by Mike Telin
Winner of the Sphinx Medal of Excellence and Professor at the Curtis Institute of Music, pianist Michelle Cann returns to Cleveland on Thursday, August 11 for a 7:30 pm performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Mixon Hall. Presented as part of PianoDays @CLE, her program features works by Chopin, Brahms, Clara Schumann, Florence Price, and Margaret Bonds. Purchase tickets here.
Cann made her orchestral debut at age fourteen and has since performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras including The Philadelphia Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra.
A champion of the music of Florence Price, she performed the New York City premiere of the composer’s Piano Concerto in One Movement with The Dream Unfinished Orchestra in July 2016 and the Philadelphia premiere with The Philadelphia Orchestra in February 2021.
During a recent telephone conversation, Cann, who is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music, said, “It’s always nice to be back in a city that meant so much to me in the development of my career. [Read on…]
by Stephanie Manning
Local audiences may remember Stanislav Khristenko from his electrifying performances at the 2013 Cleveland International Piano Competition, where his performance of the Brahms Concerto No. 1 with The Cleveland Orchestra helped him to take home the grand prize. This summer, competition organizer Piano Cleveland has invited him back to perform as part of the inaugural PianoDays @CLE.
Winning the CIPC is not Khristenko’s only connection to Cleveland — the pianist also earned an artist diploma from the Cleveland Institute of Music. “Cleveland is really my home here in the U.S.,” he said in a recent Zoom interview. On Sunday, August 7, he’ll return to his alma mater for his PianoDays program at 2:00 pm in Mixon Hall. Titled “Stanislav and Friends,” the performance will include a number of musicians that he met as a student. Purchase in-person or virtual tickets here.
“It’s going to be a one-of-a-kind program, because you have people coming from all over the country, and there’s gonna be only one performance,” Khristenko said. “And who knows if those same people are gonna meet again to play these pieces.”
by Noah Auby
In the last few years of touring his brand of Afro-Cuban funk fusion, Cimafunk has been all over the world and yet, he looks forward to visiting Cleveland for the first time this month. While he’s on his visit, Cimafunk and his live band will perform at the Cleveland Museum of Art’s upcoming City Stages event.
Cimafunk’s performance for the series will take place on Wednesday, August 10th around 7:30 pm at Transformer Station — located at the corner of Church Avenue (1460 W. 29th St. Cleveland, OH 44113). Seating will be limited, so bringing your own might not be the worst idea. The event is free and open to the public.
While he was visiting Germany, I had the chance to have a chat over Zoom with Cimafunk about the anticipated performance as well as the relationships he’s been fortunate to form by virtue of doing music professionally. [Read on…]
by Mike Telin
What led Ruth Reinhardt to conducting? “It was by accident,” Reinhardt said during a recent telephone conversation from Switzerland. “The conductor of my youth orchestra asked if one of us wanted to conduct. I was packing up and I just raised my hand — I don’t know why — I thought it might come in handy at some point.”
Indeed, conducting has come in handy for her. On Saturday, July 30 at 7:00 pm at Blossom Music Center, Reinhardt will return to the Cleveland Orchestra podium to lead a program featuring Grażyna Bacewicz’s Overture, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with soloist Alexi Kenney replacing Sergey Khachatryan, who has withdrawn due to visa complications, and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 5. Click here for tickets and more information. [Read on…]
by Noah Auby
Mikey Silas, of Apostle Jones fame, is proud of what he and his band have been able to accomplish in such a short period of time. Formed in late 2018, Apostle Jones has been on an impressive run in the Cleveland music scene like no other. Over the last four years, they have managed to release a studio EP as well as four live performance compilations.
Speaking of live performance, Mikey Silas along with the rest of Apostle Jones will be performing on Friday, July 29th as part of Piano Cleveland’s “PianoDays @CLE.” Their 7:00pm “Rock the Classics” program takes place at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Union Home Mortgage Plaza outdoor stage. The event will be free and open to the public.
During a recent Zoom conversation, I asked the Cleveland native about the upcoming show and his musical career. [Read on…]