by Rory O’Donoghue
“It’s always inspirational to hear vocalists, because that’s really how music is supposed to sound,” Cleveland Orchestra cellist Brian Thornton said as he got settled on stage at Orange Village Hall on July 18. He performed as part of M. U. S. i. C.’s (Musical Upcoming Stars in the Classics) 23rd Classical Cabaret, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which featured a lovely lineup of vocal and instrumental music by both professional and emerging musicians. [Read more…]
by Mike Telin
When we think of the works of Felix Mendelssohn, a few that immediately come to mind are his Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the “Italian Symphony,” and the Violin Concerto, as well as several pieces of chamber music.
On Friday, November 4 at 7:30 pm at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights, Earth and Air: String Orchestra, under the direction of David B. Ellis, will present a program of lesser-known but equally engaging works, “Mendelssohn String Symphonies — Part I” will include early symphonies by Mendelssohn, as well as the Concerto for Piano, Violin, and Strings, written when the composer was 14 years old.
“I knew that the concerto existed, but I didn’t know a lot about it until David asked me to play the solo part,” violinist Solomon Liang said during a recent telephone conversation. “I’m really excited to have the chance to perform it.” [Read more…]
by Daniel Hathaway
A dozen young musicians were showcased on Sunday afternoon, March 23, when M.U.S.i.C (Musical Upcoming Stars in the Classics) presented its eighth Classical Cabaret performance in the council chambers of Orange Village Hall. The cabaret theme was reinforced by a program of generally light musical fare and a substantial array of food and drink made available to the large audience before, during and after the two-hour concert.
The weightier pieces came in the second half, when violinist Iryna Krechkovsky and pianist Kevin Kwan Loucks (who perform as the Krechkovsky/Loucks Duo and are based in Southern California) played the Debussy Sonata and were joined in Chausson’s Concerto for Violin, Piano and String Quartet by violinists Diana Pepelea and Solomon Liang, violist Cynthia Black and cellist James Jaffee.
by Daniel Hathaway
When Oberlin piano professor Peter Takács asked Cleveland artist and designer Jodi Kanter a few years back to organize some chamber concerts featuring young area performers, Musical Upcoming Stars in the Classics (M.U.S.i.C) was born. The organization, which seeks out “emerging world class musicians in Northeast Ohio and beyond”, gives them performing opportunities and pays them, presented its seventh “Classical Cabaret” on Sunday afternoon, October 20 at Orange Village Hall.
A large audience turned out to hear a varied program of music performed by Takács, violinist Michelle Abraham, cellists James Jaffee and Fedor Amosov and pianists Gregory Wang and Aleander Kostritsa, with a special appearance by Detroit accordionist and bandoneónist Julian Labro.
The concert took place in the village Council Chambers, a large octagonal room flooded with natural light and blessed with agreeable acoustics for chamber music. [Read more…]