Roy Whelden

Roy Whelden was born in 1950 in New Hampshire. He was raised there and in the mountains of northern Pennsylvania. Until Whelden was 23 his instruments were trumpet and, secondarily, cello. After studies in music theory and trumpet at Eastman School of Music and at Indiana University (Bloomington, IN), he began playing the viola da gamba. This led to study with the gambist John Hsu in Ithaca, New York, and with Thomas Binkley in Bloomington. Since then Whelden has taught both the viola da gamba and the medieval fiddle at various institutions - for example, at Hoch's Conservatory in Frankfurt, Germany - and performed with various internationally known ensembles, among them Sequentia (Cologne), Ensemble Alcatraz and American Baroque, both based in San Francisco.

Rudy Rucker

In parallel to his career as a world-class mathematician, Rudy Rucker has established himself as a major figure in speculative fiction. His novels and short stories have helped invigorate the science-fiction corpus with injections of humor, sex and mathematics. Two of his works, the classics "Software" and "Wetware", have won Philip K. Dick Awards. Rucker lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Discography:

* Galax: music of Whelden and Carl Friedrich Abel (1723-1787), for solo viola da gamba and quartet with American Baroque; 1993 (New Albion, NA059)

* Like A Passing River: music of Whelden, spoken word written and performed by novelist Rudy Rucker, adapted from "All the Visions", and including American Baroque; 1995 (New Albion, NA072)

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New Albion Records / 584 Castro St #525, San Francisco, CA 94114 / ergo@newalbion.com