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Quire Cleveland— Resonant Glory: Music for Grand Spaces 

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by Mike Telin

Have you ever walked into a Cathedral and heard music coming from some place and you needed to find out where? While your ear told you to proceed down the left side of the building, as you got closer you discovered that the sound was actually originating from the other side of the space.

While scientifically this phenomenon is known as the acoustic, “more importantly it’s the concept of having the space become the nth member of the ensemble,” artistic director Jay White said during a recent telephone conversation. =

On Friday, May 13 at 7:30 pm in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, White will lead Quire Cleveland in “Resonant Glory: Music for Grand Spaces.” The program, which celebrates the union of music and architecture, will be repeated on Saturday at 8:00 pm at St. Noel Church in Willoughby, and on Sunday at 5:00 pm at St. Sebastian Church in Akron. The concerts are free.

White said that his inspiration for the program came while he was making a list of his favorite pieces for double choir. “I thought, wait a minute, why do we have double choir works to begin with?” Answering that question led White to alter his approach to making the list. [Read more…]

Unheard-of//Ensemble at SPACES (Apr. 2)

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by Mike Telin

I was once told that it’s good to not think too much about life’s problems. However, there are more than enough reasons to ask yourself: why more isn’t being done to combat climate change? How much is corporate greed responsible for the changes? Why do people buy into mass marketing?

On April 2 at SPACES and presented by No Exit, the excellent Brooklyn-based Unheard-of//Ensemble — Ford Fourqurean (clarinet), Matheus Souza (violin), Iva Casian-Lakoš (cello), and Daniel Anastasio (piano and electronics) — presented three thought provoking works that challenged listeners to never stop thinking about these questions.

[Read more…]

BlueWater Chamber Orchestra: flutist Jessica Sindell plays Mozart

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by Mike Telin

Flutist Jessica Sindell has the distinction of being one of the few members of The Cleveland Orchestra who are native Clevelanders. A graduate of Western Reserve Academy, she was a member of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra from 2005 to 2007. Since 2018 Sindell has served as the Orchestra’s assistant principal flute, a position she calls “her dream job.”

In that position, she often finds herself playing the principal part on concertos featuring the week’s soloist. On Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm at Church of the Covenant, Sindell will move to the front of the stage when she performs Mozart’s Flute Concerto in D with BlueWater Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Daniel Meyer.

The program, “Taking Flight,” also includes Hilary Tann’s With the Heather and Small Birds and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2. At 7:00 pm George Leggiero will play a prelude on the McGaffin Carillon. Pay what you wish. Click here to reserve tickets. [Read more…]

Fire, Grace, and Ash at St. Malachi’s April 30

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by Mike Telin

“Music is something that throughout time has developed different flavors around the world,” violinist Edwin Huizinga said during a Sunday morning telephone conversation.

“There are no borders in music. And it’s amazing to me that even centuries ago, music was being shared in houses and pubs. Even then there were people traveling around. I always think of O’Carolan, who was this itinerant Irish harpist.

“He was blind and there are stories of him meeting up with Baroque musicians and composers, and sharing tunes with each other. So one of my passions in life is to share the fact that all music is similar in the way that it’s created. It comes from a rhythmical background, and a community background.” [Read more…]

The Cleveland Orchestra: a conversation with cellist & humanitarian Gautier Capuçon

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by Mike Telin

“For us cellists, Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations is a very important piece in our repertoire,” Gautier Capuçon said during a recent telephone conversation. “It’s very delicate and extremely difficult.”

On Thursday, April 28 at 7:30 pm at Severance Music Center, Capuçon will perform that virtuosic work with The Cleveland Orchestra under the baton of guest conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. The program also induces Tchaikovsky’s Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, Fauré’s Elegy, and Britten’s Suite from The Prince of the Pagodas. Additional performances take place on Friday at 7:30 pm, Saturday at 8:00 pm, and Sunday at 3:00 pm. Tickets are available online.

“I’m looking forward to being back in Cleveland,” Capuçon said. “It’s such a fantastic orchestra, and Michael Tilson Thomas is a dear friend. And with all he’s going through, music is so important to him — it gives him energy. So this week is going to be very special.” [Read more…]

Chester Englander with No Exit:
“The Big Cimbalom Thing” 

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by Mike Telin

If you thought the cimbalom was only used in Eastern European folk music, think again. “I got my start on it with the LA Philharmonic,” percussionist Chester Englander said during a recent telephone call. “They hired me to play a piece by Frank Zappa called Yellow Shark and it uses the cimbalom in ‘The Girl in the Magnesium Dress.’” From then on Englander has been on a mission to expand the instrument’s repertoire.

On Friday, April 22 at 7:30 pm at Kent State’s Ludwig Recital Hall, Englander will join No Exit in a concert they’re calling “The Big Cimbalom Thing.” The program will feature music by Per Nørgård and world premieres of works by Douglas Knehans, Hong-Da Chin, and Edward Smaldone — and it will be repeated on April 28 at 8:00 pm at Cleveland State’s Drinko Hall, April 29 at 8:00 pm at SPACES, and April 30 at 7:00 pm at Heights Arts. All the concerts are free. [Read more…]

Violinist Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider to play Sibelius with The Cleveland Orchestra

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by Mike Telin

Tonight, Thursday April 21 at 7:30 pm at Severance Music Center, violinist Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider will join The Cleveland Orchestra and guest conductor Klaus Mäkelä in Sibelius’ Violin Concerto. The evening also includes Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10. The program will be repeated on Friday at 7:30 pm and Saturday at 8:00 pm. Tickets are available online.

I caught up with the violinist by telephone yesterday just after the rehearsal had ended.

Mike Telin: I hope the rehearsal went well. But this is a concerto you know quite well.

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider: It did and it is. I’ve played it an awful lot — a wonderful awful lot. It’s one of the earliest pieces that I learned when I started playing.

It’s also one of those pieces that I don’t recall saying “I need a few years rest from it.” I’m always happy when it’s on the program. [Read more…]

Celebrating the life
of Christine Haff-Paluck

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by Mike Telin

In a message posted on Sunday, April 26, 2020, Arts Renaissance Tremont board president Fred Calatrello wrote:

It is with great regret and a heavy heart that I must inform you that Chris, our friend, colleague and the moving spirit behind ART, passed away last night with her husband at her bedside.

I don’t have to tell any of you what a great loss this is not only for us but also for her many former students, her numberless friends in the musical community and, indeed, anyone who had the good fortune to know and work with her over the many years she lived in and served this community. 

We all know that in addition to husband, family and friends, Chris’ great passion over the past three decades has been ARTS RENAISSANCE TREMONT; not only did she create the organization but she worked year in and year out to secure funding and artists so that each year we could bring great music to audiences in N.E.Ohio. For Chis, this was truly a labor of love.

On Saturday, April 23 at 3:00 pm at Trinity Cathedral, Arts Renaissance Tremont invites  the community to celebrate the life of Christine Haff-Paluck during a Memorial Concert and Gala Benefit.  [Read more…]

Evgeny Kissin makes long-awaited return to Cleveland April 24

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by Mike Telin

After an absence of nearly 25 years, pianist Evgeny Kissin will return to Severance Music Center to perform a solo recital on Sunday, April 24 at 7:30 pm.

The program will feature J.S. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in d (arr. Carl Tausig), Mozart’s Adagio in b, K. 540, Beethoven’s Sonata No. 31 in A-flat, Op. 110, and seven of Chopin’s Mazurkas as well as the Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise Brillante in E-flat, Op. 22. Tickets are available online.

Since being recognized as a child prodigy at the age of six, Evgeny Kissin has enjoyed a celebrated international career as a recitalist, soloist with orchestras, and recording artist.  [Read more…]

Guitarist Stephane Wrembel brings Django to the Bop Stop

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by Mike Telin

Yes, it is possible for one song to change your life.

Growing up in Fontainebleau, France, Stephane Wrembel began studying classical piano at the age of four. By his mid-teens his musical inspirations were found on the guitar — and in rock.

“I told my teacher, who was a great Django player, that I wanted to study jazz. He said, ‘Let’s start with a couple of Django songs.’ He started to play, and I was like, wow!” The song Wrembel’s teacher played was Django Reinhardt’s classic Minor Swing. And from then on, Wrembel never looked back. Today, he is perhaps the most celebrated guitarist in the world specializing in the style of Django Reinhardt.

On Sunday, April 24 at the Bop Stop, Wrembel will be joined by his longtime bandmates Josh Kaye (guitar), Ari Folman-Cohen (bass), Nick Anderson (drums), and Daisy Castro (violin) for shows at 6:00 pm and 8:00 pm. The setlist will include Wrembel’s original compositions as well as music from his latest release, The Django Experiment VI. Tickets are available online.

[Read more…]

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