Will Ackerman
An accomplished guitarist and producer, Will Ackerman is best known as the founder of Windham Hill Records, a hugely successful label dealing in acoustic, folk, and ambient music that helped launch the career of George Winston, among others. Debuting in 1976 with The Search for the Turtle's Navel, Ackerman has issued dozens of albums over the years, including 1998's Imaginary Roads, 2008's Meditations, and 2011's New England Roads, that deftly combine elements of jazz, new acoustic, and pop. Though Ackerman had played guitar since the age of 12, when he dropped out of college it was to become a carpenter, and his first company was called Windham Hill Builders. The Palo Alto native composed guitar music for Stanford University theater productions, and the encouragement of friends led him to record an album of his tunes, In Search of the Turtle's Navel, in 1976. The first release on his newly minted independent record label, Windham Hill, the album was surprisingly successful, and Ackerman soon found himself in the music business. Since then, Ackerman has continued to record his own albums, to produce Windham Hill albums for such influential artists as George Winston, Shadowfax, Michael Hedges, Alex de Grassi, and Liz Story, and to serve in various capacities in the record company. After selling Windham Hill in 1992, Ackerman relocated to Vermont and built his own studio, Imaginary Road, where he has continued to both produce and to record and release his own music. In 2018 he released the mid- to late-career retrospective Was It This Lifetime: Pieces for Guitar 1995-2011.© James Christopher Monger & William Ruhlmann /TiVo Read more
An accomplished guitarist and producer, Will Ackerman is best known as the founder of Windham Hill Records, a hugely successful label dealing in acoustic, folk, and ambient music that helped launch the career of George Winston, among others. Debuting in 1976 with The Search for the Turtle's Navel, Ackerman has issued dozens of albums over the years, including 1998's Imaginary Roads, 2008's Meditations, and 2011's New England Roads, that deftly combine elements of jazz, new acoustic, and pop.
Though Ackerman had played guitar since the age of 12, when he dropped out of college it was to become a carpenter, and his first company was called Windham Hill Builders. The Palo Alto native composed guitar music for Stanford University theater productions, and the encouragement of friends led him to record an album of his tunes, In Search of the Turtle's Navel, in 1976. The first release on his newly minted independent record label, Windham Hill, the album was surprisingly successful, and Ackerman soon found himself in the music business.
Since then, Ackerman has continued to record his own albums, to produce Windham Hill albums for such influential artists as George Winston, Shadowfax, Michael Hedges, Alex de Grassi, and Liz Story, and to serve in various capacities in the record company.
After selling Windham Hill in 1992, Ackerman relocated to Vermont and built his own studio, Imaginary Road, where he has continued to both produce and to record and release his own music. In 2018 he released the mid- to late-career retrospective Was It This Lifetime: Pieces for Guitar 1995-2011.
© James Christopher Monger & William Ruhlmann /TiVo
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Meditations
New Age - Released by Compass Productions on 10 Jan 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Conferring With The Moon
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 1 Jan 1986
Will Ackerman continued weaving textures explored three-years before in Past Light, his deft guitar accompanied by side instruments such as bass, lyri ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
It Takes A Year
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 1 Jan 1977
The lyrical strains of "The Bricklayer's Beautiful Daughter" (the memorable opener on William Ackerman's second album) confirm that the artist was on ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Windham Hill Retrospective
New Age - Released by Windham Hill Records on 25 Jan 1993
Reflecting a body of work spanning eight albums, Will Ackerman's guitar music has become synonymous with the Windham Hill sound of excellence. This re ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sound Of Wind Driven Rain
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 1 Jan 1990
With Sound of Wind Driven Rain, Will Ackerman produced his first record in five years. Ackerman's style hasn't changed that much over the years, but i ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Opening Of Doors
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 12 May 1992
With his eighth Windham Hill album, guitarist William Ackerman charts new musical territory with a record full of diversity, beauty and musical explor ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Imaginary Roads
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 4 Jun 1988
William Ackerman plays guitar and owns his own record label in California. Imaginary Roads finds Will Ackerman playing mostly in an ensemble context, ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Hearing Voices
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 9 Oct 2001
For this release, William Ackerman combines the energetic, hypnotic guitar playing that was featured on great albums of his like Childhood and Memory ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
It Takes A Year
Classical - Released by Windham Hill Records on 1 Jan 1977
The lyrical strains of "The Bricklayer's Beautiful Daughter" (the memorable opener on William Ackerman's second album) confirm that the artist was on ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo