Broadway Musician Gregory K. Williams Releases Debut Album

NYC-based violist Gregory K. Williams released his debut album, "SHADOWS: The Unaccompanied Viola Sonatas of Günter Raphael," on Friday, February 2nd, 2024. This album was produced by Affetto Records, an independent record company that is a subsidiary of Naxos. The album will be available both as a CD and in digital and streaming formats on all major platforms, including Naxos, Amazon, Apple, Spotify, and Bandcamp.

This album features all three unaccompanied viola sonatas of Günter Raphael (1903-1960), a German composer of Jewish ancestry whose works were banned during the Nazi regime. This is the first album of his viola works released by an American artist, and the first album that features all three of Raphael's unaccompanied works for viola.

Gregory Williams has been exploring the music of Günter Raphael since 2012. "When I stumbled upon his first sonata in a used bookstore in Dresden, Germany, his music reminded me of contemporaneous composers such as Max Reger and Paul Hindemith, and I was eager to learn more about him. I spent the next several years researching and performing his music as the focus of my doctoral dissertation at the CUNY Graduate Center.

Dr. Gregory K. Williams is a multifaceted artist who performs solo, orchestral, and chamber music, alongside musical theater. He has performed with ensembles such as the American Ballet Theatre, American Symphony Orchestra, Parlando, and the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, as well as for Broadway pits for Sweeney Todd and The Phantom of the Opera. Recording credits include the concept album for the musical Goodbye New York. He is on the faculty of the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College, CUNY. He also performs with the Golden Williams Duo, a viola-cello duo committed to performing new music by under-represented composers.

Gregory Williams received his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Viola Performance at the CUNY Graduate Center, where he studied with Karen Ritscher and Dr. Linda Sinanian. Previously, he studied with Michelle LaCourse at Boston University, where he received his Bachelor's degree in Viola Performance, and with George Taylor at the Eastman School of Music, receiving his Master's degree in Viola Performance and Literature.

"SHADOWS: The Unaccompanied Viola Sonatas of Gunter Raphael" is available on all major platforms both as a CD and through streaming and digital downloads.