ClevelandClassical.com Header
Ad
Ad
Ad

Cleveland Classical Guitar Society: Duo Chinoiserie performs music inspired by folklore

by

by Mike Telin

When classical guitarist Hu Bin was earning his doctorate at the University of Arizona, he crossed paths with Xia Jing, a visiting scholar from China who played the guzheng.

As Bin recalled during a recent Zoom conversation: “We were having a guitar competition and my professor, Tom Patterson, invited her to perform a piece after one of the sessions so people could enjoy some music while the jury made their decisions. The first time I heard Jing play it was wonderful. Actually, it was the highlight of the day.”

On Saturday, April 26 at 7:30 pm at the Maltz Performing Arts Center, the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society will present Duo Chinoiserie — Bin Hu, guitar, and Jing Xia, guzheng. Their Cleveland debut program features music inspired by ancient folklore and legends. Tickets are available online.

[Read more…]

Guitarist Marko Topchii cheerfully breaks the rules at CCGS (Mar. 8)

by

by Stephanie Manning

Spend a few minutes with Marko Topchii, and you’ll know he’s a performer that likes to bend convention. The guitarist took the stage at the Maltz Performing Arts Center on March 8 wearing a baby blue suit jacket over a graphic tee, before promptly announcing that he was adding another piece to the program. Instead of kicking things off with Frederic Hand’s Undercurrents, his first selection was a brief, reflective work called Ground, written by his mother.

Speaking from the stage with commentary that was both personable and concise, Topchii charmingly contextualized the music on his extensive program. Undercurrents, which he got to shortly after his opening shakeup, was the commissioned work for the Guitar Foundation of America’s 2023 Competition — an event where Topchii came out on top with the grand prize.

Thanks to his win, the Ukrainian guitarist has been touring the U.S. almost nonstop since September, with two months left to go. But at his visit to the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society, his relaxed speaking and focused performance belied the inevitable stressors of that schedule. [Read more…]

Cleveland Chamber Music Society: a multifaceted “Spanish Journey” (Feb. 11)

by

by Stephanie Manning

Ever since Punxsutawney Phil popped his head out to predict six more weeks of winter, Clevelanders have seen no respite from the cold and snowy weather. So February 11 was as good a winter day as any to escape to sunny Spain, via the latest concert from the Cleveland Chamber Music Society.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center visited Disciples Church in Cleveland Heights for “Spanish Journey,” a program in collaboration with the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society. While a celebration of Spanish music would not be complete without its characteristic dance styles, the evening’s focus on sensitive, romantic selections created a nicely balanced sampling of what that culture has to offer. [Read more…]

Jorge Caballero presents concert influenced by Spirituals for the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society (Oct. 26)

by

by Stephanie Manning

The theme of the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society’s latest concert season emphasizes the new and different — with plenty of debuts, contemporary works, and creative ways of looking at music. That was the case on October 26 for Jorge Caballero’s program. All three pieces he brought to the Maltz Performing Arts Center were rare to hear, each for different reasons.

Thomas Flippin’s music has become a common appearance on CCGS programs, and the premiere of his Poor Mourner’s Got a Home at Last was certainly welcome. [Read more…]

João Luiz embraces a fresh perspective for his Cleveland solo outing

by

by Stephanie Manning

There’s a lot that’s new about the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society’s next concert, starting with the date. Instead of the usual Saturday, it’s a Friday — November 8, to be exact, at 7:30 pm. And although local audiences have only seen João Luiz as one half of the Brasil Guitar Duo, this time he’ll be taking the stage solo.

That’s just the beginning of the new things that await in the program “Brazil Meets Cuba.” The guitarist’s performance at the Maltz Performing Arts Center is chock full of premieres, all written for Luiz by composers Leo Brouwer, Sergio Assad, and Ronaldo Miranda.

“Those are such important composers for guitar,” Luiz said in a recent interview. “And I’m happy that I’ll be able to do that in Cleveland because I like this place, the Guitar Society, and its people so much. It’s going to be very special.”  [Read more…]

Jorge Caballero tries something new for the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society

by

by Stephanie Manning

Playing an entire symphony on classical guitar? It’s more possible than you’d think. And it’s become second nature for Jorge Caballero, known for performing transcriptions of works like Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.

But Caballero’s upcoming program with Cleveland Classical Guitar Society is something a bit different. “For me, it’s somewhat of a departure from what I’ve been doing recently,” he said in a recent interview. True, his setlist at the Maltz Performing Arts Center includes Antonín Dvořák’s entire Symphony No. 9 (“From the New World”). But not just because it’s a technical achievement — it’s also part of a broader thematic connection between Black spirituals and Western classical music.

The concert on Saturday, October 26 begins at 7:30 pm, and tickets are available online. And a free prelude event, “Strings of the Spirit,” takes place at Karamu House on Thursday, October 24 at 7:00 pm. Learn more here. [Read more…]

Cleveland Classical Guitar Society: Showcase Concert (Sept. 14)

by

by Kevin McLaughlin

The Cleveland Classical Guitar Society kicked off its new season at the Maltz Performing Arts Center on Saturday, September 14 with its “2024 Showcase,” highlighting outstanding Cleveland talent and a rising star.

As is customary, an alumnus of CCGS’ Citizens Leadership Academy began the evening. Damien Goggans gave a superb and poised performance, evidence of his own talent and bestowing reflected glory on the educational arm of CCGS.

Goggans, who is a classical guitar performance major at Oberlin Conservatory, has already enjoyed triumphs at Severance Music Center and on national television and radio. Selecting three of Thomas Flippin’s 14 Études on the Music of Black Americans to play (III. “Don’t Let Nobody Turn You ’Round,” XIII. “Wake Up, Jacob,” and XII. “Don’t Be Weary, Traveler”), he sang the three spiritual melodies with an easy and clear voice before playing the etudes on guitar alone. Goggans’ guitar playing was an extension of his singing voice: sensitive, technically secure, and dignified. [Read more…]

A peaceful afternoon at Classically Lake View (July 7)

by

by Stephanie Manning

Choosing a mausoleum as a concert venue might imply a more somber occasion, but the atmosphere was distinctly lighthearted at the Classically Lake View concert on July 7. Held in the Lake View Cemetery’s Community Mausoleum on a sunny Sunday afternoon, a string quartet of Cleveland Orchestra members and an Oberlin student guitarist presented a spirited program of chamber music by Black composers.

First violinist Liyuan Xie confidently led the quartet as they kicked things off with two movements from Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ String Quartet No. 3, Op. 1. Despite the unconventional indoor space, the small stage helped with projection and the blend between the four musicians kept a balanced timbre. (Probably best not to add any wind instruments into the mix with that echo, though.) [Read more…]

Cleveland Classical Guitar Society: Zidur Guitar Duo (Feb. 24)

by

by Kevin McLaughlin

Hermelindo Ruiz and Samuel Diz, constituents of the Zidur Guitar Duo, made their Cleveland debut on Saturday, February 24, endearing themselves to the crowd at the Maltz Performing Arts Center with an attractive program and winning personalities — two young virtuosos from out of town you’d like to meet afterwards over tapas and beer.

Ruiz, a native Puerto Rican, and Diz, Spanish-born, delighted in sharing music from their respective countries, including works by Egúrbida, Gottschalk, Rodrigo, Vide, and Acosta, plus two by Ruiz himself. While other guitarists might have been inclined to flashier repertoire, Ruiz and Diz chose milder stuff, perhaps ambassadors of a gentler sort.

[Read more…]

Zidur Guitar Duo to make Cleveland debut for Classical Guitar Society

by

by Mike Telin

The relationship between Hermelindo Ruiz (left) and the Cleveland Classical Guitar Society dates back to 2020, when the guitarist/composer became an Artist in Residence for CCGS through a Creative Fusion grant from the Cleveland Foundation. A year later, Ruiz became a CCGS Composer in Residence, writing works for young guitar players that were premiered by the students.

This week Ruiz makes his third visit to Cleveland — this time joined by Samuel Diz in the Zidur Guitar Duo. On Saturday, February 24 at 7:30 pm, the duo will make its Cleveland debut at the Maltz Performing Arts Center. The program features music from their homelands of Puerto Rico and Spain. Tickets are available online.

Ruiz was in Chicago when I caught up with him by phone and began by asking how he and Diz came to form the duo.

Hermelindo Ruiz: Through friends of mine, Samuel discovered some scores of my work and started to play my music in Europe. I am from Puerto Rico and he’s from Spain, and he started telling people about this Puerto Rican classical music composer. And that opened a lot of doors to me, including getting to go to Spain. We started playing as a duo in 2009 when we were 20 or 21 years old at the time.

[Read more…]

Follow ClevelandClassical.com

Contact us