The San Francisco Conservatory of Music Appoints Guitarist Judicael Perroy to Faculty

The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) today announces the appointment of guitarist Judicaël Perroy to its faculty. Perroy comes to SFCM from France, where he has taught at the National Academy of Aulnay-sous-Bois and at the Pôle d'Enseignement Supérieur de la Musique en Seine-Saint-Denis-Île-de-France, among other institutions.

"Following the retirement of the great Sérgio Assad from our guitar faculty, we are thrilled to welcome the world-renowned guitarist Judicaël Perroy as the new SFCM guitar professor," says SFCM Guitar Department Chair David Tanenbaum. "Besides being a master player at the top of his generation, Judicaël has had unprecedented success as a teacher, having taught five recent first prize winners of the guitar world's most important competition, the GFA, after having won the competition himself. Judicaël's dedication to both playing and teaching at the highest level makes him a perfect fit here."

"I've known SFCM since coming to the US for the first time 20 years ago, and this makes me even more honored to be part of the team of teachers and of this school with such a rich history," says Judicaël Perroy. "This is why I am so excited to be part of it."

Judicaël Perroy is known around the world as both a performer and pedagogue. Frequently in demand as a teacher, he has given master classes at many of the top universities and conservatories in the US and abroad. Perroy's students have won several top prizes in regional, national, and international competitions, including the Guitar Foundation of America Competition.

Perroy is the recipient of numerous awards, including the First Prize at the 15th Guitar Foundation of America International Competition and Convention (an accolade that also allowed him to tour the United States and Canada, giving more than 60 concerts and master classes), Second Prize at the International Guitar Competition of Ile de France, and both Grand Prize and Audience Prize at the 15th Concours René Bartoli. He also was awarded the First Prize at the 7th International Bourg-Madame Competition and, upon graduation, received the highest placement in his class at the Paris Conservatory.

Perroy's performances in France have been broadcast live on France Musique and he has released a number of albums on Naxos, Mel Bay, Bayard Musique, and additional labels, performing the works of Bach, Ponce, Rodrigo, and many others.

In addition to Perroy joining the guitar faculty and beginning his own studio in Fall 2017, jazz guitarist Julian Lage will also begin teaching at SFCM in the fall as a member of the Conservatory's new Roots, Jazz, and American Music (RJAM) program.

Founded in 1917, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music is the oldest conservatory in the American West and has earned an international reputation for producing musicians of the highest caliber. Its faculty includes nearly 30 members of the San Francisco Symphony as well as Grammy and Latin Grammy Award-winning artists in the fields of orchestral and chamber performance, classical guitar, and jazz. The Conservatory offers its 400-plus collegiate students fully accredited bachelor's and master's degree programs in composition and instrumental and vocal performance. SFCM was the first institution of its kind to offer world-class graduate degree programs in chamber music and classical guitar. Its Pre-College Division provides exceptionally high standards of musical education and personal attention to more than 200 younger students. SFCM faculty and students give nearly 500 public performances each year, most of which are offered to the public at no charge. Its community outreach programs serve over 1,600 school children and over 6,000 members of the wider community. Notable alumni include violinists Yehudi Menuhin and Isaac Stern, conductor and pianist Jeffrey Kahane, soprano Elza van den Heever, Blue Bottle Coffee founder James Freeman and Ronald Losby, President, Steinway & Sons - Americas, among others. The Conservatory's Civic Center facility is an architectural and acoustical masterwork, and the Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall was lauded by The New York Times as the "most enticing classical-music setting" in the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information, visit sfcm.edu.