Beethoven, Bagels & Banter

SUN / OCT 21 / 11:00 AM

Michele Zukovsky Robert deMaine CLARINET CELLO Robert Davidovici Kevin Fitz-Gerald VIOLIN PIANO

There will be no intermission.

Please join us after the performance for refreshments and a conversation with the performers.

PROGRAM

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Trio in B-flat major, Op. 11 I. Allegro con brio II. Adagio III. Tema: Pria ch’io l’impegno. Allegretto

Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) Quartet for the End of Time (1941) I. Liturgie de cristal (“Crystal liturgy”) II. Vocalise, pour l'Ange qui annonce la fin du Temps (“Vocalise, for the Angel who announces the end of time”) III. Abîme des oiseau (“Abyss of birds”) IV. Intermède (“Interlude”) V. Louange à l'Éternité de Jésus (“Praise to the eternity of Jesus”) VI.  Danse de la fureur, pour les sept trompettes (“Dance of fury, for the seven trumpets”) VII. Fouillis d'arcs-en-ciel, pour l'Ange qui annonce la fin du Temps (“Tangle of rainbows, for the Angel who announces the end of time) VIII. Louange à l'Immortalité de Jésus (“Praise to the immortality of Jesus”)

This series made possible by a generous gift from Barbara Herman.

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE 20 ABOUT THE ARTISTS

MICHELE ZUKOVSKY, clarinet, is an also produced recordings of several the Australian National University. American clarinetist and longest live performances by Zukovsky, The Montréal La Presse said that, serving member of the Los Angeles including the aforementioned Williams “Robert Davidovici is a born violinist Philharmonic Orchestra, serving Clarinet Concerto. Alongside her in the most complete sense of from 1961 at the age of 18 until her busy performing schedule, Zukovsky the word.” In October 2013, he retirement on December 20, 2015. is active as a teacher at several performed the Beethoven Violin She built a fantastic career not only institutions, including the Thornton Concerto with the Royal Philharmonic as an orchestral player, but also as a School of Music at the University of Orchestra (RPO) under Grzegorz solo performer, chamber musician, Southern California, Asuza Pacific Nowak, after which he recorded his recording artist and teacher. Over University and, most recently, at second CD with the RPO under G. the years with the Los Angeles the Pasadena Conservatory of Nowak, containing the Beethoven Philharmonic, she performed Music. The latter institution has and Mendelssohn Concerti. clarinet concertos by Mozart, Weber, organized an annual Zukovsky Clarinet The reviews for the first CD with the Hindemith, Nielsen and Corigliano, Competition, the first of which was RPO, under G. Nowak, released in among others. She gave the premiere given in 2014. the autumn of 2013, comment on of two important works: Luciano “the fantastic performance of the Berio’s orchestration of the Brahms ROBERT DAVIDOVICI, violin, is Kletzki Violin Concerto and Robert F minor Sonata (1986), and a clarinet acclaimed in the United States, Davidovici’s full-blooded tone concerto by American composer Canada, Europe, South America, being just what the work deserves” John Williams (1991). Zukovsky has Australia and Asia as a virtuoso (TheArtsDesk.com). He returned to also performed at the Marlboro, in concerto, recital and chamber London in February 2015 to perform Casals and Mostly Mozart festivals, music performances who combines the Tchaikovsky and Brahms Violin and at music festivals in Austria spectacular technique, wide-ranging Concerti, again with the RPO under and Finland. As a recording artist, repertoire and magnificent artistry Maestro Nowak. In February 2007, Zukovsky’s most recent work was with an exciting, compelling stage he was soloist at Lincoln Center’s a disc entitled Simeon Bellison: The presence. Born in Transylvania, Avery Fisher Hall in the American Arrangements for Clarinet (Summit Romania, he began his studies as a premiere of the Kletzki Violin Records, 2008) which included not student of David Oistrakh. He went Concerto (1928) with the American only arrangements by the well-known on to study with Ivan Galamian at Symphony Orchestra conducted by Russian- American clarinetist of the the Juilliard School, where, upon Leon Botstein, following which The first half of the twentieth century, graduating, he became a teaching New York Times commented on the but also Jewish-themed works by assistant to the Juilliard String “excellent” performance. other composers. Zukovsky has Quartet. He has collaborated in The New York Times, in describing his also championed the works of the concert with such esteemed artists performance on Bach’s Solo Sonata Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů in as Yo-Yo Ma, Isaac Stern, Lynn No. 1 said, “he played cleanly and two discs. The first of these,Otiose Harrell, Yefim Bronfman, Cho Liang- without affectation. Contrapuntal Odalisque (Summit Records, 1998), Lin and Emanuel Ax, among others. lines emerged clearly because includes the well-known Sonatine, Carnegie Hall has featured him as multiple stops stayed in tune, and a as well as the Revue de Cuisine for a part of its “American Music Masters” fast, tight vibrato helped keep the mixed chamber ensemble; Pastorals series and he was the subject of a music from sounding expressive in (Stowe) for the unusual combination of television special on WGBH Boston. a 19th-century manner. This was, in five recorders, two violins, cello and His multifaceted career has included fact, excellent Bach.” In describing piano; and the Quartet for clarinet, being Concertmaster of such his performance of the Bernstein horn, cello and side drum. The orchestras as the Osaka Philharmonic, Serenade, The New York Times stated second, Intermezzo, released in 1999, Vancouver Symphony, The Residentie that “it would have been hard to includes a variety of mixed chamber Orchestra (The Hague) and Cincinnati imagine a sweeter performance,” music. Zukovsky’s earlier recordings Symphony, as well as the Grand Teton and the Sydney Morning Herald wrote, include the Brahms and Mozart Music Festival and Chautauqua and “Robert Davidovici lingered lovingly Quintets with the Sequoia String Colorado Music Festival Orchestras. over the poetic passages of the Quartet (Electra/Asylum/Nonesuch, In addition to his solo engagements, Tchaikovsky Concerto, and ignited 1985); the Beethoven Duos for he is Artist-in-Residence and the fiery ones with passion.”Fanfare clarinet and bassoon (Crystal Records, Professor of Violin at Florida Magazine commented on his first 1987); and Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du International University in Miami. He CD that “Davidovici handles the five Soldat with John Houseman narrating is a guest professor at leading music compositional styles with confidence. (a live performance by members schools around the world, most His tone is ripe, his intonation dead of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at recently at the Musashino Academia on, and he plays with aplomb. This the 92nd Street Y in New York City). Musicae in Tokyo, Universities of is an impressive disc debut.” He has The clarinetist David Blumberg has Washington and British Columbia and recorded as violin soloist with the

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE 21 ABOUT THE ARTISTS

London Symphony Orchestra for Cala Hall, among others. He is the recipient KEVIN FITZ-GERALD, piano, enjoys Records. His CD Mélodie-The Art of of a career grant from the Helen M. a versatile performing career as Robert Davidovici was selected as one Saunders Foundation, and the gift of a recitalist, orchestra soloist and of the top 30 CD releases in Japan in Vuillaume cello from the Cecilia Benner chamber musician. His performances 1995. He may also be heard on New Foundation. His principal teachers have garnered international acclaim, World Records, Centaur, Clavier, and include Leonard Rose, Stephen Kates, and he has been recognized for Meistermusic. His CD recording of Steven Doane, Paul Katz, Luis García- his “hypnotically powerful and transcriptions of Chopin’s Nocturnes Renart and Aldo Parisot. Masterclasses precise” pianism and “dynamic and was released in May 2004 in Japan and additional studies were undertaken distinguished” interpretations. by JVC Victor. He is the recipient with Bernard Greenhouse, János His concert tours and performances of several distinguished First Prize Starker, Boris Pergamenschikow, have taken place in major concert honors, among them, the Naumburg Felix Galimir and Jerome Lowenthal. halls, universities and concert Competition and the Carnegie Hall deMaine studied at The Juilliard School, organizations throughout the United International American Music Violin the Eastman School of Music, the States, Canada, China, Japan, Korea, Competition. University of Southern California, Yale Australia, Mexico, South America, the University and the Kronberg Academy Mediterranean and the Caribbean. ROBERT DEMAINE, cello, is the in Germany. A first-prize winner Notable venues include Carnegie Hall Principal Cellist of the Los Angeles in many national and international (New York), The Mormon Tabernacle Philharmonic and has been praised competitions, deMaine was the first (Utah), Walt Disney Concert Hall by The New York Times as “an artist cellist ever to win the grand prize at San (Los Angeles), National Arts Centre who makes one hang on every note.” Francisco’s prestigious Irving M. Klein (Ottawa), Roy Thompson Hall A highly sought-after solo artist and International Competition for Strings. (Toronto), Place des Arts (Montréal), chamber musician, he is a frequent As soloist, he has collaborated with Izumi Hall (Osaka), Suntori Hall guest artist at many of the world’s many of the world’s most distinguished (Tokyo), National Gallery (Kingston) premier chamber music festivals, conductors, including Neeme Järvi, and Town Hall (Melbourne). He has including those of Marlboro, Seattle, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Gustavo appeared with several Canadian Great Lakes, Limoges, Heidelberg Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Peter and American orchestras including Schlossfest, Chamberfest Cleveland, Oundjian, Mark Wigglesworth, Joseph the Toronto Symphony, Montréal Montréal and Seoul’s Ditto Festival, Silverstein, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla and Symphony, Canadian Chamber and was most recently featured as a Leonard Slatkin, and has performed Orchestra, CBC Radio Orchestra, soloist at the 2016 Piatigorsky Cello nearly all the major cello concertos Calgary Philharmonic, Los Angeles Festival. His playing is noted for its with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Camerata, Utah Chamber Orchestra “beautiful singing tone, lapidary where he served as principal cello and the Mormon Tabernacle technical precision, and a persuasive for over a decade. deMaine has also Orchestra at Temple Square. Recent identification with the idiom of the served as guest Principal Cellist of the orchestral performances have music at hand.” As a soloist, he Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the included concerti by Dvořák, Mozart, performs the great works of the Toronto Symphony and the Bergen Beethoven, Prokofiev, Mendelssohn, repertoire both old and new from Philharmonic in Norway. A founding Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky, Berg and concertos by Haydn, Dvořák, Elgar and member of the Ehnes Quartet in 2010, Poulenc. Mr. Fitz-Gerald’s concerts Penderecki, as well as more recent he also performs in a piano trio with have frequently been recorded for works by John Williams and Christopher violinist Hilary Hahn and pianist Natalie local, national and international radio Theofanidis. As a recitalist, the great Zhu. Robert deMaine has recorded and television networks in Canada, works for cello and piano, as well as the for Naxos, Chandos, Onyx, CBC, DSO, USA, South America, France, Japan suites of J.S. Bach, remain staples of Elysium and Capstone and has been and Australia. His CD recordings can his repertoire, and as one critic noted, featured on the BBC, PBS, NPR’s be found on the Summit, Quatro his playing was “magnificent” and that Performance Today, the Canadian Corde, AFCM, Yarlung, GM, Centaur his “technical brilliance is surpassed Broadcasting Company, France Musique and Ivory Classics record labels. only by the beauty of tones he and RAI, among others. His recording produces.” deMaine has appeared on of the John Williams Cello Concerto the stages of Carnegie Hall and Lincoln (Detroit Symphony, Leonard Slatkin Center, the Kennedy Center, Teatro conducting) was released by Naxos in Colón, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, fall 2015. Robert deMaine is an exclusive the Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Thomastik-Infeld artist and performs Konzerthaus and Moscow’s Tchaikovsky on a cello made in 1684 by Antonio Hall, Auditorium du Louvre, Suntory Hall Stradivari, the “General Kyd, ex-Leo and the Seoul Arts Center, as well as Stern.” the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center and Conservatory and London’s Wigmore

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