Joseph Brent


Joseph Frederick Brent is an American composer, mandolinist, multi-instrumentalist, and teacher. He is known for his performances and arrangements of rock and indie songs, as well as his original compositions with the ensemble 9 Horses. He teaches classical mandolin at Mannes College.
Brent attended the Berklee College of Music, and studied the mandolin under Carlo Aonzo in Savona, Italy. He also received instruction from Barry Mitterhoff and Adam Steffey.
In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Brent is active as a sideman in several rock, jazz, bluegrass, and folk ensembles, most notably with Regina Spektor, Jewel, Kishi Bashi, Gary Smulyan, and various artists centered on the Brooklyn folk music scene.
Brent also records and has performed with symphony orchestras such as the Seattle Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Chicago Symphony, International Contemporary Ensemble, nunc, and the New World Symphony.
On October 16, 2015, Brent's improvising ensemble 9 Horses, featuring violinist Sara Caswell and bassist Shawn Conley released their debut album Perfectest Herald on Sunnyside Records, and in 2016 were the winners of the 21CM LAUNCH: Emerging Artists Competition.
Brent has published two books of mandolin pedagogy, Scales and Arpeggios for Mandolin and Orchestral and Chamber Excerpts for Mandolin, and his book of transcriptions of the lute music of John Dowland for two mandolins, conceived with Alon Sariel, was published in 2015 by paladino music.

Customized instruments

In 2008, Brent collaborated with Nova Scotia-based luthier Brian Dean to design a grand concert mandolin he named 'Pähkinä', which is Finnish for 'nut', a reference to the walnut top of the instrument. Among the instrument's many distinctive features are the walnut/maple/spruce wood combination, a zero fret, a semi-lute construction with minimal bracing, a built-in tone guard with a sound pressure relief hole cut into the back, and ornate f-holes which reach around the sides of the instrument. Dean has since built a 10-string version of this model nicknamed 'Kumí', which is currently Brent's primary acoustic instrument. In 2016, Vermont-based luthier Adam Buchwald built him a 5-string, fanned fret electric mandolin.

Discography

Solo

YearArtistAlbumDescription
1997Rob GilesStraight Down a Crooked Roadviolin, string arrangements
2002Tom Jones & Harvey SchmidtRoadside mandolin, violin, guitar, banjo
2006Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris2006 off-Broadway revival cast recordingmandolin, violin
2008Lindsay KattPicking Out Boxesviolin
2010Regina SpektorLive In Londonviolin
2010Joseph Stein & Stan DanielsEnter Laughing violin
2012Bryan DunnSweetheart of the Music Hallmandolin, vocals
2012Miller & TysenFugitive Songsmandolin, violin
2013Kishi Bashi7" Box Setviolin
2013Erin McKeownMANIFESTRAviolin, piano, string arrangements
2013Kelli Rae PowellLive at Jalopymandolin, violin
2013Gary SmulyanBella Napolimandolin, violin
2014Lauren KinhanCircle in a Squareviolin
2015Maxine LinehanBeautiful Songsmandolin, percussion, violin
2015Andi Rae HealyIf You Want To Be My Manmandolin
2015King RadioKing Radiomandolin, violin
2015Kishi BashiString Quartet Live!mandolin, violin
2015Lina OrfanosMauthausenmandolin
2016Kishi BashiThe Fourth Phase violin
2018Various ArtistsI Only Listen to the Mountain Goats: All Hail West Texaselectric mandolin, string arrangements with Erin McKeown on 'Jenny'
2019Richard Rogers and Oscar HammersteinOklahoma! mandolin, guitar

Books