Telegraph Quartet Announces New Album, Divergent Paths, on Azica Records out August 25

Telegraph Quartet Announces New Album on
Azica Records: Divergent Paths

Worldwide Release: August 25, 2023

Downloads and CDs available to press on request​

“precise tuning, textural variety and impassioned communication”
– The Strad on Telegraph Quartet’s musicianship

www.telegraphquartet.com

San Francisco, CA – The Telegraph Quartet (Eric Chin and Joseph Maile, violins; Pei-Ling Lin, viola; Jeremiah Shaw, cello) announce Divergent Paths. The Quartet’s newest album –– the first in a series of recordings titled 20th Century Vantage Points –– is set for worldwide release, digital and CD, on August 25, 2023 via Azica Records. This first volume features two works that (to the best of the quartet’s knowledge) have never been recorded on the same album before: Maurice Ravel’s String Quartet in F Major and Arnold Schoenberg’s String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 7. Through this series, the Telegraph Quartet intends to explore string quartets of the 20th century –– an era of music that the group has felt especially called to perform since forming in 2013. The new album's release will also mark the ensemble’s tenth anniversary together.

The Telegraph Quartet’s new release offers a glimpse into the beginning of the 20th century –– a time of bewildering and unbridled creativity –– through the work of Arnold Schoenberg and Maurice Ravel, whose music on this album weaves threads of great contrast and surprising similarity. For what would be Ravel’s first and sole string quartet, the piece offers a fascinating dimension of duality within itself. Conventionally Classical writing with four movements of traditional form and temperament, which simultaneously presents modal scales, complex melodies over extended harmonies, novel time signatures, and vibrant character reminiscent of Spanish or Basque dances, as well as Russian and Asian music. Like Ravel’s Quartet, Schoenberg’s String Quartet No. 1 is a work of similarly early status against his whole body of work. A staggering 46 minutes in length, Schoenberg’s piece also embraces the traditional classical structure in four movements. However, unlike Ravel, Schoenberg unites the elements in a continuous fashion, revealing a refined way to connect the Brahms’ approach to Classical writing and the Romantic New German School of Liszt, Wagner and Strauss. For the modern day listener, the Telegraph Quartet offers an analogy of musical form: “Schoenberg’s Op. 7 is like a Wagner opera for string quartet”. It is a chamber music tone poem.

The Telegraph Quartet found these two works by Ravel and Schoenberg, despite their contrasting qualities, make an appealing and intriguing pair. They say:

"As an ensemble, we've always been attracted to these two quartets by Ravel and Schoenberg –– at first for almost opposite reasons: the Ravel Quartet has a vibrant purity, while Schoenberg's epic Quartet No. 1 is thoroughly tumultuous and bewildering. Yet we found that both works, written within two years of one another and by composers of the same age, truly do reflect the sensuality and exploration of the human psyche that was such an important part of the dawn of the 20th century."

Celebrated by the San Francisco Chronicle as having “soulfulness, tonal beauty and intelligent attention to detail,” and seen as “an incredibly valuable addition to the cultural landscape," the Telegraph Quartet’s sophisticated blend of meticulous technicality and emotive chemistry has led the group to connect with audiences from all walks of life, bringing their memorable musicality to concert halls, classrooms, and vineyards alike.

Divergent Paths is the Telegraph Quartet’s second full length release and the group’s debut album with Azica Records. This record follows Into The Light (2018), an album highlighting a gripping set of works by Leon Kirchner, Anton Webern, and Benjamin Britten. Strings Magazine described the Telegraph Quartet’s performance of Britten's Three Divertimenti as “sparkl[ing] with brilliant humor,” calling the full recording an “exciting new disc.” AllMusic describes the ensemble as an “adventurous group,” stating that Into the Light “[put] the Telegraph Quartet on the map.”

Divergent Paths | Telegraph Quartet | Azica Records | Release Date: August 25, 2023 (Digital, CDs, Worldwide)

[1-4] Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937): String Quartet in F Major (1902-1903)
[5-8] Arnold Schoenberg (1874 - 1951): String Quartet No. 1 in D minor, Op. 7 (1904-1905)
[Total Time: 71:57]

Recorded July 14-16, 2022 at St. Stephens Episcopal Church, Belvedere, CA.
Recorded and Produced by Alan Bise
Cover image: “Gaze” ca. 1910 Catalogue raisonné 62
Used by permission of Belmont Music Publishers, Los Angeles
Graphic Design: Monica Mussulin

About the Telegraph Quartet: The Telegraph Quartet (Eric Chin and Joseph Maile, violins; Pei-Ling Lin, viola; Jeremiah Shaw, cello) formed in 2013 with an equal passion for the standard chamber music repertoire and contemporary, non-standard works alike. Described by the San Francisco Chronicle as “…an incredibly valuable addition to the cultural landscape” and “powerfully adept… with a combination of brilliance and subtlety,” the Telegraph Quartet was awarded the prestigious 2016 Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award and the Grand Prize at the 2014 Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. The Quartet has performed in concert halls, music festivals, and academic institutions across the United States and abroad, including New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Chamber Masters Series, and at festivals including the Chautauqua Institute, Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, and the Emilia Romagna Festival. The Quartet is currently on the chamber music faculty at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as the Quartet-in-Residence.

Notable collaborations include projects with pianists Leon Fleisher and Simone Dinnerstein; cellists Norman Fischer and Bonnie Hampton; violinist Ian Swensen; composer-vocalist Theo Bleckmann; the Henschel Quartett, and the St. Lawrence String Quartet.. A fervent champion of 20th- and 21st-century repertoire, the Telegraph Quartet has premiered works by John Harbison, Robert Sirota, and Richard Festinger, and Osvaldo Golijov.

In 2018 the Quartet released its debut album, Into the Light, featuring works by Anton Webern, Benjamin Britten, and Leon Kirchner on the Centaur label. The San Francisco Chronicle praised the album, saying, "Just five years after forming, the Bay Area’s Telegraph Quartet has established itself as an ensemble of serious depth and versatility, and the group’s terrific debut recording only serves to reinforce that judgment." AllMusic acclaimed, “An impressive beginning for an adventurous group, this 2018 release puts the Telegraph Quartet on the map.

Beyond the concert stage, the Telegraph Quartet seeks to spread its music through education and audience engagement. The Quartet has given master classes at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Collegiate and Pre-College Divisions, through the Morrison Artist Series at San Francisco State University, and abroad at the Taipei National University of the Arts, National Taiwan Normal University, and in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Telegraph has also served as artists-in-residence at the Interlochen Adult Chamber Music Camp, SoCal Chamber Music Workshop, and Crowden Music Center Chamber Music Workshop. In November 2020, the Telegraph Quartet launched ChamberFEAST!, a chamber music workshop in Taiwan.

The Telegraph Quartet adapted to the challenging times presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and performed virtual concerts presented by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Crowden Chamber Music Workshop, Noe Music, Noontime Concerts, Music in Corrales, and Intermusic SF. For Earth Day 2020 (the 50th anniversary of Earth Day), the National Academy of Science in collaboration with the ClimateMusic Project hosted a virtual performance by the Telegraph Quartet of Richard Festinger’s Icarus in Flight. In 2020, Telegraph launched an ongoing online video project called TeleLab, in which the ensemble collectively breaks down the components of a movement from various works for quartet. For more information, visit www.telegraphquartet.com.

Star Classical Guitarist MILOŠ to Release Debut Album on Sony Classical, Baroque, on October 13

Star Classical Guitarist MILOŠ

Launches a New Era with the Release of his Debut Album on Sony Classical

Baroque to be Released on October 13, 2023

New York, New York – “Every generation has that super special guitarist, one with star quality and universal appeal, praised for their effortless technique and musical integrity. We have Miloš – the hottest guitarist in the world.” (The Sunday Times)

MILOŠ - the superstar musician who has led today’s classical guitar revival, begins a new era in his exceptional career with a debut album for Sony Classical. Titled simply Baroque, the album presents MILOŠ’ carefully curated selection of baroque works especially transcribed and arranged for the guitar, both solo and in collaboration with Jonathan Cohen and his ensemble Arcangelo. The album will be released on October 13 and is set to enrich the unrivaled legacy of Sony Classical’s recordings of legendary guitarists, which boast John Williams and Julian Bream amongst others.

Since his incredible breakthrough in 2011, when his debut album held the no. 1 position in the UK Classical charts for a breathtaking 28 weeks, MILOŠ has built an impressive international career by performing solo recitals and concertos at most of the world’s leading concert venues. His six studio albums have sold the equivalent of over half a million copies and conquered the classical album charts in multiple territories, earning him a Classical BRIT, Echo Klassik and two Gramophone Awards. Not to mention worldwide critical acclaim, BBC Music Magazine included him in “Six of the Best Classical Guitarists of the Past Century” and The New York Times cited him as “one of the most exciting and communicative classical guitarists today.” His wide variety of musical influences and repertoire, ranging from baroque to contemporary music, via the Beatles and beyond, has helped MILOŠ build a loyal international fanbase and introduce his instrument to a whole new generation of listeners. 

His long list of musical collaborators ranges from Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Lisa Batiashvili, Alison Balsom, and Jess Gillam, to Tori Amos, Gregory Porter and Anoushka Shankar. He was the first-ever classical guitarist to perform a sold-out solo show at the Royal Albert Hall, where he returned last summer playing to a capacity audience. He has presented on both BBC and Sky TV and has his own series of educational books “Play Guitar with Miloš” published by Schott Music. He recently launched the "Miloš Karadaglić Foundation"- based in Porto Montenegro - this philanthropic organisation aims to act as a regional hub of influence by empowering artistic excellence though various educational opportunities, partnership and close mentorship.

Baroque heralds a new milestone in MILOŠ’ career. “Since the very beginning of my life as a musician, I have been deeply inspired by the incredible variety and electrifying energy of the baroque repertoire. This golden era of music is mysterious and extraordinary, flamboyant, often endlessly lyrical, ultimately timeless. And yet within the classical guitar context, apart from J.S. Bach, I believe we have only ever managed to touch the surface. This very thought inspired me to, over the years, try and dig deeper, go beyond the obvious, experiment, collaborate and transcribe, to open a new door of possibilities for my instrument and its own baroque voice”.

MILOŠ’ own transcription of Bach’s monumental Chaconne sits at the heart of this recording, anchoring the richly varied constellation of baroque composers’ masterpieces. MILOŠ particularly wanted to present the guitar across a wide range of European influences, and not merely within the more familiar Spanish context. He has selected luminescent works by nine composers here, the majority of which have never been played on solo guitar before.

There is plenty of light and shade within the music, reflecting baroque’s unique chiaroscuro character. Works such as Alessandro Marcello’s Adagio from ‘Oboe Concerto in D Minor’; Domenico Scarlatti’s ‘Sonata in D minor’; the Menuet from George Frideric Handel’s ‘Suite in B-Flat Major’; Jean-Philippe Rameau’s The Arts and the Hours or François Couperin’s Les Barricades mystérieuses offer more introspective moments, while Antonio Vivaldi’s movements from La Notte and L’estro Armonico, originally written as a concerto for 4 violins, or indeed Boccherini’s Fandango from ‘Quintet No. 4 in D Major’ provide fireworks of thrilling virtuosity.

MILOŠ worked very closely with Jonathan Cohen on all the orchestral transcriptions, as well as with Michael Lewin, the eminent British guitarist and lutenist with whom he studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London and with whom he now shares a wonderful creative collaboration.

“Everything I have learned and experienced in my musical life so far, all the influences and various musical traditions, converge in this album” says MILOŠ. “I wanted to convey a new vision of baroque here, with all the variety of style and texture, while preserving the innate intimacy and typical beauty of the guitar sound.”

While for MILOŠ one creative circle closes with the release of this album, Baroque ultimately serves as the foundation of a brand-new era in this artist’s already extraordinary career.

MILOŠ will perform works from Baroque at Carnegie Hall, New York in November this year, before embarking on a UK tour with Jonathan Cohen and Arcangelo in January 2024, followed by the North American tour in Spring 2024 with Les Violons Du Roy.

Baroque will be released internationally on Sony Classical on October 13, 2023 on CD and Digital formats.

Jonas Kaufmann to Release The Sound Of Movies Sony Classical on September 15

Jonas Kaufmann
“The World’s Greatest Tenor” (The Telegraph)

Records The Sound of Movies

New Album on Sony Classical
Release Date: September 15, 2023

All-New Recordings Of Worldwide Hit Songs From Classic Movies

West Side Story, Gladiator, Cinema Paradiso, The Sound Of Music, Les Misérables, The Mission, The Great Caruso, Singin’ In The Rain And Many More

June 21 – New York, NY -- Great songs from classic movies have been a passion of the tenor Jonas Kaufmann throughout his life, and his new Sony Classical album The Sound of Movies celebrates that with almost a century of unforgettable movie songs that have thrilled global audiences. The album will be released on September 15, 2023 and is available for preorder here.

Newly recorded in spectacular sound with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra and Choir, conducted by Jochen Rieder, Kaufmann is also joined on three tracks by the acclaimed guitarist Miloš Karadaglić.

“Immersing yourself in this world for a few hours and forgetting everything around you is incredibly fascinating – similar to the theater or opera,” Kaufmann says about classic film music. “I’ve traveled a lot over many years, often alone for weeks and months in foreign cities at the other end of the world. In addition to museums, it was the cinema – that great opportunity to entertain yourself when you’re alone – that captured my imagination.”

Kaufmann initially became enamored by cinema music via leading Weimar-era tenors Joseph Schmidt and Richard Tauber, as well as the sublime orchestrations of the great golden-age film composers like Erich Korngold and Max Steiner who were steeped in the heritage of Puccini and Strauss. For Kaufmann, The Sound of Movies presents the undeniable influence of opera on this most popular of art forms.

The Sound of Movies reflects Kaufmann’s fascination with a selection of popular hits, in a variety of languages, that span from Weimar-era Germany (a title song written to accompany the 1929 silent film Ich küsse Ihre Hand, Madame) to “Bring Him Home” from the 2012 film of the global hit musical Les Misérables.

The album includes Kaufmann’s interpretations of Hans Zimmer’s “Nelle tue mani” (Now We Are Free) from Gladiator; the Oscar®-winning “Moon River” from Breakfast at Tiffany’s; and Vangelis’s epic title song from 1492: Conquest of Paradise. Great musicals are featured as well, with memorable titles such as “Maria” from Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story; the title song from Singin’ in the Rain; plus several numbers from the legendary creative duo Rodgers & Hammerstein including “Edelweiss” (The Sound of Music) and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” (Carousel).

From the Italian master Ennio Morricone, Kaufmann has chosen songs taken from the great melodies in the scores of Cinema Paradiso, The Mission and Once upon a Time in America.

A premiere on the album is a special arrangement of a song based on the main title theme of The Cider House Rules (with lyrics by Gene Scheer), created for the album by its composer Rachel Portman, the first woman to win an Oscar® for scoring a film. The album also includes songs immortalized by their use in films, such as “What a Wonderful World”, heard in Good Morning, Vietnam; “Strangers in the Night” from A Man Could Get Killed; and Carlos Gardel’s classic Argentinian tango “Por una cabeza,” a highlight on the soundtracks of Scent of a Woman and Tango Bar.

Guitarist Miloš Karadaglić joins Kaufmann for intimate interpretations of “Moon River,” “Edelweiss” and “She Was Beautiful,” based on the “Cavatina” from Stanley Myers’s score for the Oscar®-winning film The Deer Hunter.

In addition, Kaufmann recreates two hits from American star tenor Mario Lanza, with “The Loveliest Night of the Year” from The Great Caruso and “Serenade” from the film version of The Student Prince.

JONAS KAUFMANN – THE SOUND OF MOVIES

Track List:

1 The Loveliest Night of the Year from The Great Caruso
2 Where Do I Begin? from Love Story
3 Maria from West Side Story
4 The Cider House Rules main title
5 Nelle tue mani (Now We Are Free) from Gladiator
6 Se (If) (Tema d’amore) from Nuovo Cinema Paradiso
7 E più ti penso (Deborah’s Theme) from Once upon a Time in America
8 Strangers in the Night from A Man Could Get Killed
9 Bring Him Home from Les Misérables
10 Nella fantasia (Gabriel’s Oboe) from The Mission
11 Conquest of Paradise from 1492: Conquest of Paradise
12 What Is a Youth? (Love Theme) from William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet
13 She Was Beautiful (Cavatina) from The Deer Hunter – with Miloš Karadaglić
14 Por una cabeza from Scent of a Woman
15 What a Wonderful World from Good Morning, Vietnam
16 You’ll Never Walk Alone from Carousel
17 Moon River from Breakfast at Tiffany’s – with Miloš Karadaglić
18 Singin’ in the Rain main title
19 Ich küsse Ihre Hand, Madame main title
20 Reality from La Boum
21 Edelweiss from The Sound of Music – with Miloš Karadaglić
22 Serenade from The Student Prince

JONAS KAUFMANN tenor

Czech National Symphony Orchestra · Jochen Rieder conductor

Sony Music Masterworks comprises Masterworks, Sony Classical, Milan Records, XXIM Records, and Masterworks Broadway imprints. For email updates and information please visit  www.sonymusicmasterworks.com/.

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Clancy Newman and Natalie Zhu Release New Album From Method to Madness: The American Sound on Albany Records

From Method to Madness cover art.

Clancy Newman and Natalie Zhu Release New Album
From Method to Madness: The American Sound

Music by Samuel Barber, Kenji Bunch, Lukas Foss, & Clancy Newman

Release Date: August 1, 2023
Albany Records

On August 1, 2023, longtime friends and collaborators cellist Clancy Newman and pianist Natalie Zhu will release a new duo album titled From Method to Madness: The American Sound, on Albany Records. The recording features music by American composers and includes Samuel Barber’s Sonata for Cello and Piano in C Minor, Op. 6; Kenji Bunch’s Broken Music for Cello and Piano; Lukas Foss’s Capriccio for Cello and Piano; and Newman’s own piece, From Method to Madness.

Newman and Zhu’s program was born out of a virtual performance which took place during the pandemic shutdown, presented by the Kingston Chamber Music Festival, of which Zhu is the Artistic Director. A patron who was watching online was so taken by the collaboration and the music that he encouraged Newman and Zhu to go into the studio to record, and helped make that possible – a silver lining during a difficult time. The pieces on the album each showcase an element of friendship or collaboration – between composers, performers, and friends.

Natalie Zhu says, “I feel connected with this program because of the way it reflects this ever-changing world that we live in, in an organic and incisive way.”

“The first time Natalie and I played this music together, it was at the height of the pandemic,” says Clancy Newman. “I will always associate it with that turbulent time, deeply personal, when life, art and music all seemed to take on a deeper meaning.
“There is so much variety, so much richness, and so much beauty encompassed in these four works by American composers,” he adds.

About the Music on the Album:

Clancy Newman gave the premiere performance of violist/composer Kenji Bunch’s Broken Music at Lincoln Center in 2003 – the piece was written for Newman by Bunch, commissioned by the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation. This is the first commercial recording of the work, which is in four movements, each exploring a different meaning of the word “broken.” “Broken Voice” is informed by the concept of a voice breaking with emotion or exhaustion; “Broken Chord” utilizes arpeggiated figures; and “Broken Verse” suggests a song that is somehow stuck. In his note for the piece, Bunch explains that the last movement, “Broken Music,” takes this idea of being stuck to an extreme. He writes, “As part of a series of works I’ve written recently exploring this technique, this movement is made up of twenty-some bars that are each repeated four times, creating an acoustic version of an electronic groove, or a broken record that slowly develops material while sustaining an unrelenting, furious energy.”

The other work on the album recorded for the first time is Clancy Newman’s own piece, From Method to Madness, written in 2008. Newman had recently discovered a new method of composing based on The Golden Ratio, which he explored in this work. He writes, “The first half of the piece obeys the rules of this method very strictly; at a certain point, however, the music cannot be contained by the rules any longer, and it overflows into a jazzy, Latin sounding tune. From there, it continues to approach the boiling point, ending in a frenzy that recalls nothing of the serene discipline of the opening measures.”

Samuel Barber's Sonata for Cello and Piano in C Minor, Op. 6 showcases the composer's affinity for melody and song, and was the last piece he wrote while studying with composer Rosario Scalero. Barber began the work in 1932, while vacationing in Europe with fellow student composer Gian-Carlo Menotti, and finished it back at school with cellist Orlando Cole giving the premiere later in the year.

Lukas Foss wrote his Capriccio for Cello and Piano in 1946, while he was the Boston Symphony’s pianist under Serge Koussevitzky. The piece was composed for the famous cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, with Foss and Piatigorsky giving the premiere at Tanglewood in 1947. The piece is one of Foss’s most frequently performed works. Of it Foss remarked, “I like its combination of Bach, humor and American characteristics."

Watch Samuel Barber’s Sonata for Cello and Piano in C Minor, Op. 6

About Natalie Zhu:

Known for captivating interpretations of a wide repertoire, pianist Natalie Zhu is the recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, Musical Fund Society Career Advancement Award, the Andrew Wolf Memorial Chamber Music Award, and Astral Artists Award. The Philadelphia Inquirer heralded Zhu in recital as a display of “emotional and pianistic pyrotechnics.” Selections from her live performances are frequently broadcasted on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today.”

Natalie Zhu has performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia as a soloist and chamber musician. She made her European debut in 1994 at the Festival de Sully et d’Orleans in France, she has also given solo recitals at the Carnegie’s Weill and Zankel Hall in New York City, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Seattle Chamber Music Society, New York’s Steinway Hall and Merkin Hall, Portland Piano Festival in Oregon, Munich’s Herkulessaal in Germany, and Beijing Concert Hall in China. She has performed with the Daedalus, Dover, Miami, Vermeer Quartets, and collaborated with members of the Guarneri, St. Lawrence, Orion, Mendelssohn, and Ying Quartets, as well as the Beaux Arts Trio and Time for Three. Natalie Zhu has been a touring recital partner with renowned violinist Hilary Hahn, and has maintained an ongoing partnership, most noticeably a Mozart Violin Sonatas recording with the Deutsche Grammophon label in 2005, as well as Suzuki Violin Books 1-3 in 2020.

As an active chamber musician, Natalie Zhu has appeared in Marlboro Music Festival, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Curtis-On-Tour, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Tanglewood Music Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Society, Maestro Foundation Concert Series, Skaneateles Festival, Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, Bay Chamber Concerts, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Crested Butte Chamber Music Festival, The Friends of Chamber Music Reading Concert Series, and Brooklyn Library Chamber Music Series. Since 2009, she has been the artistic director of the Kingston Chamber Music Festival in Rhode Island. 

Natalie Zhu began her piano studies with Xiao-Cheng Liu at the age of six in her native China and made her first public appearance at age nine in Beijing. At eleven she emigrated with her family to Los Angeles, and studied with Robert Turner and Li Ming-Qiang. By age fifteen was enrolled at the Curtis Institute of Music where she received the prestigious Rachmaninoff Award and studied with Gary Graffman. She received both Master of Music degree and Artist Diploma from the Yale School of Music where she studied with the late Claude Frank. Natalie Zhu lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband, Che-Hung Chen, a violist in the Philadelphia Orchestra, and her daughter, Clara.

Watch Kenji Bunch’s Broken Music

About Clancy Newman:

Cellist Clancy Newman has enjoyed an extraordinarily wide-ranging career, not only as a cellist, but also as a composer, producer, writer, and guest lecturer. He began playing cello at the age of six, and at twelve he received his first significant public recognition when he won a Gold Medal at the Dandenong Youth Festival in Australia, competing against contestants twice his age. In the years that followed, he won numerous other competitions, including the Juilliard School Cello Competition, the Astral Artists National Auditions, and finally the prestigious Naumburg International Competition.

He has performed as soloist throughout the United States, as well as in Europe, Asia, Canada, and Australia. A recipient of an Avery Fisher career grant, he can often be heard on NPR’s “Performance Today” and has been featured on A&E and PBS. A sought after chamber musician, he is currently a member of the Clarosa piano quartet, and he has also toured as a member of "Musicians from Marlboro" and performed with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.                                               

As a composer, he has expanded cello technique in ways heretofore thought unimaginable, particularly in his "Pop-Unpopped" project, where he writes solo cello caprices based on pop songs. He has also lectured on the Golden Ratio Method, a method of composition he invented, and has been featured on series by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and the Chicago Chamber Musicians. In March 2019 his piano quintet, commissioned by the Ryuji Ueno Foundation, was premiered at the opening ceremony of the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC.                                     

Also interested in other forms of expression, Newman produced an album entitled "From Hungary to Taiwan" for the Formosa String Quartet, which is available on Bridge Records. In 2021, the Kingston Chamber Music Festival commissioned him to produce four educational videos to assist school teachers as they navigate the covid-19 pandemic, a project that involved script writing, set designing, video editing, animation, and acting.  

Clancy Newman is a graduate of the five-year exchange program between Juilliard and Columbia University, receiving a M.M. from Juilliard and a B.A. in English from Columbia. His teachers have included David Gibson, Joel Krosnick and Harvey Shapiro. 

Watch Lukas Foss’s Capriccio

---

Track Listing:

From Method to Madness
Clancy Newman, cello & Natalie Zhu, piano
Release date: August 1, 2023
Albany Records | TROY1935                          

Samuel Barber: Cello and Piano in C Minor, Op. 6
1. Allegro ma non troppo [8:42]
2. Adagio [4:28]
3. Allegro appassionato [5:33]

4. Lukas Foss: Capriccio for Cello and Piano [6:47]

Kenji Bunch: Broken Music for Cello and Piano
5. Broken Voice [5:01]
6. Broken Chord [3:31]
7. Broken Verse [7:10]
8. Broken Music [2:56]

9. Clancy Newman: From Method to Madness [5:01]

Total Time: 49.43

Produced, engineered and mastered by Andreas Meyer at Swan Studios.
Recorded at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, December 21-23, 2021.
Photos by Joie Elie Photography.

Jupiter String Quartet Presented as part of Bowdoin International Music Festival

Photo by Todd Rosenberg. More photos available in high resolution at www.jensenartists.com/jupiter-string-quartet

Jupiter String Quartet

Presented in Three Concerts by the Bowdoin International Music Festival

Monday, July 17, 2023 at 7:30pm
Studzinski Recital Hall | 12 Campus Road S. | Brunswick, ME

Monday, July 24, 2023 at 7:30pm
Studzinski Recital Hall | | 12 Campus Road S. | Brunswick, ME

Friday, August 4 at 7:30pm
Crooker Theater | 116 Maquoit Rd. | Brunswick, ME

Livestream (All Performances): www.bowdoinfestival.org/festivalive/

“The Jupiter String Quartet, an ensemble of eloquent intensity, has matured into one of the mainstays of the American chamber-music scene.” – The New Yorker

www.jupiterquartet.com

Brunswick, ME – The internationally esteemed Jupiter String Quartet –– winner of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and the Banff International String Quartet Competition –– will be presented by the Bowdoin International Music Festival at Studzinski Recital Hall (12 Campus Road S.) in two performances on Monday, July 17 and Monday, July 24, 2023, in addition to the final concert on Friday August 4 at Crooker Theater (116 Maquoit Rd.). Each of the three performances, as well as the other concerts presented during the season, will be livestreamed at no charge.

The Jupiter String Quartet is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg’s older sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg’s husband, Liz’s brother-in-law). Finding new ways to showcase the beauty of their family-driven musical bonds, the Jupiter Quartet continues to shine as a prominent beacon of inspiration and education within the global musical landscape.

The Jupiter Quartet celebrates and embraces long-standing relationships with the Bowdoin International Music Festival and the Ying Quartet, with whom the Jupiter has previously performed at the Festival several times. On Monday, July 17, 2023 at 7:30pm David Ying of the Ying Quartet will perform alongside Jupiter Quartet for a collaborative performance of Anton Arensky’s String Quartet No. 2 in A Minor, Op. 35 for two cellos, violin and viola. Also as part of the program, Jupiter Quartet cellist Daniel McDonough will collaborate with the Ying Quartet to perform Franz Schubert’s String Quintet in C Major, Op. 163, D. 956.

On Monday July 24, 2023 at 7:30pm, the Jupiter Quartet will perform on their own in a second concert featuring excerpts from "At the Octoroon Balls," String Quartet No. 1 by Wynton Marsalis, Béla Bartók’s Quartet No. 6, and Antonin Dvořák’s Quartet in A-flat major Op. 105. Then as part of the Festival’s final concert on Friday August 4, 2023, the Jupiter Quartet will perform Max Bruch’s String Octet in B-flat Major, together with violinists Renée Jolles and Kurt Sassmannshaus; violist Kirsten Doctor; and bassist Anthony Manzo. The concert will also feature pianist Joyce Yang in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor, Op. 23, performed with the Bowdoin Festival Orchestra and conducted by Jayce Ogren.

More about the Jupiter String Quartet: The Jupiter String Quartet has performed in some of the world’s finest halls, including New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and more. Major music festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and many others. The Jupiter Quartet has been the artist-in-residence at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana since 2012, where the group maintains private studios and directs the chamber music program.

Their chamber music honors and awards include the grand prizes in the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition; the Young Concert Artists International auditions in New York City; the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America; an Avery Fisher Career Grant; and a grant from the Fromm Foundation. From 2007-2010, they were in residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Two. The quartet's latest album is a collaboration with the Jasper String Quartet (Marquis Classics, 2021), produced by Grammy-winner Judith Sherman. The quartet’s discography also includes numerous recordings on labels including Azica Records and Deutsche Grammophon.

The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four.

For more information, visit www.jupiterquartet.com.

About the Bowdoin International Music Festival: The Bowdoin International Music Festival is one of the world’s premier music institutes. Founded in 1964, the Festival engages exceptional students and enthusiastic audiences through world-class education and performances. Each summer, 250 students from more than 20 countries and nearly every state attend the Festival to study with distinguished faculty and guest artists. Community members attend memorable guest artist and faculty performances as well as 175 free events including student performances, composer lectures, masterclasses, community concerts, and family events. The Festival is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

For Calendar Editors:

Description: The Jupiter Quartet, described as “an ensemble of eloquent intensity” by The New Yorker, performs as part of the Bowdoin International Music Festival, one of the world’s premier music institutes. The Festival engages exceptional students and enthusiastic audiences through world-class education and performances. In concerts on July 17, 24, and August 4, Jupiter Quartet will perform on their own and collaborate with members of Ying Quartet, plus violinists Renee Jolles and Kurt Sassmannshaus; violist Kirsten Doctor; and bassist Anthony Manzo, in three distinct programs that feature the music of Anton Arensky and Franz Schubert; Wynton Marsalis, Béla Bartók, and Antonín Dvořák; and Max Bruch.

Short description: The Jupiter Quartet, “an ensemble of eloquent intensity” (The New Yorker), performs in three concerts as part of the Bowdoin International Music Festival.

Concert details:

Who: Jupiter String Quartet and Ying Quartet
Presented by Bowdoin International Music Festival
What: Music by Anton Arensky and Franz Schubert
When: Monday, July 17, 2023 at 7:30pm
Where: Studzinski Recital Hall, 12 Campus Road, S Brunswick, ME
Tickets and information: www.bowdoinfestival.org/event/jupiter-ying-quartets-2023/

Who: Jupiter String Quartet
Presented by Bowdoin International Music Festival
What: Music by Wynton Marsalis, Béla Bartók, and Antonín Dvořák
When: Monday, July 24, 2023 at 7:30pm
Where: Studzinski Recital Hall, 12 Campus Road, S Brunswick, ME
Tickets and information: www.bowdoinfestival.org/event/jupiter-string-quartet/

Who: Jupiter String Quartet with violinists Renee Jolles and Kurt Sassmannshaus; violist Kirsten Doctor; and bassist Anthony Manzo
Presented by Bowdoin International Music Festival
What: Music by Max Bruch
When: Friday, August 4, 2023 at 7:30pm
Where: Crooker Theater, 116 Maquoit Rd., Brunswick, ME
Tickets and information: www.bowdoinfestival.org/event/joyce-yang-plays-tchaikovsky/

Announcing US Tour of The Music Critic Starring John Malkovich - Written and Conceived by Aleksey Igudesman - October 2023; June 2024

John Malkovich in The Music Critic
Written and conceived by Aleksey Igudesman

Announcing US Tour
October 17-28, 2023; June 2024

Watch the Trailer: https://youtu.be/tXEfvkVJ-38

The Music Critic Album Release Date: October 27, 2023 (EuroArts/Warner)
Album information: www.euroarts.com/labels/6572-music-critic

For more information: www.themusiccritic.com

New York, NY -- John Malkovich stars in The Music Critic – a show in which classical music, theater, and comedy collide – written and conceived by Aleksey Igudesman, in a US tour which runs from October 17 to October 28, and continues in June 2024. The tour coincides with the release of The Music Critic album digitally and on CD on October 27, via EuroArts/Warner Music.

In The Music Critic, writer and composer Aleksey Igudesman fuses the sardonic and straight-faced humor for which actor John Malkovich is renowned, with the slapstick and out-of-the-box zaniness of renowned comic duo Igudesman & Joo. Igudesman, who is joined on the tour by longtime collaborator pianist Hyung-ki Joo, is determined to avenge some of the most brilliant pieces of music which were railed and reviled by critics at their premieres.  

Legendary actor John Malkovich performs in this evening length show where he batters, insults, and laughs at the music of composers like Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms, Schumann and more whose works premiered to jeers and negative press for performers and composer alike. In addition to Aleksey Igudesman and Hyung-ki Joo, they are joined by cellist Antonio Lysy, violist Hsin-Yun Huang, and violinist Claire Wells.  

John Malkovich says, “I have always loved the opportunity to collaborate on The Music Critic with Aleksey Igudesman, Hyung-ki Joo, and many other gifted and thoughtful musicians. We are all happy to be back on the road, and for the first time also in the USA, participating in an evening which consists of some of the greatest compositions in the history of classical music, paired with the perhaps rather unexpected initial reactions those compositions elicited from some of the world’s renowned music critics, along with some other surprises.”

Aleksey Igudesman says, “The Music Critic is a project very close to my heart and bringing it to the USA is something I dreamed of from its inception. My dear friend John Malkovich in the role of the evil critic is despicable and lovable at the same time and evokes the critic in every one of us.”

Tanja Dorn, Principal of Dorn Music, which is exclusively managing and booking the tour, says, “We are thrilled to finally be bringing this insightful and hilarious show to audiences in the United States.  Aleksey and John have created a brilliantly witty and creative evening of comedy and music making.”

Tour schedule:

Benaroya Hall, Seattle WA – October 17, 2023
Presented by the Seattle Symphony

Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles CA – October 20, 2023
Presented by Live Nation

Majestic Theater, Dallas, Texas – October 21, 2023
Presented by AT&T Performing Arts Center

Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, San Antonio, Texas – October 22, 2023
Presented by Tobin Center for the Performing Arts

Long Center for the Performing Arts, Austin, Texas – October, 23, 2023
Presented by Long Center for the Performing Arts

Filmore Theatre, Detroit, MI – October, 25, 2023
Presented by Live Nation

Chicago Theatre, Chicago IL – October 26, 2023
Presented by Live Nation

The Beacon Theatre, New York, NY – October 28, 2023
Presented by Live Nation

US Premiere of The Music Critic at the Symphony – with the Oregon Symphony
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland, OR – June 12, 2024
Presented by the Oregon Symphony 

Official Trailer:

Press Room: https://bit.ly/TheMusicCriticPressRoom

 Exclusive Worldwide Management and Booking for “The Music Critic:”

Tanja Dorn & Anthony Acocella, Dorn Music LLC www.dornmusic.com

Igor Levit's New Double Album Fantasia to be released on Sony Classical September 29

Igor Levit’s New Double Album Fantasia
to be Released by Sony Classical on September 20, 2023

Preorder HERE

Features a Wide Range of Works from Various Periods, Showcasing Key Compositions by Franz Liszt, Ferruccio Busoni, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Alban Berg

New York, NY - On his new Sony Classical double album, Fantasia, arriving September 29 and available now for preorder, IGOR LEVIT performs four paradigmatic works spanning a period of almost two centuries from 1720 to 1910. For Igor Levit, these works “have something incredibly expansive about them, their frequent intimacy notwithstanding. They are not only emotional but also instrumental.”

The starting point of all four works is the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, which for Igor Levit represents “maximal freedom and imagination and at the same time great rigour”. Igor Levit has chosen Bach’s exceptional Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D minor and combined it with Liszt’s B minor Sonata, a highly charged piece that at the time of its composition looked far ahead into the future (which Igor Levit is currently performing to great acclaim all over the world), together with Busoni’s Fantasia contrappuntistica, in which Busoni perpetuated the Bach tradition, and Alban Berg’s only Piano Sonata.

These four major works are complemented by four shorter pieces that for Igor Levit provide “lead-ins that I feel intuitively are right”. These four shorter pieces are Alexander Siloti’s arrangement of the famous Air from Bach’s Third Orchestral Suite, Liszt’s transcription of Schubert’s song Der Doppelgänger, Busoni’s Nuit de Noël and an early piano piece in B minor by Alban Berg.

Igor Levit’s Fantasia will be released by Sony Classical on September 29, 2023 both as double CD and in digital formats and is available now for preorder. 

IGOR LEVIT: FANTASIA

Track List:
CD 1 
Johann Sebastian Bach 1685–1750 
1  Suite for String Orchestra No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068: Air (Arr. for piano by A. Siloti)      
2-3 Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D minor BWV 903 

Franz Liszt 1811–1886 
4–6 Piano Sonata in B minor S 178 
7 Der Doppelgänger S 560/12 

CD 2 
Alban Berg 1885–1935 
1 Klavierstück in B minor 
2 Piano Sonata op. 1 

Ferruccio Busoni 1866–1924 
3 Fantasia contrappuntistica BV 256 
4  Nuit de Noël BV 251 

Igor Levit piano 

Sony Music Masterworks comprises Masterworks, Sony Classical, Milan Records, XXIM Records, and Masterworks Broadway imprints.

CONNECT WITH IGOR LEVIT
WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE

Anna Lapwood Releases Luna - Debut Album on Sony Classical Out on September 29

Organ Sensation Anna Lapwood
Announces Debut Album on Sony Classical

Luna - Out Sept 29th

New Single: Max Richter’s ‘On The Nature Of Daylight’
Out Now - LISTEN HERE

“She is much more than a gifted organist, choral conductor and social media sensation…she’s a star on a mission” - The Sunday Times

“She had rightly become “the world’s most visible organist” - New York Times

“Imaginative, open-minded and a brilliant musician, the organist and conductor Anna Lapwood is the dream ambassador for classical music.” - Gramophone

Watch the CBS Saturday Morning Feature on Anna Lapwood: https://youtu.be/eHSm--LWcRo

Marking an exciting new chapter in her career, organ sensation Anna Lapwood, stands on the cusp of something special as she announces her eagerly anticipated new album Luna - out September 29th on Sony Classical.

The album follows a flurry of exciting activity this year. She picked up the prestigious RPS Gamechanger Award at The Royal Philharmonic Society Awards, celebrated the release of her stunning 5 track EP Midnight Sessions At The Royal Albert Hall, and is about to perform a solo recital as part of this year’s BBC Proms season.

An album that represents a rounded reflection of her highly impressive career to date, Luna is a fifteen-track collection of traditional classical repertoire alongside contemporary composers and new film music transcriptions. The album predominantly features Anna as an organist, but the other side of her life is showcased too, conducting the Pembroke College Chapel Choir for two of the tracks.

Anna explains: “One of the highlights of my year is the time I spend teaching music in Zambia. I love it for the people, the music & the laughter, but I also always look forward to the first time I see the Zambian night sky again. You look up and it’s just completely full of stars. Bright stars, dull stars; some twinkling, some static; some glowing orbs and others dots smaller than pinpricks. With this album, I’m imagining we’re standing there, gazing at the sky, overwhelmed by the magnitude of what we can see. I’m imagining that as we stare upwards, our minds can almost take us there, travelling through the night sky and exploring individual stars with their unique personalities and characteristics.”

Originally written by Max Richter, the album’s new offering ‘On the Nature of Daylight’, is a thought-provoking re-imagining that gives the piece an other-worldly dimension. Listen here.

“This was a piece I've been wanting to try on the organ for such a long time,” comments Anna. “When I started running through ideas with our producer, Jonathan Allen, he suggested adding a choir, and the moment we tried it the piece seemed to take on new life. It feels very special to be releasing this as the first single from the album as it brings together the two sides of who I am as a musician: playing the organ but also working with the amazing choirs at Pembroke.”

The 27-year-old from a small Oxfordshire village has been making waves with her exciting approach to organ playing, awakening the senses of young and old alike, opening the gateways to classical music and shining a light on an often under-appreciated instrument.

In 2022, only 8% of organ recitals in the UK were given by women. To try and encourage more women to try the organ, Anna initiated the #playlikeagirl social media hashtag, not to divide but to unite and remind women to own themselves, be themselves and find themselves through music.

Anna has spent 7 years as Director of Music at Cambridge University’s Pembroke College, running the choirs and teaching academic music. After work and as night falls, her role as Associate Artist of the Royal Albert Hall sees her granted special access to the majestic instrument while most of us are fast asleep. This has led to some spectacular spontaneous collaborations, the most famous being with electronic musician Bonobo - one late-night practice session was interrupted by a request shouted up from the stage, which turned out to come from a couple of members of Bonobo’s band. 18 hours later, she was helping them close their show to an unsuspecting audience of 5,000.

Anna continues to relive the magic of that event through her videos to her 550,000+ TikTok followers - a tool she is using with exciting results having now passed 1 million social media followers across all platforms. The power of social media gives the ability to demystify the outdated baggage the organ once carried along with it, throwing open the doors to new music, new possibilities, and new audiences.

Luna Track List:

1. Flying (from "Peter Pan")
   Composer: James Newton Howard

2. Grain Moon
   Composer: Olivia Belli

3. Nocturne Op. 9, No.2
   Composer: Frédéric Chopin

4. Dreamland
   Composer: Kristina Arakelyan

5. Dawn (from "Pride and Prejudice")
   Composer: Dario Marianelli

6. Stay (from "Interstellar")
   Composer: Hans Zimmer

7. Ave Maria
   Composers: Johann Sebastian Bach & Charles Gounod

8. Mad Rush
   Composer: Philip Glass

9. In Paradisum
   Composer: Ghislaine Reece-Trapp

10. Stars
    Composers: Ēriks Ešenvalds & Sara Teasdale

11. Star Fantasy
    Composer: Kristina Arakelyan

12. On the Nature of Daylight
    Composer: Max Richter

13. An Elf on a Moonbeam
    Composer: Florence Beatrice Price

14. Experience
    Composer: Ludovico Einaudi

15. Clair de Lune
    Composer: Claude Debussy

Composer Robert Sirota’s Muzzy Ridge Concerts Returns for Third Season

Top: Neave Trio | Bottom Left: Fischer Duo | Bottom Right: Composer Robert Sirota

Robert Sirota’s Muzzy Ridge Concerts Returns for Third Season
with Fischer Duo and GRAMMY-nominated Neave Trio

The Fischer Duo
Saturday, August 19, 2023 at 3pm
Sunday, August 20, 2023 at 3pm

The Neave Trio
Saturday, August 26, 2023 at 3pm
Sunday, August 27, 2023 at 3pm

Tickets and Information: www.robertsirota.com/muzzy-ridge-concerts

Searsmont, ME – Composer Robert Sirota’s third annual Muzzy Ridge Concerts series brings the highly acclaimed Fischer Duo and GRAMMY-nominated Neave Trio to Maine for performances presented over two weekends in August.

Each of the series’ four concerts will be held in the Searsmont, Maine studio where composer and series founder Robert Sirota has written much of his music over the past 35 years. The Sunday programs will be a repeat of the Saturday programs. Performances will run for approximately 60 minutes with no intermission. Indoor seating is limited to 50 patrons with an additional 20 outdoor seats.

Featured in the first weekend of performances on August 19 and August 20, both at 3pm, are Norman and Jeanne Kierman Fischer of The Fischer Duo, performing works that span from the early 19th century to the present day, including Family Portraits, a new work composed by Robert Sirota and dedicated to the Fischer Duo. Sirota and the Fischer Duo, as well Norman and Jeanne’s two musician daughters Rebecca, and Abigail, share a history steeped in mutual appreciation for music and a meaningful relationship of more than 50 years. The Fischer Duo has embraced opportunities to perform Sirota’s work and with the recording of Family Portraits on the Fischer Duo’s 2022 album 2020 Visions comes a beautiful testament to the friendship these artists share with one another.

Performing on the series’ second weekend, August 26 and August 27 both at 3pm, is the Boston-based, GRAMMY-nominated Neave Trio. The Trio will perform a program showcasing all-women composers: Lili Boulanger, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Ethel Smyth. Though the Neave Trio will be making their Muzzy Ridge Concerts debut, the group has a strong bond of artistic camaraderie with Sirota. Most recently this connection has resulted in the development of Rising, a new collaborative work between the Neave Trio and Sirota, as well as choreographer Gabrielle Lamb and dance company Pigeonwing Dance. Weaving together music, text, and dance, Rising is a meditation not only on rising temperatures and sea levels, but also on humanity’s rising awareness of our connection to and dependence on the Earth’s oceans.

Tickets for all Muzzy Ridge Concerts performances are now on sale at www.robertsirota.com/muzzy-ridge-concerts.

About the Artists:

The Fischer Duo –– GRAMMY-award winning cellist Norman Fischer and pianist Jeanne Kierman Fischer –– has performed on five continents in its over-50-year history. Founded in 1971 while students at Oberlin College, the Duo has developed a wide-ranging repertoire covering the traditional “canon” plus many forgotten or unknown works of the past. In addition, the Fischers have been very active with music of our own time, commissioning over 30 works and recording even more. The Duo’s extensive discography includes 18 albums from Beethoven, Brahms, 20th Century French Masters, Chopin and Liszt, to generations of American composers.These recordings have garnered rave reviews from The Strad, Gramophone, Strings Magazine, and BBC Music Magazine.

Since forming in 2010, Neave Trio has earned enormous praise for its engaging, cutting-edge performances. WQXR explains, "'Neave' is actually a Gaelic name meaning 'bright' and 'radiant', both of which certainly apply to this trio's music making." The Boston Musical Intelligencer included Neave in its "Best of 2014" and “Best of 2016” roundups, claiming, “their unanimity, communication, variety of touch, and expressive sensibility rate first tier.” Neave Trio strives to champion new works by living composers and reach wider audiences through innovative concert presentations, regularly collaborating with artists of all mediums. During the 2023-24 season, the Neave Trio will collaborate with Pigeonwing Dance, composer Robert Sirota, and choreographer Gabrielle Lamb, to perform Rising, a brand new evening-length work.

Neave Trio's latest album, Musical Remembrances, released in April 2022 on Chandos Records, was nominated for a 2022 GRAMMY Award in the category of Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. Musical Remembrances features Rachmaninoff’s Trio élégiaque No. 1, Brahms’ Piano Trio No. 1, Op. 8, and Ravel’s Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 67, and is the Neave Trio’s fourth album with Chandos Records. It follows Her Voice (2019), French Moments (2018), and Neave’s Chandos debut, American Moments (2016). In 2018, Neave Trio also released its critically acclaimed album, Celebrating Piazzolla (Azica Records, 2018), featuring mezzo-soprano Carla Jablonski. More information at: www.neavetrio.com.

During his fifty-year career, composer and Muzzy Ridge Concerts Artistic Director Robert Sirota’s works have been performed by orchestras across the US and Europe by ensembles such as Alarm Will Sound, Sequitur, yMusic, Chameleon Arts, and Dinosaur Annex; by the Chiara, American, Telegraph, Ethel, Elmyr, and Blair String Quartets; and at the Tanglewood, Aspen, and Cooperstown festivals. His Recent commissions include music for the American Guild of Organists, the American String Quartet, Alarm Will Sound, the Naumburg Foundation, yMusic, and arrangements for Paul Simon. Having served as chief executive of the Boston University School of Music, the NYU Music Department, and the Peabody Conservatory, Sirota retired as President of the Manhattan School of Music in 2012.

ECM New Series Releases Keith Jarrett’s 1994 Recording of CPE Bach’s Württemberg Sonatas for the First Time

ECM New Series Releases

Keith Jarrett’s 1994 Recording of CPE Bach’s Württemberg Sonatas

Released for the First Time on June 30, 2023

ECM 2790/91
CD: 0289 4858495 6

New York, New York – Keith Jarrett’s account of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s Württemberg Sonatas is a revelation.

“I’d heard the sonatas played by harpsichordists, and felt there was a space left for a piano version,” says Jarrett today. This outstanding recording, made in May 1994 and previously unreleased, finds the pianist attuned to the expressive implications of the sonatas in every moment. The younger Bach’s idiosyncrasies: the gentle playfulness of the music, the fondness for subtle and sudden tempo shifts, the extraordinary, rippling invention…all of this is wonderfully delivered. The fluidity of the whole performance has a quality that perhaps could be conveyed only by an artist of great improvisational skills. In Jarrett’s hands, CPE Bach’s exploration of new compositional forms retains the freshness of discovery. The pianist also takes to heart CPE’s famous statement:  “Since a musician cannot move others unless he himself is moved, he must of necessity feel all of the affects that he hopes to arouse in his listeners."

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s Württemberg Sonatas were written in 1742-3, and dedicated to Carl Eugen Duke of Württemberg, who studied with CPE at the court of Frederik the Great in Berlin. Published in 1744, they are regarded today as musical masterpieces of the era between the Baroque and the Classical. 

Keith Jarrett’s recording of the Württemberg Sonatas followed a period in which he had been focussing on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. ECM New Series documented Jarrett’s interpretations of Das Wohltemperierte Klavier Buch 1 (recorded February 1987), the Goldberg Variations (January 1989), The French Suites (September1991) and, with Kim Kashkashian, the 3 Sonaten für Viola da Gamba und Cembalo (also September 1991).  Other classical recordings made by Jarrett in this period included Shostakovich’s Bach-inspired 24 Preludes and Fugues (recorded July 1991) and Suites for Keyboard by Bach’s contemporary Georg Friedrich Händel (September 1993).  

In parallel with all this activity, Jarrett was continuing to work with his improvising trio with Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette, raising the bar for interpretive performances of jazz standards. Just three weeks after the CPE Bach recording, the trio was at New York’s Blue Note for an historic three-night run subsequently issued as an award-winning 6-CD box set. 

At the year’s end, there was further classical activity, Jarrett playing Mozart Piano Concertos with the Stuttgarter Kammerorchester under the direction of Dennis Russell Davies. It was Mozart who had hailed CPE Bach as “the father of us all,” a musician who brought a new creative freedom to composing for the keyboard.

The 2-CD set includes booklet with liner notes by Paul Griffiths. 

2023 Newport Classical Music Festival - Presenting Timeless Music for Today in 27 Concerts from July 4-23, 2023

2023 Newport Classical Music Festival

Presenting Timeless Music for Today in 27 Concerts from July 4-23, 2023

Performances by Kelli O’Hara, Hélène Grimaud, Anthony McGill, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, The Knights, Simone Dinnerstein, Cantus, Aizuri Quartet, Hermitage Piano Trio, and many more

 Opera Night at The Breakers featuring Così fan tutte

World Premiere of The Gilded Cage by Curtis Stewart
Commissioned by Newport Classical

Historic Venues include The Breakers, The Elms, Castle Hill Inn, Chinese Tea House, and more

Tickets & Information: www.newportclassical.org/music-festival

Newport, Rhode Island – The 2023 Newport Classical Music Festival will present twenty-seven concerts this summer between July 4-23, 2023, bringing timeless music for today to Newport’s stunning historic mansions and venues including The Breakers, Blithewold Mansion, The Elms, Castle Hill Inn, Chinese Tea House, King Park, Norman Bird Sanctuary, Redwood Library & Athenæum, and more. Tickets are now available at www.newportclassical.org/music-festival or by calling the Box Office at 401-849-1133 x1.

Highlights of the 2023 Newport Classical Music Festival include performances by Broadway and opera star Kelli O'Hara (currently starring in HBO’s The Gilded Age, filmed in Newport); Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra; The Knights; renowned pianists Hélène Grimaud, Simone Dinnerstein, and Charlie Albright; New York Philharmonic principal clarinetist Anthony McGill in a return performance with pianist Anna Polonsky; riveting low-voice acapella ensemble Cantus; celebrated chamber ensembles including the Hermitage Piano Trio, Aizuri Quartet, Excelsis Percussion Quartet, Sinta Saxophone Quartet, and Fenway Quintet; acclaimed cellists Zlatomir Fung and Amit Peled; charismatic Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing; and the world premiere of The Gilded Cage, a new work commissioned by Newport Classical from three-time GRAMMY®-nominated violinist/composer Curtis Stewart. Other highlights include the festival’s popular Opera Night at The Breakers featuring Così fan tutte in a bold new un-staged production, Sunrise Meditations concerts, a concert inspired by nature at Norman Bird Sanctuary, a free Fourth of July concert at King Park, and this year’s young professional Newport Classical Festival Artists in nine performances throughout the festival.

Executive Director Gillian Friedman Fox, says, "This year’s Festival encapsulates the full range of expression within classical music. From solo piano and string recitals to large chamber ensembles and vocal performances, each concert draws upon varied instrumentation to offer interpretations of repertoire from the Baroque period all the way to today. I hope audiences come away from this summer feeling inspired, having musical experiences that turn them on to a new composer or performance style.”

Newport Classical’s Festival Artists program brings together professional musicians at the early stages of their careers for an intense period of rehearsal and music making during the festival. This year’s Festival Artists are Ariel Horowitz, violin; Lun Li, violin; Edwin Kaplan, viola; Titilayo Ayangade, cello; and Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner, piano. Ariel Horowitz is a recent graduate of the Yale School of Music, and recently won the Concert Artists Guild Ambassador Prize. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Heartbeat Music Project, a tuition-free program providing instruments, music, and Navajo (Diné) cultural knowledge to young people in grades K-12 living in the Navajo Nation. A native of Shanghai, China, violinist Lun Li won First Prize in the 2021 Young Concert Artists Susan Wadsworth International Auditions, the Paul A. Fish Memorial Prize, the Buffalo Chamber Music Society Prize, and is a recent graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School. Edwin Kaplan is the violist of the award-winning Tesla Quartet. Among his most cherished projects is the Tesla Quartet's annual call for scores, where he meticulously evaluates and selects from the many compositions submitted by composers worldwide. With cellist Titilayo Ayangade, he performs as Duo Kayo. Titilayo Ayangade has spent over two decades behind her instrument, performing in orchestras, chamber ensembles, and commissioning new music. She holds degrees from the University of Cincinnati-CCM and the University of Texas at Austin, and has also worked closely with members of the Artemis Quartet. Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner was selected as a winner of the Concert Artists Guild 2022 Victor Elmaleh Competition and has been distinguished as a Gilmore Young Artist, an honor awarded to the most promising American pianists of the new generation.

2023 Newport Classical Music Festival Concerts:

The 2023 Newport Classical Music Festival kicks off on Tuesday, July 4 at 7:30pm with a free, outdoor Fourth of July Patriotic Pops concert preceding the fireworks at King Park featuring Fenway Quintet, one of Boston’s most esteemed professional brass quintets. This concert is part of the 2023 BankNewport Community Concert Series.

On Wednesday, July 5 at 6pm, Sinta Quartet presents a Saxophone Soirée outdoors in the beautiful private gardens of Bellevue House, featuring chamber music steeped in lively folk traditions, as well as a catalog of traditional music from around the globe by a wide range of composers including Bela Fleck, Mark O’Connor, Jay Unger, Ligeti, and Dvořák.

Newport Classical Music Festival’s Opening Night concert on Thursday, July 6 at 8pm at The Breakers features GRAMMY-nominated pianist Simone Dinnerstein, described as “an artist of strikingly original ideas and irrefutable integrity” by The Washington Post. Her passionate and nuanced program features music from her 2022 album Undersong, the third in a trilogy of albums she recorded at home during the pandemic. Dinnerstein says, “Undersong is an archaic term for a song with a refrain, and to me it also suggests a hidden text. Glass, Schumann, Couperin, and Satie all seem to be attempting to find what they want to say through repetition, as though their constant change and recycling will focus the ear and the mind. This time has been one of reflection and reconsidering for many of us, and this music speaks to the process of revisiting and searching for the meaning beneath the notes of the undersong.”

On Friday, July 7 at 8pm, the Aizuri Quartet performs at The Breakers. Praised by The Washington Post for “astounding” and “captivating” performances that draw from a notable “meld of intellect, technique and emotions,” the infectiously energetic Aizuri Quartet brings together their own four distinctive musical personalities, tracing a journey from darkness to dawn, and culminating in the warmth of Haydn’s “Sunrise” Quartet. This program explores the ways in which the atmosphere, psychological power, and political metaphor of the night have been an inspiration for composers from the classical era to the present-day, and in addition to Haydn includes music by Clara Schumann, Bartók, and Robert Schumann.

The Minnesotan low-voice ensemble Cantus takes the stage at The Breakers on Saturday, July 8 at 8pm. Cantus has developed a national following for their trademark warmth and blend, innovative programming, and riveting performances of music ranging from the Renaissance to the 21st century. In this program, Cantus explores the challenges of connecting in our modern age by pairing works by Sibelius and Saint-Saëns with compositions from contemporary luminaries including Andrea Ramsey, David Lang, Christopher H. Harris, Cam Butler, Ingrid Michaelson, Simon & Garfunkel, and more.

On Sunday, July 9 at 9am, the day begins with Strings in Nature, a morning performance by the Newport Classical Festival Artists at Norman Bird Sanctuary, taking audience members on a journey through touchpoints between music and nature, anchored by a string quartet reduction of Benjamin Britten’s Simple Symphony that explores themes from Britten’s childhood memories.

That evening at 8pm, Newport Classical presents Opera Night: Così fan tutte at The Breakers in a bold and unforgettable un-staged production of Mozart's 1790 Italian opera buffa. Featuring six quickly emerging operatic stars – soprano Maria Valdes (Fiordiligi); mezzo-soprano Leah Heater (Dorabella); baritone Armando Contreras (Guglielmo); tenor David Blalock (Ferrando); bass-baritone James Demler (Don Alfonso); and soprano Victoria Okafor (Despina). Under the musical direction of acclaimed pianist Charles Kim, and reimagined by Newport Classical’s own Trevor S. Neal, this beloved opera, sung in gossamer Italian, is a probing look into romantic relationships through the collaborative genius of Mozart and his brilliant librettist, Da Ponte.

On Tuesday, July 11 at 4pm at Newport Art Museum, internationally renowned Israeli cellist Amit Peled presents his program American Landscapes. Peled is acclaimed as one of the most exciting and virtuosic instrumentalists on the concert stage today. His performances have been justly described as “fiery and intelligent” by The Strad magazine and full of “glowing tone” by The New York Times. Joined by longtime musical collaborator pianist Solomon Eichner, this program explores music by pioneering American composers including Florence Price, George Gerswhin, Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, and George David Weiss. Peled will also present a free conversation and performance at 11am that day at Temple Shalom entitled “Journey with my Jewishness.”

On Wednesday, July 12 at 11am at The Elms, flutist Anthony Trionfo, whose playing has been called “breezily virtuosic” (The New York Times), joins the Festival Artists for a delightful morning concert featuring chamber masterworks for flute, strings, and piano, including the first of Mozart’s flute quartets; Friedrich Kuhlau’s last and possibly greatest composition Grand Trio; French composer Louise Farrenc’s trio for flute, cello and piano; and other works by rarely heard composers of the late-Classical and early Romantic periods.

That evening at 8pm, Zlatomir Fung performs the Bach Cello Suites at The Breakers. Bach's six Cello Suites are among the most extraordinary and iconic works ever written for cello. Each piece resonates with its own unique characteristics and sonority. This is a rare opportunity to hear the full collection performed in its entirety by one of the preeminent cellists of our time. Zlatomir Fung is the youngest musician ever to win First Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition Cello Division. His impeccable technique demonstrates his mastery of the canon.

On Thursday, July 13 at 11am at The Elms, the Festival Artists explore the famous feud between Brahms and Liszt, in which both sought to build upon their own legacies to match that of the great Mozart, in Classical Rivalries, a program featuring music by all three legendary composers.

That evening at 8pm, the singular pianist Hélène Grimaud performs at The Breakers. Grimaud is known around the globe for her fierce intelligence, fearless interpretations, and sincere freedom of expression. In this characteristically thoughtful program, her long-anticipated debut as a Newport Classical recitalist, she approaches each work with deep respect as well as individual artistry. Her program includes Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 30 in E Major, Op. 109; Brahms’s Three Intermezzi for piano, Op. 117 and 7 Fantasien, Op.116; and J.S. Bach’s Chaconne from Violin Partita No.2 in D minor, BWV 1004 (arr. Busoni).

On Friday, July 14, the day begins early with a 5:15am Sunrise Meditations concert at Chinese Tea House. Experience an unforgettable sunrise over Newport’s iconic Cliff Walk through this whimsical and inspiring morning concert with the Festival Artists. Music by Vieutemps, Mozart, Bologne, Rolla, and Schubert, introspective in nature and written for different string configurations, makes for a meditative and uplifting start to the day.

That evening at 8pm, charismatic Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing performs at The Breakers. Hemsing is one of the leading young violinists of our time. At Newport Classical, she returns to her roots as a specialist of the music of Edvard Grieg, opening this imaginative program with his Sonata for violin and piano No. 2. Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner, a Festival Artist and “gifted virtuoso” (San Francisco Chronicle), joins Hemsing on the piano for this astonishing recital program which also includes music by Jacob Shea, Fauré, and Ravel. In partnership with NewportFILM, on July 13 Hemsing will deliver a post-screening artist talk, following a showing of the documentary film Forte which features her. This free screening will be part of NewportFILM’s outdoor summer programming, with more details to come.

On Saturday, July 15 at 3pm, the Festival Artists Fanfare will be an invigorating afternoon concert at Emmanuel Church, where the stunning English Gothic Revival architecture shapes an enveloping acoustic experience. This program, featuring music by Mozart, Debussy, Dohnanyi, and Rebecca Clarke, highlights the solo and virtuosic capabilities of these talented emerging artists – and concludes with Frank Bridge’s Phantasy for Piano Quartet, which is credited with catapulting Bridge’s career. All ticket sales for this performance will go toward supporting Emmanuel Church and the vibrant community who gather here.

That evening at 8pm at The Breakers, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, under the musical direction of Richard Egarr in his second season as Music Director, offers a thoughtful program of Handel and Biber performed entirely on period instruments. This program also features the East Coast premiere of a new work by Mason Bates, which the composer describes as “a dreamy and lyrical mediation on the interesting connection between Baroque performance practice and early bluegrass.” Considered the most versatile ensemble of its kind, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra is recognized as “America’s leading historically informed ensemble” (The New York Times).

On Sunday, July 16 at 8pm, the Hermitage Piano Trio presents a Rachmaninoff 150th Birthday Celebration at The Breakers. Now entering their second decade, the United States-based Hermitage Piano Trio has solidified its place as one of the world’s leading piano trios, garnering multiple GRAMMY Award nominations, audience raves, and high press accolades for their performances. The Washington Post has singled them out for playing with “such power and sweeping passion that it left you nearly out of breath.” Hermitage Piano Trio has assembled this program in celebration of Rachmaninoff’s 150th birthday, pairing his second piano trio with works by three composers – Josef Suk, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Amy Beach – who each drew inspiration from the prolific composer.

On Tuesday, July 18 at 11am at Blithewold Mansion, Newport Classical’s Festival Artists present a morning concert exploring the Great American Songbook. The Great American Songbook is to American music what the complete works of Shakespeare are to English literature: an indispensable and crucial foundation for a unique and sophisticated art form. Composers and lyricists such as George and Ira Gershwin, Richard Rodgers with Lorenz Hart, and the inimitable Cole Porter created a formidable repertoire of songs for Broadway stage musicals and Hollywood movies. These subsequently became the bedrock of singers and instrumentalists in jazz’s golden age. Newport Classical’s Festival Artists embark on a grand instrumental journey featuring eloquent break-up ballads, wistful reveries, and exultant celebrations of love and romance.

That evening at 7:30pm at Castle Hill Inn, internationally award-winning pianist Charlie Albright performs Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, on a program exploring the full range of piano repertoire, from the core canon to classical improvisations on popular works of today –  all set next to Castle Hill's magical seaside vistas. The concert will include Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata No. 17 in D minor; Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring; and a live improvised sonata created on the spot by Albright based on notes from the audience. Albright has quickly become a Newport Classical Music Festival favorite for his ability to bring music to everyone, connecting with audiences through his music, speaking, and his uniquely playful approach to concerts.

On Wednesday, July 19 at 11am at The Elms, mezzo-soprano Heather Gallagher and baritone Joseph Parrish join the Festival Artists in presenting Classical Lieder, an enchanting morning of art song and Lieder. Director of Artistic Planning Trevor Neal has curated an intriguing recital program of songs composed in the nearly forty years between 1888 and 1922. His selections highlight the changing styles of music that emanated from four important centers of music-making: from Vienna, the voice of the Hugo Wolf, known as the aesthetic adversary to the traditionalist Brahms; from France, varied sound-pictures of Faure; from Italy, the genius of the often-overlooked Respighi; and from the UK, the imagination and sensitivity of Gerald Finzi.

On Wednesday, July 19 and Thursday, July 20 at 8pm, Newport Classical presents An Evening with Kelli O'Hara at The Breakers, a spectacular night with stage and screen star Kelli O’Hara, one of Broadway and Opera’s greatest leading ladies. Her portrayal of Anna Loenowens in The King and I garnered her a Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical. In 2015, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Lehar’s The Merry Widow opposite Renee Fleming and returned as Despina in Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte and Laura Brown in Kevin Puts’s The Hours. O’Hara received an Emmy nomination for her work as Katie Bonner in The Accidental Wolf and can currently be seen starring alongside Christina Baranski and Cynthia Nixon in HBO’s series The Gilded Age. O’Hara now returns to The Breakers for a vocal recital celebrating her illustrious and varied career, with pianist Dan Lipton.

On Friday, July 21, the day begins with a Sunrise Meditations concert at 5:15am at Chinese Tea House. As the sun rises over the Atlantic, the Newport Classical Festival Artists welcome the day with a program of meditative musical poetics. This program explores the spaces in which we gather: physically, mentally, and spiritually. These selections highlight composers from historically underrepresented communities and from the indigenous diaspora. Alexis Roland-Manuel references baroque dance style; Paul Wiancko fuses traditional Appalachian music with Japanese folk song. Lei Liang’s Gobi Canticle grew out of the composer’s interest in Mongolian music. The traditional Catalan carol The Song of the Birds was made famous by cellist Pablo Casals when he performed it as a plea for peace upon receiving the United Nations Peace Medal in 1971. Korngold’s String Quartet No. 2 closes the program with impressionistic touches, evoking waltzes, and the musical lightness of Vienna.

That evening at 8pm, Newport Classical presents Concert and Cocktails: A Musical Soirée with Anthony McGill and Anna Polonsky at Redwood Library and Athenæum. Clarinetist Anthony McGill is one of classical music’s most recognizable and brilliantly multifaceted figures. In addition to holding the Principal Clarinet chair at the New York Philharmonic, McGill enjoys an equally impressive international solo and chamber music career. His program includes music by Amanda Harberg, Aaron Copland, Adolphus Hailstork, and more. During the special extended intermission reception, explore the Library while enjoying cocktails and an array of hors d’oeuvres.

In the afternoon on Saturday, July 22 at 2pm at Colony House, Newport Classical presents Excelsis Percussion Quartet. The New York City-based quartet is an international and multilingual group of women who speak the universal language of rhythm, rooted in their belief that music possesses an ability to unite us all. They have been hailed by timpanist Jonathan Haas as "one of the most innovative and exciting percussion ensembles to emerge in the golden age of chamber music" for their immersive sound world. Excelsis infuses vibrancy and new energy into the percussion community through eclectic programming, innovative storytelling, and embracing their intersectional identities. Their program includes music by Daniel Levitan, Eric Whitacre, Owen Clayton Condon, Rüdiger Pawassar, Yaz Lancaster, and Vanessa Thomlinson.

That evening at 8pm, the Festival Artists Finale at The Breakers will feature the world premiere of The Gilded Cage, a new work by three-time GRAMMY-nominated violinist/composer Curtis Stewart, commissioned by Newport Classical. Stewart’s piece is inspired by his father’s time living in Newport and growing up within the Baptist AME church, as well as the history of The Breakers and the Newport residents who have taken care of the space over its many years. The program, curated by Stewart, also features a thrilling selection of piano quintets by Schumann, Bruch, and Shostakovich.

The 2023 Newport Classical Music Festival concludes on July 23 at 8pm with The Knights perform Appalachian Spring at The Breakers. The Knights, led by brothers Eric Jacobsen (artistic director and conductor) and Colin Jacobsen (artistic director and violinist) are a New York-based orchestral collective of adventurous musicians dedicated to transforming the concert experience and eliminating barriers between audiences and music. Members bring a range of cultural influences to the group, from baroque and classical performance practice, to jazz and klezmer genres, to pop and indie rock. Driven by an open-minded spirit of camaraderie and exploration, The Knights inspire listeners with vibrant programs that honor the classical tradition alongside their passion for artistic discovery. Their program at The Breakers includes Vivaldi’s Flute Concerto featuring flutist Alex Sopp, Anna Clyne’s Prince of Clouds, Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances featuring violinist Alex Gonzalez, Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring, and Colin Jacoben’s A Shadow Under Every Light.

For the full schedule, visit: www.newportclassical.org/music-festival

About Newport Classical

Newport Classical is a premier performing arts organization that welcomes people of every age, culture, and background to intimate, immersive musical experiences. The organization presents world-renowned and up-and-coming artistic talents at stunning, storied venues across Newport – an internationally sought-after cultural and recreational destination.

Originally founded in 1969 as Rhode Island Arts Foundation at Newport, Inc. and previously known as Newport Music Festival (NMF), Newport Classical has a rich legacy of musical curiosity presenting the American debuts of over 130 international artists and rarely heard works and is most well-known for hosting three weeks of concerts in the summer in the historic mansions throughout Newport and Aquidneck Island. The organization has produced more than 2,000 concerts and hosted more than 1,000 musicians and singers. In 2021, the organization launched a new commissioning initiative – each year, Newport Classical will commission a new work by a Black, Indigenous, person of color, or woman composer as a commitment to the future of classical music.

Newport Classical is proud to be an essential pillar of New England’s cultural landscape, and to invest in the future of classical music as a diverse, relevant, and ever-evolving art form. Newport Classical’s four core programming initiatives – the iconic summer Music Festival taking place across Newport; the year-round Chamber Series at the organization’s home base Newport Classical Recital Hall at Emmanuel Church in downtown Newport; the free family-friendly Community Concerts held in green spaces around Aquidneck Island; and its newly expanded Music Engagement Initiative program – illustrate the organization’s ongoing commitment to presenting “timeless music for today.”

Photo credits:

Aizuri Quartet by Shervin Lainez, Amit Peled by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco, Anthony McGill by Todd Rosenberg, Cantus by Nathan Ryan, Charlie Albright courtesy photo, Curtis Stewart by Marilena Arvelo, Eldbjørg Hemsing by Gregor Hohenberg, Excelsis Percussion Quartet courtesy photo, Hélène Grimaud by Mat Henneck, Hermitage Trio by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco, Kelli O'Hara courtesy of Polk & Co., Philharmonia Baroque by Frank Wing, Simone Dinnerstein by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco, Sinta Quartet courtesy of General Arts Touring, The Knights by Shervin Lainez, Zlatomir Fung by I-Jung Huang

Newport Classical concert photos by Lisette Rooney.

Jupiter String Quartet Presented by Madeline Island Chamber Music

Photo by Todd Rosenberg. More photos available in high resolution at www.jensenartists.com/jupiter-string-quartet

Jupiter String Quartet
Presented by Madeline Island Chamber Music

Performing Music by Wynton Marsalis, Antonin Dvořák, and Béla Bartók

Friday, July 7, 2023 at 8pm
Bayfield Presbyterian Church | 306 Washington Ave. | Bayfield, WI
Saturday, July 8, 2023 at 5pm
The Clubhouse on Madeline Island | 480 Old Fort Road | La Pointe, WI

Tickets and information: www.micm.org/performance/calendar-of-events/
Livestream (Free): www.micm.org/performance

“The Jupiter String Quartet, an ensemble of eloquent intensity, has matured into one of the mainstays of the American chamber-music scene.” – The New Yorker

www.jupiterquartet.com

Bayfield & La Pointe, WI – The internationally acclaimed Jupiter String Quartet –– winner of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and the Banff International String Quartet Competition –– will be presented in concert by Madeline Island Chamber Music, a Program of MacPhail for two performances on Friday July 7 and Saturday July 8, 2023. These performances, held at Bayfield Presbyterian Church (306 Washington Ave.) and The Clubhouse on Madeline Island (480 Old Fort Road) respectively, are presented during Madeline Island Chamber Music’s summer season for 2023.

For each of their concerts, the Jupiter Quartet will perform a program that features excerpts from "At the Octoroon Balls," String Quartet No. 1 by Wynton Marsalis, Antonin Dvořák’s Quartet in A-flat major Op. 105, and Béla Bartók Quartet No. 6.

As longtime, beloved performers of the Madeline Island Chamber Music community, the Jupiter Quartet cherish every opportunity to bring their close-knit and lively style of performance to the similarly well-bonded community of Madeline Island. Of the Jupiter Quartet’s history with and appreciation for Madeline Island Chamber Music’s programs, violist Liz Freivogel says:

“Our quartet always looks forward very much to our time at the Madeline Island Chamber Music festival. We first taught at Madeline Island very early on in our career, and have loved returning many times since then, each time marveling at how wonderfully the program is thriving. It has such an inspiring mix of music-making, career counseling, and general life advice, all in a beautiful setting. We are so excited to be a part of it all again!”

The Jupiter String Quartet is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg’s older sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg’s husband, Liz’s brother-in-law). Brought together by ties both familial and musical, the Jupiter Quartet is now celebrating its 22nd year together.

More About Jupiter String Quartet: The Jupiter String Quartet is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Meg Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (Meg’s older sister), and cellist Daniel McDonough (Meg’s husband, Liz’s brother-in-law). Now enjoying their 22nd year together, this tight-knit ensemble is firmly established as an important voice in the world of chamber music. Artists-in-residence at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana since 2012, the Jupiter Quartet maintain private studios and direct the University’s chamber music program.

The Jupiter Quartet has performed in some of the world’s finest halls, including New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, Mexico City's Palacio de Bellas Artes, Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress, Austria’s Esterhazy Palace, and Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall. Their major music festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Rockport Music Festival, Music at Menlo, the Seoul Spring Festival, and many others. In addition to their performing career, they have been artists-in-residence at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana since 2012, where they maintain private studios and direct the chamber music program.

Their chamber music honors and awards include the grand prizes in the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition; the Young Concert Artists International auditions in New York City; the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America; an Avery Fisher Career Grant; and a grant from the Fromm Foundation. From 2007-2010, they were in residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Two.

The quartet's latest album is a collaboration with the Jasper String Quartet (Marquis Classics, 2021), produced by Grammy-winner Judith Sherman. This collaborative album features the world premiere recording of Dan Visconti’s Eternal Breath, Felix Mendelssohn’s Octet in E-flat, Op. 20, and Osvaldo Golijov’s Last Round. The quartet’s discography also includes numerous recordings on labels including Azica Records and Deutsche Grammophon.

The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four. For more information, visit www.jupiterquartet.com.

About Madeline Island Chamber Music: Madeline Island Chamber Music is a program of MacPhail Center for Music, devoted to educating and nurturing the next generation of musicians through concentrated study and performance of chamber music on verdant, historic Madeline Island. Established in 1985 as a one-week camp for 20 high school musicians, the program has evolved to its current six-week structure serving over 70 extraordinarily talented high school, college, and graduate school string and woodwind musicians. Each year, a pre-professional quartet is invited as the Emerging Artist Quartet-in-Residence, participating in the Fellowship String Quartet program and later a week-long artist residency hosted by MacPhail Center for Music. This residency features public performances and community engagement programs throughout the Twin Cities. Madeline Island Chamber Music is a nationally recognized model for education in chamber music. https://www.micm.org/

About MacPhail Center for Music: MacPhail Center for Music is the nation’s largest music learning and performance center and one of Minnesota’s top ten arts organizations. Since 1907, MacPhail Center for Music has been providing meaningful opportunities and is committed to transforming lives and strengthening communities through music learning experiences that inspire. Each year, MacPhail offers programming to 15,000 students of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities at locations in Minneapolis, White Bear Lake, Chanhassen, Apple Valley, Austin, and Madeline Island, WI., as well as 103 community partnerships across the Twin Cities. An industry leader in online music education, MacPhail’s Live Online and Online School Partnerships programs have reached students for the past ten years. MacPhail has a 117-year history of excellence, promoting life-long learning and building long-term relationships between students and teachers. https://www.macphail.org/

For Calendar Editors:

Description (for both concerts): The Jupiter Quartet, described as “an ensemble of eloquent intensity” by The New Yorker, performs as part of the Madeline Island Chamber Music (MICM) –– a nationally recognized model for education in chamber music. MICM is devoted to educating and nurturing the next generation of musicians through concentrated study and performance of chamber music on verdant, historic Madeline Island. On Thursday July 6, Jupiter Quartet will work with students as part of a master class held at The Clubhouse at Madeline Island and in two performances on July 7 and 8, Jupiter Quartet will perform a program that features the music of Wynton Marsalis, Béla Bartók, and Antonín Dvořák.

Short description: The Jupiter Quartet, “an ensemble of eloquent intensity” (The New Yorker), presents a masterclass and performs in two concerts as part of the Madeline Island Chamber Music’s 2023 summer season.

Concert details:

Who: Jupiter String Quartet
Presented by Madeline Island Chamber Music
What: Music by Wynton Marsalis, Dvořák, and Bartók
When: Friday, July 7, 2023 at 8pm
Where: Bayfield Presbyterian Church, 306 Washington Ave., Bayfield, WI
Tickets and information: www.micm.org/performance/calendar-of-events/

Who: Jupiter String Quartet
Presented by Madeline Island Chamber Music
What: Music by Wynton Marsalis, Béla Bartók, and Antonín Dvořák
When: Saturday, July 8, 2023 at 5pm
Where: The Clubhouse on Madeline Island, 480 Old Fort Road, La Pointe, WI
Tickets and information: www.micm.org/performance/calendar-of-events/
Livestream (Free): www.micm.org/performance

Joshua Bell's New Sony Classical Album - Butterfly Lovers

Joshua Bell Releases New Sony Classical Recording - Butterfly Lovers

Available Now

Bell Collaborates with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra
on the Beloved Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto


Adapted for an Orchestra of Traditional Chinese Instruments

(June 30 – New York, NY) GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s forthcoming recording Butterfly Lovers features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for an ensemble of traditional Chinese instruments. The new Sony Classical album is available everywhere now.  Accompanying today’s news is the video for the seventh movement (Adagio Cantabile) from the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto – listen here.

The recording also features Bell as soloist in three popular Western Romantic works for violin and orchestra, all specifically arranged to be performed with the SCO’s virtuosic ensemble of Chinese instruments.

"I'm thrilled to have worked with the incredible Singapore Chinese Orchestra and Maestro Tsung Yeh on this recording, which includes the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto as its centerpiece,” Joshua Bell says. “It was a joy to collaborate with the SCO musicians, who brought this work to life through the expressive sounds of the traditional Chinese instruments.”

Inspired by a hauntingly romantic Chinese legend, the concerto was written in 1959 by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao. The original version, richly scored for a full Western symphonic orchestra, has achieved global popularity. For this recording, Bell performed an adaptation of the work by Yang Hui Chang and Ku Lap-Man for an orchestra of traditional instruments.

“The music beautifully describes the classic Butterfly Lovers story, featuring themes of romance, star-crossed lovers, and friendship,” Bell adds.

The concerto, in seven concise but evocative movements, recounts the ancient Chinese legend of the youthful “butterfly lovers,” a story as passionate and star-crossed as that of Romeo and Juliet. The new arrangement for Chinese orchestra lends the concerto an authentic clarity of sound and a timeless atmosphere, in which Bell’s violin becomes a poignant voice telling and inhabiting a story of tragic but transcendent love.

“Joshua has brought his own unique interpretation to this world-famous masterwork,” conductor Tsung Yeh says, calling their collaboration “a beautiful and emotional musical journey.”

“My favorite parts of this recording are the more soulful, soft passages,” he adds. “I can actually hear the sighing and sobbing from his violin.”

Bell says, “We have also included three classics of the violin repertoire from 19th-century Europe – works by Sarasate, Saint-Saens and Massenet – making it a truly multicultural project.” 

Those three classics – Sarasate’s “Ziguenerweisen,” Saint-Saëns’ Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A Minor; and Massenet’s “Méditation” from Thaïs – are also heard in distinctive arrangements for Chinese orchestra.

Bell and Yeh first performed together at the beginning of Bell’s career in 1989, following Yeh's appointment as music director of Indiana’s South Bend Symphony Orchestra. Bell was the soloist for one of Yeh’s very first concerts.

“As an American, I feel so privileged to have been given this opportunity,” Bell says of the new recording, “and I find it fitting that we have recorded this in Singapore, a historically important setting that bridges East and West."

Bell hopes to share the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto with American audiences during the 2024-25 concert season.

JOSHUA BELL – BUTTERFLY LOVERS – JUNE 30, 2023

TRACKLIST:
1. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: I. Adagio Cantabile (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
2. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: II. Allegro (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
3. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: III. Adagio Assai Doloroso (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
4. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: IV. Pesante - Piu mosso - Duramente (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
5. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: V. Lagrimoso (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
6. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: VI. Presto resoluto (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
7. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: VII. Adagio Cantabile (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)
8. Introduction et rondo capriccioso in A minor, Op. 28 (Camille Saint-Saëns)
9. “Méditation” from Thaïs (Jules Massenet)
10. Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20 (Pablo de Sarasate) 

ABOUT JOSHUA BELL

With a career spanning almost four decades, GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated artists of his era. Bell has performed with virtually every major orchestra in the world and continues to maintain engagements as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, conductor, and Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.

Sony Music Masterworks comprises Masterworks, Sony Classical, Milan Records, XXIM Records, and Masterworks Broadway imprints.

FOLLOW JOSHUA BELL
WEBSITE || FACEBOOK || INSTAGRAM || TWITTER || YOUTUBE

Britt Festival presents West Coast Premiere of Guggenheim Fellow Lisa Bielawa’s Send the Carriage Through

Photo by Desmond White available in hi-resolution at www.jensenartists.com/lisa-bielawa

Britt Festival presents West Coast Premiere of Guggenheim Fellow Lisa Bielawa’s Send the Carriage Through

Britt Festival Orchestra
Conducted by Music Director Teddy Abrams

Saturday, June 24, 2023 8pm
Britt Pavilion | 350 First St. | Jacksonville, OR

Tickets: www.brittfest.org/performance/beethoven-5-alexi-kenney-23/

Lisa Bielawa: www.lisabielawa.net

Jacksonville, OR – 2023 Guggenheim Fellow Lisa Bielawa’s latest orchestral work, Send the Carriage Through, will have its West Coast premiere on Saturday, June 24, 2023 at 8pm, presented by the Britt Music and Arts Festival and performed by the Britt Festival Orchestra led by Music Director Teddy Abrams. The program also includes Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Barber’s Violin Concerto, featuring violin soloist Alexi Kenney.

Lisa Bielawa wrote Send the Carriage Through for the Louisville Orchestra, where Teddy Abrams also serves as Music Director, as part of her Creators Corps residency with that orchestra. Bielawa is one of three composers who temporarily relocated to Louisville, Kentucky, to make new orchestral and community-based work as an active, engaged member of the community, as part of the orchestra’s new Creators Corps program.

Inspired in part by Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral processional, Bielawa describes Send the Carriage Through as, “a gift of gratitude to the players of the Louisville Orchestra and a celebration of Teddy Abrams’ own open-hearted vision of leadership as a connection and invitation.”

The Queen’s meticulously choreographed funeral initially inspired her work on the piece. Bielawa says, “[Queen Elizabeth II] had in fact ‘composed’ the whole pageant herself, down to every detail – and there she was, at the center of it all, yet absent from it. As I watched the astounding choreography of the procession, I ruminated: ‘What does the way we enshrine people who are gone, especially great leaders, say about us?’ … What began as a rumination on greatness and mortality took on more and more playfulness and joy as the weeks and months went by, and my relationship with Louisville – the city, its Orchestra, its audience and community – became more and more colorful and engaged. I began to celebrate the exhilaration of music-making as a team sport, a kind of relay race in which one could literally ‘pass the baton,’ sometimes leading, sometimes following.”

Lisa Bielawa is a Rome Prize winner in Musical Composition. She takes inspiration for her work from literary sources and close artistic collaborations. Her music has been described as “ruminative, pointillistic and harmonically slightly tart,” by The New York Times. She is the recipient of the 2017 Music Award from the American Academy of Arts & Letters and a 2020 OPERA America Grant for Female Composers. She was named a William Randolph Hearst Visiting Artist Fellow at the American Antiquarian Society for 2018 and was Artist-in-Residence at Kaufman Music Center in New York for the 2020-2021 season. In 1997 Bielawa co-founded the MATA Festival. 

During her Guggenheim Fellowship period this year, Bielawa is primarily working on two projects – a new opera, La Ballonniste, and a book of prose vignettes from her experiences and encounters with music in a variety of international settings. La Ballonniste is an opera in three acts inspired by the life of Elisabeth Thible, an opera singer who was the first woman to fly in a hot air balloon, with libretto by Claire Solomon, dramaturgy by Cori Ellison. Bielawa’s book will share remembrances and observations gathered from her decades of wandering, offering cultural moments in the global continuum frozen in time.

In addition to Send the Carriage Through, Lisa Bielawa’s recent premieres all celebrate the musical relationships and community that have become a hallmark of her work:

• On April 15, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP), led by Artistic Director Gil Rose, gave the New York premiere of her piece In medias res at Carnegie Hall, as part of the orchestra’s 25th anniversary celebration. Bielawa was the BMOP Music Alive Composer-in-Residence from 2006-2009, and wrote this work inspired by the bonds she forged with her fellow musicians. The San Francisco Chronicle praised the work’s “superb combination of rhythmic exuberance, melodic grace and textural inventiveness.”

• On April 23, the Louisville Orchestra presented the world premiere of Louisville Broadcast, an iteration of Bielawa’s ongoing Broadcast series focused on the city of Louisville. Over 500 professional, student, and amateur musicians from throughout the area joined together to perform Bielawa’s 45-minute piece, turning two historic locations – Shelby Park and Big Four Bridge – into vast musical canvases, with listeners walking freely among the performers.

• From May 17-19, the Louisville Orchestra gave the premiere performances of Bielawa’s new piece Home, co-composed with Lindsey Branson, on tour to three Kentucky cities – Harlan, Prestonburg, and Pikesville. Bielawa met Branson, a singer/songwriter and graduate of the Kentucky School of Bluegrass and Traditional Musicon a recent trip to Hazard, KY, in the Appalachian mountains. They created the piece in an organic and intuitive process over the next weeks, resulting in a joyful shared musical performance work for full orchestra and unlimited musicians from the rich traditions of the region.

For more information about Lisa Bielawa, please visit www.lisabielawa.net.
For information about Teddy Abrams, please visit www.teddyabrams.com
For information about the Britt Music and Arts Festival, please visit www.brittfest.org/about-britt

Annual "Garden of Memory" Summer Solstice Concert Returns for 2023 Presented by New Music Bay Area and Chapel of the Chimes

“Garden of Memory”
Annual Summer Solstice Concert Returns for 2023

Presented by New Music Bay Area and Chapel of the Chimes

Featuring Bay Area performers and composers

Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 5-9pm
Chapel of the Chimes
4499 Piedmont Avenue | Oakland, CA

Parking is limited. Public transit and carpooling are recommended. No ticket sales at the door.

Tickets ($20 general, $15 students & seniors, $5 children 5-12) available through Eventbrite.

More information: bit.ly/gardenofmemory2023

Oakland, CA – On Wednesday, June 21, 2023 from 5 to 9pm, Garden of Memory –– the annual summer solstice celebration presented by New Music Bay Area and Chapel of the Chimes –– returns for an evening of musical performance. Tickets, which will be available through online sales only, are limited to 2500. Though not required, masks are encouraged for indoor performances.

At this popular solstice concert, described by the San Francisco Chronicle as “a walk-through fun house of musical and visual splendor” and by the East Bay Times as “the best party of the year,” the program features concurrent performances in different parts of the building by Bay Area composers, musicians, sound artists, and other performers presenting a variety of acoustic and electronic music, installations, and interactive events. The audience is free to explore the multilevel labyrinth of interior gardens, cloisters, stairwells, fountains, alcoves, pools, and antechambers during the performances.

Select highlights of programming and performers for 2023:

• Pianist Sarah Cahill will perform Ballade by the late Kaija Saariaho, who passed away on June 2; excerpts from Birds and Insects by Arlene Sierra; and Kotekan from Vivian Fung's Glimpses

• Pamela Z, a multimedia artist, composer, and pioneer of digital looping techniques

• The Cornelius Cardew Choir, a Bay Area-based vocal performance ensemble specializing in experimental music

• Theresa Wong, an internationally-renowned composer, cellist, and vocalist with Bay Area composer, vocalist, producer and improviser Roco Córdova

• SORIAH (stage persona of Enrique Ugalde), an internationally-acclaimed throat singer and ritual artist

Additional artists to be featured for 2023, many of whom are known around the Bay Area, include: Beth Custer, Guillermo Gallindo and Andy Meyerson, Nico Simonian, Paul Dresher, Duo B: Lisa Mezzacappa and Jason Levis, Karen Stackpole and Krys Bobrowski, Randy Porter and Friends, Orchestra Nostalgico, Dan Plonsey and Friends, Jon Raskin, Gino Robair and Steve Adams, and many others.

Garden of Memory offers a unique and personal musical experience to every listener roving freely through the Chapel of the Chimes. Getting lost is part of the experience as guests climb up and down the three floors of this Oakland Historic Landmark building and its unique architectural elements, which rise into vaulted ceilings. Seamless in feel, there are three separate design sections created by four architects; Cunningham & Politeo 1909, Julia Morgan 1926-1951 (consulting until her retirement 1951), Aaron Green 1956-1986 and JST Architects 1986-1998. In the older section the complexity of chapels, columbaria, and mausoleum areas are adorned with murals, paintings, sculpture, mosaics, California tile and 16th century antiquities. All architectural and garden areas have excellent acoustics and are illuminated by gentle natural light, often through beautiful arrangements of stained glass.

Drawing crowds of over four thousand people in past years (including a large number of children), Garden of Memory has become a favorite summer solstice celebration for Bay Area audiences. Since the pandemic, the audience is now limited to 2500. Information about performances, directions, parking, accessibility, food/beverage, and is available at www.gardenofmemory.com.

About New Music Bay Area: Since 1996, New Music Bay Area, a nonprofit organization which provides opportunities and information to composers and performers of new music throughout the Bay Area, has hosted the Garden of Memory solstice concert every June 21st from 5pm-9pm. Board president Sarah Cahill came up with the idea after wandering into the Chapel of the Chimes, and now Cahill and Lucy Farber Mattingly organize the concert each year, in collaboration with the small board of New Music Bay Area and the Chapel of the Chimes. Cahill recalls, “As I meandered around the building, I heard distant organ music, and tried to follow the sound to its source, through a labyrinth of magical gardens and gothic alcoves with the afternoon light filtering through stained glass. I imagined putting musicians all around this maze, so that when you turn a corner you might encounter a string quartet or an electronic music installation or a Georgian choir. So that's what we did.”

About Chapel of the Chimes: Chapel of the Chimes, the largest above-ground cemetery west of the Mississippi, started out as a street car station and became the California Memorial Crematorium and Columbarium in 1909. The property was expanded and transformed by Julia Morgan and later, Aaron Green – a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright. The lobby and hallways feature artwork by Diego Rivera, a marble table top from the Medici family crest and a page from the Gutenberg Bible.

The facility’s numerous chapels, columbaria, and mausoleum areas are adorned with antiquities that date back to the 16th century. All architectural and garden areas have excellent acoustics and are illuminated by gentle natural light, often through beautiful arrangements of stained glass.

About Sarah Cahill: Sarah Cahill, hailed as “a sterling pianist and an intrepid illuminator of the classical avant-garde” by The New York Times, has commissioned and premiered over seventy compositions for solo piano. Composers who have dedicated works to Cahill include John Adams, Terry Riley, Frederic Rzewski, Pauline Oliveros, Julia Wolfe, Roscoe Mitchell, Annea Lockwood, and Ingram Marshall. She was named a 2018 Champion of New Music, awarded by the American Composers Forum (ACF). In May 2023, Cahill premiered Viet Cuong's new piano concerto, Stargazer, with the California Symphony.

Cahill’s latest project is The Future is Female, an investigation and reframing of the piano literature featuring more than seventy compositions by women around the globe, from the Baroque to the present day, including new commissioned works. Recent and upcoming performances of The Future is Female include concerts presented by The Barbican, Carolina Performing Arts, Carlsbad Music Festival, Detroit Institute of Arts, University of Iowa, Bowling Green New Music Festival, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, North Dakota Museum of Art, Mayville State University, the EXTENSITY Concert Series’ Women Now Festival in New York, and the Newport Classical Music Festival.

Sarah Cahill’s discography includes more than twenty albums on the New Albion, CRI, New World, Tzadik, Albany, Innova, Cold Blue, Other Minds, Irritable Hedgehog, and Pinna labels. Cahill's latest album, The Future is Female, Vol. 3, At Play, was released in April 2023 on First Hand Records. The Future is Female is a three-volume series, which celebrates and highlights women composers from the 17th century to the present day.

Cahill’s radio show, Revolutions Per Minute, can be heard every Sunday evening from 8 to 10 pm on KALW, 91.7 FM in San Francisco. She is on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory and is a regular pre-concert speaker with the San Francisco Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

For more information, visit www.sarahcahill.com.

ECM New Series Releases Vox Clamantis’s New Recording of Music by Henrik Ødegaard out on June 2

ECM New Series Releases

Vox Clamantis’s Recording of Music by Henrik Ødegaard
Jaan-Eik Tulve, conductor

ECM New Series 2767
0289 4858473 4
Release Date: June 2, 2023

After dedicating past ECM New Series recordings to the works of contemporary composers Arvo Pärt, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Helena Tulve and most recently Cyrillus Kreek, the Vox Clamantis choir, under the direction of Jaan-Eik Tulve, turns its attention towards Norwegian composer Henrik Ødegaard with a fine-drawn programme of liturgical choral music. Vox Clamantis are at home in the worlds of both old and new music, having addressed Gregorian chant and the polyphony of Pérotin as well as present-day compositions on previous albums. The ensemble and the works of Ødegaard make a perfect match, as the composer’s work, in a subtle sleight of hand, interweaves Gregorian chant with Norwegian folk song.

“In this recording, Gregorian chant is the protagonist,” writes Kristina Kõrver in the liner notes, “sometimes in its pure beauty, sometimes intertwined with the ‘new song’ of Henrik Ødegaard. As an organist and choir conductor, his musical thinking has been strongly influenced by two important traditions, Gregorian chant and Norwegian folk music, both of which have found unique expressions in his work.”

While these two traditions appear inextricably merged into one in the performance of the choir, they are visibly separated from one another in Ødegaard’s scores – the passages of Gregorian chant being marked in square notation, the predominant musical notation form in European vocal music from the 13th to the early 17th century. It’s a symbolic divide, translated gracefully into the music by opening up monophonic plainchant with modern polyphonic ingredients. The composer employs liturgical hymns as source material, from which he then branches off with his own compositional voice.

His empathic embrace of the original scores is as respectful as it is subtle, endowing the early music with different shades of his own creation and thereby achieving a fresh perspective. The approach his heard on Jesu, dulces memoria, composed in 2014/2015, with the title of the original Gregorian hymn maintained. He gently integrates new musical material on O filii et filiae, based on a 15th century paschal hymn, and the approach persists in the following Kyrie and the conductus Pater noster.

The main work here is the eight-part Meditations over St. Mary Magdalene’s Feast in Nidaros, originally conceived to be sung by two separate choirs. It is based on antiphons found in a 13th-century manuscript from medieval Scandinavia. Ødegaard’s compositional process transfigures these antiphons without overriding the original sketches – a process described in the liner notes “as if the composer were literally sitting in front of a fragmentary manuscript, filling in the gaps and adding the missing lines, not as scholar-restorer, but as a poet, a co-creator.”

The album was recorded at the St. Nicholas Dome in Haapsalu, Estonia, in March 2021.

*

With an extensive background of studies in trombone, church music, composition and Gregorian chant, Henrik Ødegaard (Oslo, 1955) settled his focus on liturgical composition, working as choir conductor, organist and composer. He is represented in the Norwegian hymn book (1985), and from 1982 to 2006 held a position as organist/choir conductor in Sauherad, Telemark, in addition to being an active composer. His main focus is on choir music, where he mixes plainchant with the Norwegian folk tradition, employing micro-tonal elements in the process. Ødegaard has received commissions from Oslo Chamber Choir, Oslo Philharmonic, Telemark Brass Ensemble, Telemark Chamber Choir, and many other ensembles across Scandinavia and the Baltic States.

Tulve and Ødegaard first met 30 years ago, when Tulve was giving Gregorian chant masterclasses in Norway. Shortly after, the composer would go on to study at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musqiue et de Danse de Paris, where Tulve was the assistant of the professor of Gregorian chant, Louis-Marie Vigne. Tulve: “Henrik has always been interested in linking Gregorian chant to his own compositions, and so we have a long-standing connection through his work. Vox Clamantis has been performing his music for years. It is therefore deeply symbolic that he wrote Meditations over St. Mary Magdalene’s Feast in Nidaros, in which he used the old manuscripts of the Trondheim Cathedral, specifically for us and the Norwegian women's ensemble Schola Sanctæ Sunnivæ.”

After leading the Paris Gregorian Choir and the Lac et Mel ensemble, Jaan-Eik Tulve founded Vox Clamantis in Tallinn in 1996, and he remains its artistic director and conductor today. From the outset a collective with members sharing interest in Gregorian chant, Vox Clamantis has explored both early polyphony and contemporary music, with many composers writing new music for the group. Vox Clamantis’s recordings have won numerous awards, and in 2017 the ensemble received the National Cultural Award of the Republic of Estonia. The choir appears on numerous critically acclaimed ECM New Series recordings, including Erkki-Sven Tüür’s Oxymoron (2007), Filia Sion (2012), Arvo Pärt’s Adam’s Lament (2012) and The Deer’s Cry (2016), Helena Tulve’s Arboles lloran por lluvia (2014), and The Suspended Harp of Babel (2020) with music by Estonian composer Cyrillus Kreek. The BBC and The Observer, among much other international press, had high praise for the latter, each connecting something deeply universal but also alien with the music, calling it “magic of another sphere” on the one hand and “music of another place and time, beautifully done” on the other.

More info:

http://www.voxclamantis.ee/

https://ecmrecords.com/artists/vox-clamantis/

Anna Thorvaldsdottir's new portrait album - ARCHORA and AIŌN - out on Sono Luminus May 26

Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s ARCHORA / AIŌN

Recorded by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra
Led by Chief Conductor Eva Ollikainen

Release Date: May 26, 2023
Sono Luminus

US Premiere of ARCHORA: Los Angeles Philharmonic, May 11-14
UK Premiere of AIŌN: BBC Symphony Orchestra, Aldeburgh Festival, June 16

“Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s natural instrument is the symphony orchestra, but in her hands it is reborn as a natural organism.”
– The Guardian

www.annathorvalds.com | www.en.sinfonia.is | www.sonoluminus.com

On Friday, May 26, 2023, Sono Luminus releases a new portrait album of the music of Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir featuring her orchestral works ARCHORA from 2022 and AIŌN from 2018, by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra led by Chief Conductor Eva Ollikainen. The album is offered in standard CD and Pure Audio Blu-ray™ formats (5.1 DTS HD MA 192kHz, 7.1.4 Auro-3D 96kHz, 2.0 LPCM 192kHz, 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos 48kHz), as well as digitally.

Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s “seemingly boundless textural imagination” (The New York Times) and “riveting” (The Times) sound world has made her “one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary music” (NPR). Her music is composed as much by sounds and nuances as by harmonies and lyrical material – it is written as an ecosystem of sounds, where materials continuously grow in and out of each other, often inspired in an important way by nature and its many qualities, in particular structural ones, like proportion and flow.

ARCHORA was commissioned by the BBC Proms with co-commissioners the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and Klangspuren Schwaz, and was premiered in August 2022 at the BBC Proms by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Eva Ollikainen in a concert selected as among The Guardian’s Classical Highlights of 2022. The Los Angeles Philharmonic and Ollikainen gave the U.S. premiere performances of ARCHORA at Walt Disney Concert Hall in May.

Of the premiere, Andrew Clements wrote in The Guardian, “Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s music is about mass and density, how different planes of sounds collide and combine, and how intricately detailed textures evolve over time. Those qualities make the orchestra the obvious medium for her work, and it has largely been through her sequence of strikingly effective orchestral scores that the Iceland-born composer has become recognised as one of the most distinctive voices in European music today."

AIŌN was written for the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and co-commissioned by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. The BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ollikainen, will give the UK premiere performance of AIŌN on June 16, 2023 as part of the 2023 Aldeburgh Festival, where Anna will be featured composer. AIŌN is a symphony-scale orchestral work in three parts – “Morphosis,” “Transcension,” and “Entropia” – and has been described as, “intense, surprising, and beautiful. AIŌN takes you to another place,” by Nordlys, and as, “an extraordinary three-movement work ... a soundworld that could be massively placid, deafeningly chaotic, weirdly unearthly, or awesome with oceanic majesty,” by Classical Voice North America.

Anna writes of these two pieces, and her sources of inspiration, in this excerpt from the liner notes for the new album:

The core inspiration behind ARCHORA centers around the notion of a primordial energy and the idea of an omnipresent parallel realm – a world both familiar and strange, static and transforming, nowhere and everywhere at the same time . . . AIŌN is inspired by the abstract metaphor of being able to move freely in time, of being able to explore time as a space that you inhabit rather than experiencing it as a one-directional journey through a single dimension. . .

As with my music generally, the inspiration behind ARCHORA and AIŌN is not something I am trying to describe through the music or what the music is “about”, as such. Inspiration is a way to intuitively tap into parts of the core energy, structure, atmosphere and material of the music I am writing each time. It is a fuel for the musical ideas to come into existence, a tool to approach and work with the fundamental materials, the ideas and sensations, that provide and generate the initial spark to the music.

This new album follows the April 28, 2023 release on Sono Luminus of Anna’s major orchestral work CATAMORPHOSIS (commissioned by the Berlin Philharmonic and co-commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Iceland Symphony Orchestra) as part of the album Atmospheriques, recorded by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra led by Daníel Bjarnason.

With the addition of these two albums in 2023, Sono Luminus will have released all six of Anna’s orchestral works to date – including METACOSMOS (commissioned by the New York Philharmonic), released in 2019; AERIALITY, originally released by Deutsche Grammophon in 2014 and re-released in a remastered version on Sono Luminus in 2022; and Dreaming, originally released on a portrait album by Innova Recordings in 2011 and re-released on Sono Luminus in 2020.

Anna’s music is widely performed internationally and has been commissioned by many of the world’s leading orchestras, ensembles, and arts organizations, including the Berlin Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Danish String Quartet, International Contemporary Ensemble, BBC Proms, and Carnegie Hall. Her “confident and distinctive handling of the orchestra” (Gramophone) has garnered her awards from the New York Philharmonic, Lincoln Center, the Nordic Council, and the Ivors Academy. Currently Composer-in-Residence with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, she will also be in residence at the 2023 Aldeburgh Festival. She lives in the London area.

RECENT AND UPCOMING PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS

Danish String Quartet International Tour - March 19-August 2, 2023
Featuring the premiere performance of Rituals
Including April 13 at UC Santa Barbara, CA; April 14 in Berkeley, CA; April 16 in Vancouver, BC; April 20 at Carnegie Hall in New York, NY; April 21 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC; and more.
Information

Seven-City Iceland Symphony Orchestra UK Tour - April 20-28, 2023
Featuring METACOSMOS
Information

Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles, CA - May 11-14, 2023
US premiere of ARCHORA
Information

Carnegie Hall, New York, NY - May 25, 2023
World premiere of Ubique, a concert-length work for solo flutes, two cellos, and piano; part of Claire Chase’s Density series
Information 

National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa, Ontario - May 18-19, 2023
Canadian premiere of CATAMORPHOSIS
Information 

Royal Opera House, London, England - June 9-17, 2023
Featuring CATAMORPHOSIS and METACOSMOS w/ choreography by Wayne McGregor
Information 

Aldeburgh Festival, Suffolk, England - June 12-24, 2023
Featured festival composer; UK Premiere of AIŌN, performance of METACOSMOS, and more
Information 

Tanglewood Festival & Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music, Lenox, MA - July 28-August 2, 2023
Composer in residence, including a portrait concert, performance of METACOSMOS, and the Danish String Quartet performing Rituals
Information

For Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s complete performance calendar, visit www.annathorvalds.com/performances.

ALBUM TRACK LISTING

Anna Thorvaldsdottir: ARCHORA / AIŌN
Icelandic Symphony Orchestra, Conducted by Eva Ollikainen
Sono Luminus
Release date: May 26, 2023

[1] ARCHORA by Anna Thorvaldsdottir [20:52]
[2-4] AIŌN by Anna Thorvaldsdottir
2. I. Morphosis [13:16]
3. II. Transcension [16:47]
4. III. Entropia [10:50]

Total Time: 61:48

Recorded at Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavík, Iceland
Norðurljós Recital Hall, October 17-20, 2022
Producer: Ragnheiður Jónsdóttir
Executive Producer: Collin J. Rae
Recording, Mixing Engineer: Daniel Shores
Editing Engineer: Ragnheiður Jónsdóttir
Assistant Engineer: Joshua Frey
Mastering Engineers: Daniel Shores; Morten Lindberg

Pure Audio Blu-ray™ Audio specifications:
5.1 DTS HD MA 192kHz
7.1.4 Auro-3D 96kHz
2.0 LPCM 192kHz
7.1.4 Dolby Atmos 48kHz

Maya Beiser Releases InfInIte Bach - Bach’s Six Cello Suites - in Spatial Audio & Immersive Binaural Mix on May 26

Maya Beiser Releases InfInIte Bach
J.S. Bach’s Six Cello Suites

Available in Full Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio
via Apple Music & in an Immersive Binaural Mix

Release Date: May 26, 2023
Islandia Music Records

New York, NY – On May 26, 2023, cellist and producer Maya Beiser will release InfInIte Bach on her Islandia Music Records label – her first recording of the complete Solo Cello Suites of J.S. Bach. Maya made this album in her converted barn in the Berkshires in Massachusetts, recording the Suites while exploring the varying frequencies and resonances of the room, in order to create layers of sound acoustically. InfInIte Bach will be released digitally in full Dolby Atmos spatial audio, available via Apple Music, and in an immersive binaural mix on all other platforms.

Maya writes of the process, “I spent 2022, my 60th year of life, immersed in recording, and rerecording, deconstructing and decontextualizing, experimenting and exploring sounds, reverberations, harmonics in my converted barn in the Berkshires, Massachusetts, engaging with Bach’s cello Suites. Having dedicated the past 35 years to creating new music, work that reimagines the cello on a vast canvas in multiple disciplines, I radically departed from the conventional classical cello sound. Yet, the Suites were ingrained in my daily practice. Even as I was getting ready to perform a new work by Steve Reich, Louis Andriessen, or David Bowie, I would still begin every day playing a movement from the Suites. Over the years I was experimenting with the process of unlearning the doctrine I was taught about this music, until last year when I took the time to relearn it anew.”

Maya’s approach to this recording was inspired, in part, by Alvin Lucier’s seminal 1969 piece, I am sitting in a room. She writes, “I brought my longtime sound engineer and collaborator, Dave Cook, to the space and we started exploring the acoustic environment. I considered how the space itself uncovers, informs and reshapes my interpretation of the Suites, feeding back the music to me as I play and record it. We mixed many microphones placed at various distances in the resonant space to emphasize nuances in overtones, reflections, and reverberations. Analyzing the multichannel recording, identifying and accentuating the natural drones and harmonics, we further reinforced the resonances and macro harmonic structure of the music. In the spatial audio mix, we aimed to bring the listening experience into the room; guiding the listener through the virtual space as the music infinitely evolves around them.”

Maya Beiser’s InfInIte Bach engages the listener in a profound and all-encompassing way, moving us to reconsider the familiar while keeping whole Bach’s seminal work.

About Maya Beiser:

Describing cellist, producer, and multifaceted artist Maya Beiser, The New York Times writes, “The adventurous Ms. Beiser has been called the ‘cello goddess,’ which is not hyperbole: She summons from her instrument an emotional power so stirring that even the most stoic audience members risk turning into sobbing sacks of flesh.”

Passionately forging her artistic path through uncharted territories, Maya Beiser has been captivating audiences worldwide, bringing a bold and unorthodox presence to contemporary classical music, reimagining solo cello performance in the mainstream arena, and defying conventional norms with her boundary-crossing performances. Hailed as “the reigning queen of avant-garde cello” by The Washington Post, she has been called a “cello rock star,” by Rolling Stone and praised as “a force of nature,” by The Boston Globe. 

Raised on a commune in Israel’s Galilee Mountains, by her Argentinean father and French mother, Maya spent her early life surrounded by the music and rituals of Jews, Muslims, and Christians, while studying classical cello repertoire. Throughout her extensive career she has been a featured performer on the world’s greatest stages among them Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, London’s Southbank Centre, Royal Albert Hall and the Barbican, the Sydney Opera House, Barcelona’s L’Auditori, Paris’ Cité de la Musique, Stockholm’s Concert Hall, and major venues across five continents. Among the wide range of artists with whom she has collaborated are Louis Andriessen, Philip Glass, Tan Dun, Steve Reich, Brian Eno, Mark Anthony-Turnage, Shirin Neshat, Erin Cressida-Wilson, Bill Morrison, Robert Woodruff, Missy Mazzoli, David Lang, Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe, Evan Ziporyn, Pontus Lidberg, Wendy Whelan, Lucinda Childs, and Joe Hisaishi.

Maya’s vast discography includes fourteen solo albums, many of them topping the classical music charts. She is the featured soloist on numerous film soundtracks, including an extensive collaboration with composer James Newton Howard for M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening and After Earth, Denzel Washington’s The Great Debaters, Edward Zwick’s Blood Diamond, and Rupert Sanders’ Snow White and the Huntsman. Her performance of David Lang’s “world to come” has been featured on the soundtrack for Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar winning film, La Grande Bellezza. 

Maya Beiser is a United States Artists (USA) Distinguished Fellow in Music and was a Mellon Distinguished Visiting Artist at MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology; invited to present at the prestigious TED main stage in Long Beach, CA, Maya’s TED Talk has been watched by millions of people. She has been featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts and All Things Considered, PBS News Hour, and the BBC World News. Maya is a graduate of Yale University.

Track Listing:
Maya Beiser: Infinite Bach
Islandia Music Records
Release Date: May 26, 2023

J.S. Bach
1-6 Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007
7-12 Cello Suite No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1008
13-18 Cello Suite No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1009
19-24 Cello Suite No. 4 in E-flat Major, BWV 1010
25-30 Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011
31-36 Cello Suite No. 6 in D Major, BWV 1012

Produced by Maya Beiser
Recorded by Dave Cook at The Art at Foothill Farm, Lenox, MA
Edited and mixed by Dave Cook at Area 52 Studios, Saugerties, NY
Immersive mix and mastering by Scott Anthony at Storybook Sound, Maplewood, NJ
Photography by Hu Boyang
Art direction by Denise Burt
Creative Director: Kristen Loring Brennan

About Islandia Music Records:
Islandia Music Records is an independent record label founded and spearheaded by cellist and producer Maya Beiser, one of the foremost soloists and avant-garde artists of her generation. Maya Beiser’s desire to be the driving force behind her artistic expression led her to concentrate on an intensely rich and innovative solo career. She has engaged composers, choreographers, dancers, visual artists, filmmakers, sound designers, and technology innovators to create works written for her or by her and interpreted through her singular artistic lens. The freedom to chart her own course made it possible to become a game changer in the contemporary creative landscape. A platform for self-expression and daring artistic adventures, Islandia Music Records allows for a broad palette of collaborative patterns: between the old and the new, the brazen and the subtle, the dark and the hopeful.

Baritone Benjamin Appl Embarks on North American Concert Tour Culminating with Carnegie Hall Debut on May 20

Baritone Benjamin Appl Embarks on North American Concert Tour in
May 2023 Culminating with Carnegie Hall Debut on May 20

"the way he navigated the song’s transformation, from disappointment to obsession, was so gripping and troublingly real, I heard people all around me exhale afterward, as if Mr. Appl had rendered them breathless."
– The New York Times

“In dynastic terms the young German baritone Benjamin Appl is Lieder royalty.”
– The Spectator

“the current front-runner in the new generation of Lieder singers”
- Gramophone

Tour Details:
May 2: Linfield Lively Arts (McMinnville, OR)
May 4: Friends of Chamber Music Portland (Portland, OR)
May 7: Vancouver Recital Society (Vancouver, BC)
May 10: San Francisco Performances (San Francisco, CA)
May 14: Cranbrook Music Guild (Bloomfield Hills, MI)
May 20: Carnegie Hall Debut (New York, NY)

Benjamin Appl Online: www.benjaminappl.de

New York, NY – Baritone Benjamin Appl, hailed by The Financial Times as, “the most promising of today’s up-and-coming song recitalists,” embarks on a North American tour from May 2-20, 2023 and will perform with pianist James Baillieu in Portland, OR (May 2, Linfield Lively Arts; May 4, Friends of Chamber Music Portland); Vancouver, BC (May 7, Vancouver Recital Society); San Francisco, CA (May 10, San Francisco Performances); and Bloomfield Hills, MI (May 14, Cranbrook Music Guild); concluding his tour with his Carnegie Hall Weill Recital Hall debut in New York on May 20. 

Mentored by one of the greatest singers of the twentieth century, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Appl is  celebrated by audiences and critics alike for a voice that “belongs to the last of the old great masters of song” with “an almost infinite range of colours” (Suddeutsche Zeitung), “exacting attention to text” (The New York Times), and artistry that’s described as “unbearably moving” (The Times). 

Named Gramophone Award Young Artist of the Year in 2016, Appl was a member of the BBC New Generation Artist scheme from 2014-16, as well as a Wigmore Hall Emerging Artist and ECHO Rising Star for the 2015-16 season, appearing at major venues throughout Europe, including the Barbican Centre London, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Wiener Konzerthaus, Philharmonie Paris and Cologne and the Laeiszhalle Hamburg. He was signed exclusively to SONY Classical between 2016 and 2021, and has recently partnered with Alpha Classics for a long-term collaboration on multiple albums. His first album for Alpha Classics, released last year, features Schubert’s Winterreise. Other recent recordings include the orchestral songs of Hans Sommer with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and of Hugo Wolf with the Jenaer Philharmonie, also released in 2022.

Appl is dedicated to drawing connections for contemporary audiences to the Lieder tradition, often sharing with audiences personal sources of inspiration during his performances. “In a manner that is unusual for classical music,” reports The Financial Times, “Appl has woven the backstory into his concerts – introducing Richard Strauss’ ‘Allerseelen,’ for instance, as an homage to the two grandparents he lost a few years ago, or prefacing the English songs with a recollection of the disorientation and exhilaration he felt after first moving to London.”

In recent years, Appl has also worked beyond the concert stage, presenting a series of programs for BBC Radio 3 entitled “A Singer’s World,” and starring in the film Breaking Music, which celebrates both the Argentinian Tango and German Lied traditions by breaking down the traditional boundaries between musical genres. During the 2021-22 season, Appl took part in an exciting new realization of Schubert’s Winterreise, which was filmed in the Swiss Alps in November 2021. Commissioned by the BBC and Swiss television station SRF, and directed by John Bridcut, the film was first broadcast on BBC4 in early 2022, coinciding with the release of Appl’s recording of Winterreise on Alpha Classics. This season, Appl is Artist in Residence at London’s St. Martin in the Fields giving multiple recitals throughout the year, including a collaboration with Holocaust survivor Éva Fahidi in a recital and talk exploring the loss of family, identity, memory, and rediscovered hope.

For his North American tour, Appl will present Nocturne, a program exploring a nighttime journey with selections arranged according to facets of the night – romance, the moon, stars, nightmares, fancies, insomnia, dreams, the darkest hour, and finally morning. As part of the program’s darkest hour section, Appl will perform two pieces by Ilse Weber, a Czech composer and poet who was imprisoned with her family in Theresienstadt and later killed with her young son in Auschwitz. Nocturne also includes music by Schubert, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Grieg, Wolf, William Bolcom, James MacMillan, and many more.

Of the program, Benjamin Appl writes:

Assisted by music and poetry, we walk through the night, beginning with the evening hours, where we indulge in romance and longing, and where the stars and the moon become our companions. Shrouded in myths and legends, they then become our partner to reflect our innermost feelings and passions in songs by Schubert, Vaughan Willliams and Somervell. Unnerving events and vivid nightmares form the backbone of Schumann’s cruel ballad of King Belshazzar, Schubert’s frightening masterpiece Erlkönig as well as in the bizarre Ballad of Black Max by William Bolcom. Phantasies and dreams put to music by Quilter, Gurney Wolf and Grieg, enrich our imagination.

As someone who was born and raised in Germany, it is utterly important for me to come and perform songs written in the concentration camp of Theresienstadt, here in the United States of America. During the time of Nazi Germany, this camp was known for imprisoning, torturing, and killing so many people, in particular, many creative people. In this, our darkest hour of human history, people retreated into themselves to write music as an escape from the real, inhuman, evil world around them. One of the prisoners there was Ilse Weber, a children’s nurse, who shared her own compositions with the children in Theresienstadt, and where she accompanied the young on her guitar whilst singing together. After her deportation to the death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau she made the decision to go with the children into the gas chambers. Witnesses afterwards told that they could hear her and the children singing her lullaby Wiegala, when the doors were shut behind them.

Strauss’ Morgen gives us hope for a better, more peaceful future, where we all encounter each other with more respect and understanding. A night gives everyone of us a chance of a new morning: a new and better beginning.

More about Benjamin Appl: 

Benjamin Appl started in music as a young chorister at the renowned Regensburger Domspatzen, later continuing his studies at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München and eventually at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London. He had the good fortune of being mentored by the legendary singer Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Appl says, “my years of working with Fischer-Dieskau were invaluable and had a hugely formative influence on me. He is an inspiration – someone who is always searching and seeking a deeper understanding of music and of life. He was a role model for how to prosper as an artist, never just delivering, but each time creating.” Appl also enjoys a significant long-term collaboration with composer György Kurtág.

An established recitalist, Appl has performed at the Ravinia, Rheingau, Schleswig Holstein, Edinburgh International, and Oxford Lieder festivals; Schubertiade Schwarzenberg and at the KlavierFestival Ruhr. He has performed at major concert venues including Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Berlin and Vienna, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and Musée de Louvre Paris, in addition to which he is a regular recitalist at Wigmore Hall and at Heidelberger Frühling. In equal demand as soloist on the world’s most prestigious stages, he collaborates with NHK Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, Philharmonia, Seattle Symphony, Vienna Symphony and many others.

In addition to this North American tour, Appl’s 2022-23 season includes orchestral concerts with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Klaus Mäkelä and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in Mozart’s Requiem; NDR Hannover with Andrew Manze and Orchestre Pays de Loire in Brahms’ Requiem; Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Thomas Søndergård in Britten’s War Requiem; La Verdi Orchestra Milan in Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder; and Zurich Chamber Orchestra’s prestigious New Year’s Gala. A revered interpreter of period music, Appl looks forward to collaborations with Les Talens Lyriques on a solo Mozart tour and in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with Christophe Rousset; a recital with Ensemble Masques at BOZAR Brussels, further Bach programmes with the Berliner Barocksolisten and his debut appearance with the Gabetta Ensemble in Budapest. In addition, he looks forward to revisiting successful collaborations with lutenist Thomas Dunford in Bonn, Schleswig Holstein and Oxford Lieder Festivals; with pianist Alice Sara Ott at London’s Southbank Centre; with accordionist Martynas in Heidelberg, Mecklenburg Vorpommern, and with pianist James Baillieu at Festival St. Denis.

Appl’s growing discography includes Schumann duets with Ann Murray (DBE), accompanied by Malcolm Martineau; his debut solo disc Stunden, Tage, Ewigkeiten accompanied by James Baillieu, which was released in April 2016 on Champs Hill records; and a live recording of Schubert lieder with Graham Johnson for the Wigmore Hall Live label. His first solo album for Sony Classical, Heimat, was Gramophone nominated and won the prestigious Prix Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Best Lieder Singer) at the 2017-18 Académie du Disque Lyrique Orphées d’Or. Other recent recordings include an album of Bach with Concerto Köln as well as Sibelius’s Kullervowith the BBC Scottish Symphony and Thomas Dausgaard for Hyperion Records.

Pianist Sarah Cahill's The Future is Female, "At Play," - Final of Three Volumes Out on First Hand Records - Music by 30 Women Composers from Around the Globe

Pianist Sarah Cahill's New Album Out Today
The Future is Female, Vol. 3, At Play

Third of a Three-Volume Series Featuring 30 Solo Piano Works by Women Composers from Around the Globe

Available Today via First Hand Records

“Here, then, is an alternative history of solo piano music – and one that's delivered with real conviction by pianist Sarah Cahill.” – BBC Music Magazine

“This disc is a revelation, and is wholeheartedly recommended.”
RECOMMENDED, ‘Recording of the Month’ – MusicWeb International

www.sarahcahill.com

Today, April 28, 2023, pianist Sarah Cahill, described as “a sterling pianist and an intrepid illuminator of the classical avant-garde” by The New York Times, releases her new album, The Future is Female, Vol. 3, At Play, on First Hand Records. The Future is Female is a three-volume series, which celebrates and highlights women composers from the 17th century to the present day. These albums encompass 30 compositions by women from around the globe and include many new commissioned works and world premiere recordings.

The Future is Female, Vol. 3, At Play features works by Hélène de Montgeroult, Cecile Chaminade, Grażyna Bacewicz, Frangiz Ali-Zadeh, Chen Yi, Pauline Oliveros, Hannah Kendall, Aida Shirazi, and Regina Harris Baiocchi. This album, centered around the theme of play, concludes the three volume collection. On Wednesday, March 8, 2023 –– in honor of International Women’s Day –– Cahill will give a four-hour performance of The Future is Female, presented by the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC.

In March of 2022, coinciding with the release of the first volume –– The Future is Female, Vol. 1, In Nature –– and in celebration of International Women’s Day, Cahill gave a marathon performance of The Future is Female presented by the Barbican Centre at the Barbican Conservatory. Vol. 1 In Nature features music by Anna Bon, Fanny Mendelssohn, Teresa Carreño, Leokadiya Kashperova, Fannie Charles Dillon, Vítězslava Kaprálová, Agi Jambor, Eve Beglarian, Deirdre Gribbin, Mary D. Watkins. The second album in the series, The Future is Female Vol. 2, The Dance, features works by Élisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre, Clara Schumann, Germaine Tailleferre, Zenobia Powell Perry, Madeleine Dring, Betsy Jolas, Elena Kats-Chernin, Meredith Monk, Gabriela Ortiz, and Theresa Wong.

Since the first album in The Future is Female trilogy, “In Nature” –– an album Classical-Notes describes as presenting “exemplary performances” –– listeners have wholeheartedly embraced Cahill’s celebration of historical and living women composers. BBC Music Magazine writes: “As with the fine first instalment, the American pianist [Sarah Cahill] takes us on a chronological journey that zips around the world, stitching together contrasting styles into an enjoyable musical patchwork.” Musicweb International calls Vol. 2, The Dance “a revelation,” while New Music Buff notes the “impressive command of baroque, classical, romantic, and modern idioms” that Cahill brings to both “In Nature” and “The Dance.”

Cahill started working on her project, The Future is Female, which now encompasses more than 70 compositions, in 2018. “For decades I had been working with many living American composers, including Pauline Oliveros, Tania León, Eve Beglarian, Mary D. Watkins, Julia Wolfe, Ursula Mamlok, Meredith Monk, Annea Lockwood, and many more, but felt an urgent need to explore neglected composers from the past, and from around the globe,” she explains. “Like most pianists, I grew up with the classical canon, which has always excluded women composers as well as composers of color. It is still standard practice to perform recitals consisting entirely of music written by men. The Future is Female, then, aims to be a corrective towards rebalancing the repertoire. It does not attempt to be exhaustive, in any way, and the three albums in this series represent only a small fraction of the music by women which is waiting to be performed and heard. Since recording these three albums in August 2021, I’ve performed extraordinary music by Louise Farrenc, Maria Szymanowska, Helen Hopekirk, Dora Pejačević and Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou, Reena Esmail, Arlene Sierra, Viola Kinney, Marion Bauer, and many other composers who should rightfully be included in this series. The possibilities are, in fact, limitless. I am delighted to be working with First Hand Records on this three-album project, concluding with this third and final album, loosely based on the theme of ‘play’”.

Cahill has developed and performed The Future is Female as a flexible concert program, which she has been performing since the project’s inception. It has been presented as an evening-length recital performance and as a marathon performance and is ideal for concert halls, museums, and gallery spaces. The marathon performance duration is typically between four to seven hours, allowing audience members to sit and listen for any length of time, with the ability to come and go, as well as the ability to walk around the space. Recent and upcoming performances of The Future is Female include concerts presented by The Barbican, the National Gallery of Art, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Carolina Performing Arts, Carlsbad Music Festival, Detroit Institute of Arts, University of Iowa, Bowling Green New Music Festival, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, North Dakota Museum of Art, Mayville State University, the EXTENSITY Concert Series’ Women Now Festival in New York, and the Newport Classical Festival.

The Future is Female, Vol. 3, At Play | Sarah Cahill, piano | First Hand Records | Available April 28, 2023

Recorded at St. Stephen’s Church, Belvedere, California, August 15–28, 2021 | Produced and recorded by Matt Carr

Hélène de Montgeroult (1764–1836)
Sonata No. 9, op. 5 no. 3 (1811) [19:52]
1. I. Allegro spiritoso [8:10]
2. II. Adagio non troppo [4:38]
3. III. Presto [6:57]

Cecile Chaminade (1857–1944)
4. Thème varié (1898) [5:01]

Grażyna Bacewicz (1909–1969)
5. Scherzo (1934) [7:08]

Chen Yi (b. 1953)
6. Guessing (1989)† [5:15]

Frangiz Ali-Zadeh (b. 1947)
7. Music for Piano (1989-1997) [9:32]

Pauline Oliveros (1932–2016)
8. Quintuplets Play Pen (2001)* [4:15]

Hannah Kendall (b. 1984)
On the Chequer'd Field Array'd (2013) [10:40]
9. I. Middlegame [2:35]
10. II. Mindplay [5:19]
11. III. Coda [2:40]

Aida Shirazi (b. 1987)
12. Albumblatt (2017)† [6:58]

Regina Harris Baiocchi (b. 1956)
Piano Poems (2020) * [13:25]
13. I. common things surprise [2:54]
14. II. cockleburs in wooly hair/tiny pond [3:54]
15. III. beatitudes [2:17]
16. IV. a candle burns time [4:12]

Total Time: [79:50]

Première recording *
Première commercial recordings †

About Sarah Cahill: Sarah Cahill, hailed as “a sterling pianist and an intrepid illuminator of the classical avant-garde” by The New York Times and “a brilliant and charismatic advocate for modern and contemporary composers” by Time Out New York, has commissioned and premiered over seventy compositions for solo piano. Composers who have dedicated works to Cahill include John Adams, Terry Riley, Frederic Rzewski, Pauline Oliveros, Julia Wolfe, Roscoe Mitchell, Annea Lockwood, and Ingram Marshall. Keyboard Magazine writes, “Through her inspired interpretation of works across the 20th and 21st centuries, Cahill has been instrumental in bringing to life the music of many of our greatest living composers.” She was named a 2018 Champion of New Music, awarded by the American Composers Forum (ACF).

Cahill enjoys working closely with composers, musicologists, and scholars to prepare scores for each performance. She researched and recorded music by prominent early 20th-century American modernists Henry Cowell and Ruth Crawford and commissioned a number of new pieces in tribute to their enduring influence. She has also premiered and recorded music by Leo Ornstein, Marc Blitzstein, and other 20th century mavericks.

Cahill has worked closely with composer Terry Riley since 1997, when she commissioned his four-hand piece Cinco de Mayo for a festival at Cal Performances celebrating Henry Cowell’s 100th birthday – the first of six works she has commissioned from him. For Riley’s 80th birthday, Cahill commissioned nine new works for solo piano in his honor and performed them with several of Riley’s own compositions at (Le) Poisson Rouge and Roulette in New York, MIT, the North Dakota Museum of Art, and other venues across the country. Sarah Cahill commissioned the late Frederic Rzewski to compose a substantial solo piano work in honor of Terry Riley’s 85th birthday.

Sarah Cahill also worked closely with Lou Harrison and has championed many of his works for piano. In 1997, Cahill was chosen to premiere his Festival Dance for two pianos with Aki Takahashi at the Cooper Union and worked with Harrison in rehearsals. She was also chosen to perform his Dance for Lisa Karon, discovered only a few years ago and not heard since its premiere in 1938, and she performed his Varied Trio, both piano concertos, and a number of solo and chamber works on her 2017 Lou Harrison tour celebrating his centennial year, with concerts in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Orlando, Miami, Hawaii, Tokyo and Fukuoka in Japan, and more. In Fall 2019, Sarah performed Lou Harrison's exuberant Concerto for Piano with Javanese Gamelan in two Berkeley performances and at the ICA Boston. She also performed and recorded the work with Gamelan Galak Tika at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Cahill has performed classical and contemporary chamber music with artists and ensembles such as Jessica Lang Dance; pianists Joseph Kubera, Adam Tendler, and Regina Myers; violinist Stuart Canin; the Alexander String Quartet; New Century Chamber Orchestra; Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, and many more. She also performs as a duo with violinist Kate Stenberg.

Sarah Cahill’s discography includes more than twenty albums on the New Albion, CRI, New World, Tzadik, Albany, Innova, Cold Blue, Other Minds, Irritable Hedgehog, and Pinna labels. Cahill's latest album, The Future is Female, Vol. 2, The Dance, was released in October 2022 on First Hand Records. The Future is Female is a three-volume series, which celebrates and highlights women composers from the 17th century to the present day. These albums encompass 30 compositions by women from around the globe and include many new commissioned works and world premiere recordings. Cahill’s 2013 release A Sweeter Music (Other Minds) featured musical reflections on war by eighteen eloquent and provocative composer/activists. In 2015, Pinna Records released her two-CD set of Mamoru Fujieda’s Patterns of Plants, an extraordinary fusion of nature and technology created by identifying the musical patterns in the electrical impulses of plants. In September 2017, she released Eighty Trips Around the Sun: Music by and for Terry Riley, a box set tribute to Terry Riley, on Irritable Hedgehog Records. The four-CD set includes solo works by Riley, four-hand works with pianist Regina Myers, and world premiere recordings of commissioned works composed in honor of Riley’s 80th birthday.

Sarah Cahill’s radio show, Revolutions Per Minute, can be heard every Sunday evening from 6 to 8 pm on KALW, 91.7 FM in San Francisco. The program focuses on the relationships between classical music and new music, encompassing interviews with musicians and composers, historical performances, and recordings outside the mainstream. Cahill is on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory and is a regular pre-concert speaker with the San Francisco Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

For more information, visit www.sarahcahill.com.

The Future is Female Vol. 1 In Nature 
“….delivered with real conviction by pianist Sarah Cahill”
(BBC Music Magazine)    

The Future is Female Vol. 2 The Dance
“This disc is a revelation, and is wholeheartedly recommended.”
(MusicWeb International)