City. John recently performed an unprecented all-Bach recital in which he performed in three capacities: as guitar soloist, as organist, and as song accompanist. His repertoire ranges from baroque to modern, and his playing has been described as “elegant” by NYlon Review.
As President of the New York City Classical Guitar Society, John has revitalized the organization and made it a thriving and central part of the city’s classical guitar community. Under his leadership, the Society has presented a diverse series of world-class guitarists and emerging artists in educational presentations at monthly forums, presented sold-out performances in one of New York City’s major guitar concert series, and helped establish a new monthly series in an intimate salon venue. In addition, John has designed and overseen the publication of the Society’s first book publication, A Tribute to Gene Bertoncini.
As a scientist, John has performed research in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries for fifteen years. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, as one of the top five students in his graduating class of 5,000, and went on to receive his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, performing groundbreaking research in the use of mutational analysis to explore protein structure/function relationships. John has published research in Science and other leading publications and is a frequent speaker at scientific conferences. He currently leads a research group using genomics technologies in drug discovery for cancer, diabetes and respiratory diseases.
John performs with Gioia De Cari as the Olson/De Cari Duo, an ensemble dedicated to performing and expanding the repertoire for classical guitar and voice. They recently released their debut CD, Quiet Songs, which features the world premiere recording of David Leisner’s song cycle Outdoor Shadows, as well as the first American recordings of John W. Duarte’s Five Quiet Songs and his arrangements of Gershwin songs. According to Urban Guitar, “fresh interpretations … make this a CD worth listening to.” The Duo has performed throughout the United States at venues and series that include the MIT Chapel Concert Series, The Monkey in New York City, and the Hamptons Guitar Festival. They are actively creating new music for voice and guitar through their Science/Music Commissioning Project, which seeks, through new music commissions, to further the public understanding of science by exploring the process of scientific discovery, celebrating the insights of a science-informed worldview, and illuminating the human side of science through song. The Project’s first commission, Abyss of the Stars: A Mass for Voice and Guitar, was written by noted composer Terry Champlin, faculty member at Mannes College and Vassar College. The piece sets texts by renowned scientists Albert Einstein, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and Richard Feynman in the context of the traditional mass. The juxtaposition of these texts alongside the Latin words of the mass highlights the sense of wonder and celebration that accompanies the scientific understanding of physical laws, human origins, and the evolution of the cosmos.
The passionately eclectic Gioia De Cari is an actress, playwright, classical singer and published ex-mathematician. She began her performance career in avant garde opera while a teaching fellow in mathematical logic at Harvard University. Since then, she has played numerous leading acting roles in theater, commercials and films, including the multi-award winning film Lower East Side Stories, which screened at the MOMA, Slamdance, and many festivals both in the United States and internationally.
An accomplished classical singer as well as an actress, Gioia released her debut album, Quiet Songs, with her husband, classical guitarist John Olson, in 2006. They have toured and concertized throughout the United States.
Gioia’s first solo play, The 9th Envelope, which she wrote and performed, received a rave in the OOBR: “De Cari commanded the stage with energy, poise and range.” Her second solo, Truth Values: One Girl’s Romp Through MIT’s Male Math Maze, an autobiographical story of her past life as a mathematician, premiered in New York City in May, 2008, at the Six Figures Theatre Company’s Artists of Tomorrow Festival and the Emerging Artists One Woman Standing Festival.
Gioia has studied voice with Irene Gubrud, Edward Sayegh of the American Conservatory Theatre and Robert Honeysucker of the Boston Conservatory. She has studied acting with the legendary teacher and solo show director Wynn Handman, with whom she did extensive development of Truth Values. Gioia has also studied playwriting with Milan Stitt of Carnegie Mellon. After graduating summa cum laude from the University of California, Berkeley, she earned a master of science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, publishing original mathematical research.