James Steven Ginsburg
 | A major contributor to this article appears to have aclose connectionwith its subject.(September 2020) |
James Steven Ginsburg | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 8, 1965 Washington, D.C.,U.S. |
| Education | University of Chicago(BA) |
| Occupation | Music producer |
| Spouses | Lisa Brauston
(m.1995;div.2009)Patrice Michaels Bedi
(m.2010) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Jane C. Ginsburg(sister) |
James Steven Ginsburg(born September 8, 1965) is an American music producer. He is founder and president ofCedille Records,a classical label he launched in 1989 while a student at theUniversity of Chicago.He is the son of the lateUnited States Supreme CourtjusticeRuth Bader Ginsburg.
Background
[edit]Ginsburg was born into a family of lawyers. His mother,Ruth Bader Ginsburg,was appointed to theU.S. Supreme Courtby President Bill Clinton in 1993. His father,Martin D. Ginsburg,taught atGeorgetown University Law Center.His older sister,Jane,teaches law atColumbia University.
He attendedThe Dalton School,Georgetown Day Schoolin Washington, DC, and theUniversity of Chicagowhere he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1987, and attended itsLaw Schoolfor one and a half years.[1][2]
Cedille Records
[edit]Ginsburg was raised inNew York City'sUpper East Side,where he began collectingclassical musicrecordings at an early age. While attending theUniversity of Chicago,he managed classical programming at the university’s mixed-format radio station,WHPK.Before his undergraduate graduation, he began reviewing classical recordings forAmerican Record Guidemagazine.[3]
In 1989, Ginsburg launched a record label,Cedille Records,to record classical music produced by artists and composers inChicago.The label is based in the Edgewater neighborhood of the city. Encouraged by the critical and commercial response to his early recordings, Ginsburg abandoned law school in his second year to devote himself full-time to Cedille.[4][5]
In 1994, Cedille became a not-for-profit under the umbrella of an operating foundation, now called Cedille Chicago, NFP (formerly The Chicago Classical Recording Foundation).[6]This change gave Cedille the ability to produce more recordings and pursue more ambitious projects. Cedille Records releases an average of eight recordings per year.
Professional recognition
[edit]In 2009, theChicago Tribunenominated Ginsburg as "Chicagoan of the Year," writing, "Let's hear it for James Ginsburg. The Chicagoan is one of the last independent entrepreneurs in classical recording, a man who has stuck to his artistic vision and made a success of it at a time of market shrinkage and industry downsizing."[4]
In 2010, Ginsburg won the Helen Coburn Meier and Tim Meier Charitable Foundation for the Arts Achievement Award. In making the award, the Foundation wrote, "We applaud Jim for seeing that Chicago has an abundance of stellar musicians. With his recording projects, Jim believes he can advance musicians' careers and serve the listening public in equal measure."[7]
Additional recognition and awards include being named a Jewish Chicagoan of the Year by theChicago Jewish Newsin 2011; in 2012, he received the Ruth D. and Ken M. Davee Excellence in the Arts Award from theIllinois Philharmonic Orchestra;in 2016,Musical Americanamed him one of The Top 30 Performing Arts Professionals of the Year;[8]and in 2017, he was the honoree at the annual galas of bothChicago Opera Theaterand the Rembrandt Chamber Musicians. Most recently, he received a 2020 Distinguished Service to the Arts Award from Lawyers for the Creative Arts.[9]
In 2019, Ginsburg was nominated for a “Producer of the Year, Classical”Grammy Award.[10]In addition to this nomination, Cedille Records albums have won a number of Grammys, including the 2008, 2012, 2013, 2016 Awards for "Best Small Ensemble/Chamber Music Performance" for the contemporary music sextetEighth Blackbird.In 2017,Third Coast Percussionalso won for “Best Small Ensemble/Chamber Music Performance" for its Cedille album of music by composer Steve Reich.[11]
As Slate notes about Cedille, "Today it’s one of the most-respected labels in the space, with six Grammy-winning records and 18 Grammy nominations."
Personal life
[edit]In 1995, Ginsburg married Lisa Brauston ofShaker Heights, Ohio;the ceremony was officiated by his mother.[12]Brauston is an art historian.[12]After their divorce, he married opera singer, composer, and professor of voice, Patrice Michaels, in 2010. Ginsburg has two children from his first marriage.[13][14]
References
[edit]- ^"The University of Chicago Magazine".magazine.uchicago.edu.
- ^"WEDDINGS;Lisa Brauston, James Ginsburg".The New York Times.November 19, 1995.RetrievedSeptember 19,2012.
- ^Silverman, Nathan."Local label is a Chicago classic North Side?s Cedille Records up for First Grammy Award".insideonline.Archived fromthe originalon February 20, 2012.RetrievedSeptember 19,2012.
- ^ab"Chicago Tribune names Cedille President James Ginsburg a Chicagoan of the Year!".americantowns.December 28, 2009.RetrievedSeptember 19,2012.
- ^Rhein, John von."Classical recording label Cedille marks 25 years".chicagotribune.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^"Cedille Chicago, NFP".guidestar.org.RetrievedSeptember 19,2020.
- ^"The Helen Coburn Meier & Tim Meier Charitable Foundation for the Arts – James Ginsburg".RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^"MusicalAmerica - MA 30 The Innovators: James Ginsburg".musicalamerica.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^"Annual Benefit".Lawyers for the Creative Arts.September 4, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^ClassicsToday."Cedille Label Founder James Ginsburg Nominated for Grammy Award".RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^"Winners & Nominees".GRAMMY.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^ab"WEDDINGS;Lisa Brauston, James Ginsburg".New York Times.November 19, 1995.
- ^Mexican, Anne ConstableThe New."Santa Fe a favorite summer getaway for Justice Ginsburg".Santa Fe New Mexican.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
- ^"Nominee James Ginsburg and Mimi Ginsburg attend The 58th GRAMMY..."Getty Images.RetrievedSeptember 18,2020.
