Hailed by The New Yorker as a “first-rate, versatile musician”, guitarist Kyle Sanna’s musical practice includes composition, improvisation, the recording studio, coding, and the traditional music of Ireland. His compositions have been performed at Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie, the Royal Opera House in Oman, Sydney’s ABC studios, the National Recital Hall in Taipei, New York’s Carnegie Hall, and many points between. Kyle Sanna has received commissions from Brooklyn Rider, The Knights, Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, Palaver Strings, Beta Collide, soprano Danielle Birrittella, and flutist Alex Sopp. His music appeared on the 2022 PBS documentary “The U.S. and the Holocaust” by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick, and Sarah Botstein. Kyle Sanna has arranged music for Béla Fleck, Jan Vogler, Anne-Sofie Von Otter, Martin Hayes, The Amsterdam Sinfonietta, and for Yo-Yo Ma on two Grammy Award-winning albums: 2010’s “Songs of Joy and Peace” and 2016’s “Sing Me Home” with Silkroad. His arrangements have appeared on The Colbert Report, NPR’s Performance Today, and on the Sony Classical, Sony Masterworks, In a Circle, and Naïve labels. In addition to his composing and arranging, Sanna performs regularly as an improvising guitarist with Kinan Azmeh’s CityBand and Ground Patrol, and performs music based in the Irish tradition with the Seamus Egan Project, Martin Hayes and the Common Ground Ensemble, Maeve Gilchrist, and a duo with violinist Dana Lyn. Kyle Sanna studied jazz at the University of Oregon and composition at the Université Lumière Lyon II in France.
Summer Chamber Music Workshop Participants
“I learned how to listen, how to be helpful, and how to be accepting at Apple Hill.”
“I liked the opportunity to play chamber music with talented musicians and excellent coaches in a friendly and supportive atmosphere.”
