Instrumental/Orchestral Collaborator Reviews

During the 2023-2024 season, the Claflin Hill Symphony Orchestra of Milford, MA engaged Dave McLellan as guitar soloist for a concert celebrating the music of Spain and Latin America.  

 

Dave performed the Guitar Concerto #1 by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco with the orchestra.

He gave a wonderfully precise, delicate, lyrical and confident performance of the Castelnuovo-Tedesco.   It was a terrific and unique addition to our usual CHSO programming and a chance to hear and witness great classical guitar performance.

 

Dave was great to work with, very easy to follow, and totally on top of his concerto so we were able to just enjoy rehearsing and creating a beautiful performance together.

I would gladly work with Dave McLellan again, and highly recommend his collaborative skills and spirit to any organization seeking an outstanding guitarist.

Paul Surapine, Founder and Artistic Director

Claflin Hill Symphony Orchestra

In 2018, I had recently had the great pleasure conducting the Castelnuovo-Tedesco Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra with Dave McLellan as the soloist.  It was an exciting and rewarding experience due to the outstanding musicianship displayed in Dave’s performance.  Dave’s mastery of the piece enabled him to let me know exactly how he wanted to interpret the music mostly thru his playing.  When he needed to voice a request or opinion, however, it was always in a constructive and respectful manner whether speaking to me or the orchestra.  Our working relationship was a most enjoyable collaboration and the performance was, both technically and musically, very successful.  His playing was sensitive and his phasing profoundly beautiful.  The audience was very appreciative of the performance and gave him a standing ovation.  Dave’s artistry and professionalism is so impressive that I hope for another chance to work with him in the future.

 

Vincent P. Mattera

Narragansett Bay Symphony Community Orchestra

I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with Dave McLellan as a soloist with the Lincoln Sudbury Civic Orchestra and in Piazzolla's "Histoire du Tango" for violin and guitar. I am thankful for his love, enthusiasm, and dedication to the music which carried through to our performance, and was greatly appreciated by the audience.

​

Emil Altschuler, violinist, director of Emil Altschuler Summer Institute. 

As a colleague at the Performing Arts Center of MetroWest, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Dave McLellan on several occasions, most memorably in duo performances featuring music for trombone and guitar.

 

Dave brings a thoughtful and collaborative spirit to every rehearsal and performance, always enriching the music with his experience and insight. His playing is marked by warmth, sensitivity, and nuanced musical intuition, and making music with him was both effortless and inspiring. As a fellow music educator, I also admire his commitment to fostering community engagement through music. I look forward to future opportunities to work together and recommend Dave wholeheartedly as a supportive, reliable, and versatile collaborator.

​

Tommy Chiu, trombonist, Freelance performer and teacher

DMA Boston University 2024

In 2022 and again in 2024, Dave McLellan and I collaborated on a non-profit community performance project that involved modern dance, video animations and live music in a project under my direction called Booster Suite at the Performing Arts Center of MetroWest in Framingham, MA. Dave not only provided the classical guitar music resources from around the world, but also performed live for the two-evening theater event. It was a pleasure to work with Dave throughout the creative process. He is easy going and open to creative ideas while being a strong communicator as well as an experienced performer. As seasoned artists in our own right, Dave and I shared the perspective that what we were doing was important for both local cultural invention and local cultural development. It was both a pleasure and an honor to establish a new collaborative performance partnership with Dave, and I look forward to future chances to spotlight its live theatrical results to new audiences.

 

Lynne Johnson Grynkewicz

Artistic Director and Choreographer, Moving West Dance Theatre

Note: Frank tragically passed away in 2020 after a battle with cancer. 

​

I have known Dave McLellan for 40 years. He is a joy to work with, thorough and takes all the time necessary to get it right. I highly recommend Dave as someone you would enjoy working with and who will give you everything you ask for technically, musically and artistically.

​​

– Frank Wallace, guitarist/composer