The Soundboard
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The Friends of McGill Piano Present: Vol. 2, issue 1 “Life is like a piano. What you get out of it depends on how you play it.” The Soundboard -Tom Lehrerr PIANO AREA CHAIR’S WELCOME MCGILL WELCOMES ANTON KUERTI Dear Friends, Announcing the 2007-2008 Catherine with most major North American Thornhill Steele Chair: Anton Kuerti orchestras and conductors, such as the New Welcome to the second edition of York Philharmonic, National Symphony The Soundboard, McGill Music’s Pianist Anton Kuerti was born in Austria, grew up in the U.S., and has lived in Canada (Menuhin), Cleveland Orchestra (Szell), newsletter dedicated to all friends of Philadelphia Orchestra (Ormandy), and piano. for the last 35 years. His teachers included Arthur Loesser, Mieczyslaw Horszowski, the orchestras of Atlanta, Denver, Detroit, and Rudolf Serkin. At the age of 11 he Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and San Francisco. We are very pleased to see such great His vast repertoire includes some 50 enthusiasm generated by its first performed the Grieg Concerto with Arthur Fiedler, and he was still a student when he concertos, including one he composed release, and truly want it to be the himself. link between the School and all piano won the famous Leventritt Award. Anton Kuerti has toured 31 countries, In Canada Kuerti has appeared in about lovers in the community. You are our 140 communities from coast to coast, “raison d’être”, and are a tremendous including Japan, Russia, and most European countries, and has performed and has played with every professional inspiration for our gifted students. orchestra, including over 30 concerts with Your support to and presence at the Toronto Symphony. As a chamber various piano events happening at musician, he has performed the major the Schulich School makes a world of repertoire with such artists as Gidon difference to them, and we are all very Kremer, Yo-Yo Ma, Janos Starker, Barry thankful of your kind generosity. Tuckwell, and the Cleveland, Guarneri, and Tokyo string quartets. It has been an exciting year, from Kuerti is one of today’s most recorded Michelle Nam winning the Grand Prize artists: compact discs of his performances of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra include all the Beethoven concertos and Competition, to an impressive list sonatas, the Schubert sonatas, the Brahms of Guest Artists who came to share concertos, and works by many other their expertise with us. There was a composers. These recordings air almost unique Symposium on Beethoven’s daily on the CBC. He is also an Officer “Tempest” Sonata culminating in a of the Order of Canada, and has received recital shared amongst Professor Sara several honourary doctorates. Laimon, Professor Kyoko Hashimoto The Piano Area welcomes Prof. Kuerti to and myself. Recently, thanks to the the Schulich School of Music. Our students tireless efforts on our behalf from are eager to learn from his incredible Dean Prof. Don McLean many new expertise and artistry. pianos began arriving at the School, and with the move of academic and The Dorothy Morton Visiting Artist Concert, featuring Anton Kuerti in support staff into the new building, recital, will be held on March 14th, 2008 at 8:00 pm in Pollack Hall. work will soon begin to create many additional practice rooms, which will have a huge impact on our students NEW YamaHAS FOR MCGILL PIANO FACULTY AND STUDENTS access to improved instruments and practice facilities. As part of a capital investment by McGill of three installments of new pianos. Over University, this spring the Schulich School the next 18 months, over $700,000 of We are confident that the New Year of Music was able to welcome its newest new Yamaha Upright and Grand Pianos will be filled with many thrilling instrumental acquisitions: a selection will begin their lives at the school. The moments, and that you will all be of 13 upright and grand pianos. These generous support of McGill University there to share them with us. We want stunning Yamaha pianos are destined to and our longstanding relationship you to feel a part of our students’ replace those various instruments that with Yamaha Canada has made these development and success. have accrued over the years and now acquisitions possible. Our professors unsalvageable, and also to increase the and students compete and succeed on Prof. Richard Raymond number of high-quality instruments in the the global stage—now their school has Piano Area Chair school’s collection. enhanced resources to help support them These new instruments are but the first in their endeavours! PAGE 2 The Soundboard NEW DOCTORAL STUDENTS IN THE HOUSE Friends of McGill Piano would like to introduce appeared with Calgary orchestras, performing Alejandro Ochoa, MMus ‘05 is from Medellin, you to our current international ‘crop’ of Doctoral concerti by Beethoven, Rachmaninoff and Colombia. Upon completion of studies in piano students. We extend special congratulations Grieg. Miss Henchell has taught private piano Bogota, he came to McGill, where he completed to Xenia Pestov and Durval Cesetti, who were and theory lessons, adjudicated festivals and his Masters degree with Marina Mdivani. He is recently awarded SSHRC grants. Our current accompanied both professional and student currently pursuing his Doctorate in a unique Doctoral students are profiled here. musicians in the Calgary area. Currently, she is program combining historical and modern studying with Professor Richard Raymond and instruments with Professors Tom Beghin Described by Claude her research areas will include Finger exercises (Fortepiano) and Kyoko Hashimoto (Piano). Gingras of La Presse as of Brahms, Liszt and Dohnanyi and their His research includes work on Beethoven’s ‘un pianiste d’une rare applications in the works of these composers, piano music, Rhetoric/Musical Rhetoric musicalité’, Brazilian 20th century extended piano techniques, and and Variation Form, as well as Nineteenth Durval Cesetti, Canadian Piano Music. Century Performance Practice. Alejandro has BMus ’03, MMus ’05, performed extensively as soloist and chamber is currently pursuing Martin Karlíček comes from the Czech musician in Colombia as well as in Germany a Doctorate in piano Republic. Prior to McGill, Martin studied and Canada. performance. He is in Plzeň and Prague as well as the Utrecht a student of Kyoko Academy of the Arts in Holland. He has been F o l l o w i n g Hashimoto; his past active in international workshops for both childhood music teachers include chamber music performers and soloists. In education in Neusa França, Eugene Plawutsky, Louis- March 2000, he was chosen to attend the 5th Russia, Xenia Philippe Pelletier, Richard Raymond and Tom Hamamatsu Academy in Japan where he gained Pestov moved Plaunt. Durval has performed solo recitals in experience from such prominent Professors as to New Zealand important halls throughout Brazil. Recent H. Nakamura, M. Beroff, P. Paleczny, P. Lang with her family performances include a recital with mezzo- and M. Abbado. Martin is a holder of the in 1992 and later soprano Martina Govednik, and a concert of B. Smetana and the F. Liszt Prizes and as a went on to study the Société de Musique Contemporaine du prizewinner of a number of piano competitions in the UK, the Québec at Salle Pierre Mercure. This summer he was also a guest of several music festivals. Netherlands, France and Canada. Xenia’s he played three concerts with the Orquestra At McGill he is studying with Professor Kyoko interest in promoting 20th and 21st Century Sinfônica do Rio Grande do Norte in Natal, Hashimoto. repertoire has led her to collaborate with Brazil. Cesetti’s areas of research include emerging and established composers and performance anxiety, music and literature, Tea Mamaladze, premiere numerous works. She has studied Szymanowski and Polish piano music. He ADip ’01, MMus ’03, with the leading interpreters of contemporary was recently awarded SSHRC grant to analyze was born in Tbilisi, music and is a laureate of several competitions. two piano triptychs of Szymanowski: Métopes, Georgia. Following Recent collaborations include performances op. 29, and Masques, op. 34. His research will musical studies at The with the United Instruments of Lucilin and contemplate the diversity of influences – both Musical School for Luxembourg Sinfonietta (Luxembourg), McGill musical and non-musical – that affected his Gifted Children she Contemporary Music Ensemble (Montreal), style. studied at Tbilisi State Stroma and Amalgam (New Zealand). Xenia Musical Conservatory is currently studying with Professor Sara Lana Henchell where she graduated Laimon. Her areas of research include Aspects received her Bachelor with honors. In 1995, of Performance Practice with Instruments and and Master of Tea moved to Montreal Electronics, The Importance of Birdsong in Music degrees from and continued her Relation to Olivier Messiaen’s Piano Output, the University of studies at McGill, completing both the Artist and Russian and Soviet Musical Modernism Calgary, where she Diploma and Master of Music. During her 1900-1932. She recently received a SSHRC studied with Marilyn graduate studies, Ms. Mamaladze received grant to develop ideas on the Performance Engle. A laureate of numerous scholarships. Tea’s piano career has Practice of Interactive Music in Canada: 1950 many competitions, included invitations to many European musical to the Present Day. she took First Prize festivals and solo recitals in Moscow, St. at the Eckhardt- Petersburg, Berlin, Bremen, Hanover, Lubeck, We would also like to extend a warm welcome Gramatté National Salzburg, and Amsterdam. Ms. Mamaladze to our newest Doctoral student- Ms. Ruby Ji Piano Competition in May 2004 and traveled – winner of the “Debut” Young Concert Artist Zin. She recently completed her Artist Diploma across Canada to perform a sixteen-concert Series in Montreal – is a frequent performer at McGill with Prof. Richard Raymond, and tour. This included a performance of the in Montreal and Ottawa, and is currently a will begin her Doctoral studies this fall.