by Nicholas Stevens
The history of any art form consists of generalizations, some useful, others reductive, many both. Take classical music: hastily scribbled timelines have too often redrawn the vast panorama of postwar composition into a knot of abstract forms. Advocates of contemporary composition and performance have often pushed back on this stereotype with words, but in a recent concert, Cleveland’s Ars Futura ensemble emphasized the range of its repertoire also in deed. [Read more…]
by Jarrett Hoffman
“If we were back in Europe where the band members’ families are from, we could fairly readily drive to each other’s houses,” Harmonia founder and accordionist Walt Mahovlich said in a recent conversation. “But we would never have met being from those different backgrounds — different worlds.”
This Friday, April 20 at 7:00 pm at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted, the Church’s Performance Series will present the six-piece, Cleveland-based ensemble Harmonia. The program includes traditional Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, Romanian, Croatian, and Gypsy folk music — the sounds of the players’ ancestry.
“Some of our musicians would never have been permitted to leave Europe prior to 1991, except possibly as refugees,” Mahovlich said. “But with the fall of the Berlin Wall, it became possible for people to leave. That certainly provided great opportunities for the West to hear some extraordinary players.”
by Mike Telin
The weather may have been frigid on Friday evening, February 2, but the capacity audience that gathered inside John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted was warmed by the mellifluous playing of the excellent classical guitarist Jason Vieaux. The concert was presented as part of the church’s Performance Series.
by Mike Telin
Life is good for classical guitarist Jason Vieaux. His recent performances include appearances at the Caramoor Festival, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Buenos Aires’ Teatro Colon, and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw.
This season he will collaborate with the Escher Quartet, mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke, violinists Anne Akiko Meyers, Kristin Lee, and Tessa Lark, harpist Yolanda Kondonassis, and accordionist Julien Labro. “I don’t know how all of this happened. I call up these fantastic musicians and they all want to work together,” Vieaux said by telephone while he was on a layover in Washington D.C.
Although Vieaux said that airports are his home away from home, he will actually be at home in Cleveland this week. On Friday, February 2 at 7:00 pm at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted, he will present a solo recital for the Church’s performance series. The evening will feature classical and contemporary music from Italy, Spain, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, and the U.S. — including selections from Vieaux’s 2015 Grammy Award-winning album, Play. Admission is free.
by Mike Telin
“Russian Duo is an international project, and this program will show that,” balalaika virtuoso Oleg Kruglyakov said during a recent telephone conversation along with his longtime artistic partner, pianist Terry Boyarsky. On Friday, April 28 at 7:00 pm at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted, Russian Duo will present a concert that features Russian folk music, romances, classical music, gypsy melodies, bluegrass, ragtime, tango, film scores, and Soviet songs. The free concert is part of the John Knox Performance Series.
“In this program audiences will hear everything from Handel to tango. It also shows the range and versatility of this school of Russian composers. As always, we’ll tell stories about the music so the audience can feel a part of the history and musical journey.” [Read more…]
by Mike Telin
For hundreds of years some of the greatest music ever written was composed for houses of worship — think of composers such as Palestrina, J.S. Bach, and Moses Hogan. “It’s no mystery why music is so important in the life of a church, but people here can’t seem to get enough of it,” said Geoffrey Peterson, Director of Music and the Arts at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted.
On Friday, October 28 at 8:00 pm, the John Knox Performance Series will kick off its third season with a performance by the Cleveland Chamber Choir under the direction of Scott MacPherson. The program, titled “Americana,” will include music by William Billings, Charles Ives, Aaron Copland, John Cage, Samuel Barber, and Stephen Foster, as well as folk songs and spirituals. Read a concert preview here. [Read more…]
by Mike Telin
On Friday, April 24 at 7:00 pm, the John Knox Performance Series will present Verb Ballets in a production of Geoffrey Peterson’s Edmund Fitzgerald, a concerto for piano and strings, choreographed by Richard Dickinson. The performance will be held in Trinity Hall at John Knox Presbyterian Church in North Olmsted. Seating reservations required: see our concert listings page for details.
Dickinson’s choreography of Peterson’s concerto was premiered during the 2014 NEOSonicFest. Prior to the premiere, ClevelandClassical.com spoke to Richard Dickinson and Geoffrey Peterson about the work. The following preview was originally published on March 26, 2014.
Geoffrey Peterson’s concerto chronicles the tragic shipwreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald in Lake Superior in November, 1975. Its four movements are entitled “Embarkment,” “The Gales,” “Six-Fathom Shoal” (‘We’re holding our own’) and “Entombment-Dirge.” [Read more…]