Lura Johnson Archives - Cleveland Classical

Music at the Meeting House in Oberlin: pianist Lura Johnson (May 17)

May 19, 2015 by Jarrett Hoffman

by Nicholas Jones

Pianist Lura Johnson returned to her hometown of Oberlin Sunday to play an intriguing and delightful program of the “first pieces” of four composers. Titled “Opus One: Something to Prove,” the program included first published piano works by Alexander Zemlinsky, Alban Berg, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Johannes Brahms. The concert was presented in the meeting house of First Church in Oberlin (1834), part of an initiative by the church to revitalize the historic use of the facility as a community space.

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Music at the Meetinghouse: A conversation with pianist Lura Johnson

May 12, 2015 by Daniel Hathaway

by Mike Telin

“Choosing a recital program can be so selfish,” pianist Lura Johnson quipped during a recent telephone conversation. “Of course you want to play pieces that you love but you also need to find a way to present them from a point of view is useful and relevant to the audience.” This weekend Lura Johnson returns to her hometown of Oberlin for a performance on the Music at the Meetinghouse (First Church) series on Sunday, May 17 at 4:00 pm. Johnson’s program, titled “Opus One: Something to Prove,” will feature the first published works of Alexander Zemlinsky, Alban Berg, Sergei Prokofiev, Dmitri Shostakovich and Johannes Brahms.

Johnson, a Steinway Artist and principal pianist of the Delaware Symphony as well as the pianist of choice for the Baltimore Symphony since 2007, said that when selecting the works for her program she looked for pieces that were well-written, and didn’t have any serious weaknesses even though they might lack some maturity. [Read more…]

Cleveland Orchestra’s holiday concerts return with plenty of festive cheer (Dec. 11)

by Stephanie Manning

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — If the twinkling lights, leafy green garlands and festive poinsettias didn’t already clue you in, the holidays have arrived at Severance Music Center. ‘Tis the season for annual traditions — including The Cleveland Orchestra’s holiday concerts, which began on Wednesday evening.

Running through December 22, the programs feature plenty of seasonal classics plus some potential new favorites. The first performance proved that this mix is a delightful recipe for festive cheer.

“Look at you all, out on a school night!” conductor Sarah Hicks proclaimed joyfully from the podium. Just as many concertgoers donned red outfits to get into the spirit, Mandel Concert Hall was also decked out with decorations and stage lighting effects.

[Read on…]

Oberlin Conservatory convincingly tells Omar’s story (Dec. 8)

by Stephanie Manning

The Cleveland premiere of Rhiannon Giddens’ and Michael Abels’ Pultizer Prize-winning opera Omar on December 8 at the Maltz Performing Arts Center proved that concert productions of opera can succeed without sets, elaborate costumes and extensive staging. Indeed, the Oberlin Conservatory presentation offered more than enough to keep the audience in the crowded house enthralled.

The Opera, which was also presented at Oberlin’s Finney Chapel two days earlier, is based on the 1831 autobiography of Muslim scholar Omar ibn Said, the only such work written by an enslaved person during their enslavement, and the only such document written in Arabic.

Rhiannon Giddens’ brilliant libretto chronicles the life of ibn Said, beginning in present-day Senegal and following him through his capture, journey via the Middle Passage, and enslavement in North and South Carolina. [Read on…]

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