The Well-Tempered Ear
Classical music: It will be all-Mozart and all-winds when the local chamber music ensemble Con Vivo performs this Sunday afternoon. Plus, a FREE piano and saxophone concert is at noon on Friday
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ALERT: This week’s FREE Friday Noon Musicale at the First Unitarian Society of Madison, 900 University Bay Drive, features pianist Joseph Ross and alto saxophonist Peterson Ross in music by Samuel Barber, Jacques Ibert, and by the performers Joseph and Peterson Ross. The concert runs from 12:15 to 1 p.m.
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following announcement to post:
Con Vivo … Music With Life (below) continues its 16th season with music of Mozart – with special touches.
The chamber music concert, entitled “No Strings Attached,” will include the Serenade in C minor for wind octet along with selections from the opera The Marriage of Figaro arranged for winds. (You can hear the opening of the Mozart Serenade in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Anders Yocom (below top) from Wisconsin Public Radio will narrate the opera selections and Maestro Kyle Knox (below bottom) will conduct the ensemble.
The concert takes place on Sunday, March 11, at 2:30 p.m. at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 1609 University Ave. across from Camp Randall.
Tickets can be purchased in advance at Orange Tree Imports, 1721 Monroe St., or at the door for $18 for adults, and $15 for seniors and students.
Convenient parking is only 2 blocks west at University Foundation, 1848 University Ave. For more information, go to: www.convivomusicwithlife.org
NOTE: This weekend marks the start of Daylight Saving Time. Remember to move your clocks ahead one hour on Saturday night!
Audience members are invited to join the musicians after the concert for a free reception to discuss the concert.
Con Vivo’s artistic director Robert Taylor, in remarking about the concert said, “We are delighted and thrilled to be joined by Maestro Knox and Anders Yocom from WPR to present a unique music experience. This will be a wonderful way to experience opera music in a whole new light. We are sure this will once again be a concert to remember.”
Con Vivo is a professional chamber music ensemble comprised of Madison area musicians assembled from the ranks of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, and various other performing groups familiar to Madison audiences.
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Classical music: Con Vivo opens its 15th season this Saturday night with chamber music and a jazz trio from Germany
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received a the following announcement to post:
Con Vivo!…music with life (below), opens its 15th season with a chamber music concert entitled “All That Jazz” on this Saturday, Oct. 8, at 7:30 p.m. in the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 1609 University Ave., across from Camp Randall.
Tickets can be purchased at the door for $18 for adults and $15 for seniors and students.
Con Vivo!’s fall concert, “All That Jazz” features pieces from our standard repertoire as well as jazz music performed by the Edgar Knecht Jazz Trio visiting from our Sister County in Kassel, Germany.
The trio’s appearance is in conjunction with their Dane County visit as a cultural exchange reciprocating con vivo!’s Germany tour in 2015.
Here is the program: “Man Nozipo” for string quartet and percussion by Dumisani Maraire; Selected movements from “Benny’s Gig” for clarinet and double bass by Morton Gould; Rhapsody in Blue arranged for solo organ, by George Gershwin; “Overture on Hebrew Themes” by Sergei Prokofiev; Divertimento in F Major, K. 138, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; and various selections of original music for jazz trio by Edgar Knecht.
Audience members are invited to join the musicians after the concert for a free reception to discuss the concert.
In remarking about the concert, artistic director Robert Taylor said: “With this Con Vivo! concert, we are hosting the Edgar Knecht Trio as well as doing some collaborative pieces with members from both of our groups. (You can hear a sample in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
“I think this a great way to begin our 15th season with exceptional music that combines the wonderful sounds of winds, strings and organ along with jazz. Our Madison audience will be able to hear our musicians up close and personal playing music of extreme delight and depth.”
For more information, visit: http://www.convivomusicwithlife.org/home.html
Con Vivo! is a professional chamber music ensemble comprised of Madison area musicians assembled from the ranks of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and various other performing groups familiar to Madison audiences.
Tags: Arts, Cello, Chamber music, Classical music, collaboration, collaborative, Con Vivo, Dane County, divertimento, double bass, Dumisani Maraire, Edgar Knecht, Edgar Knecht Jazz Trio, German, Germany, Gershwin, Hebrew, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Morton Gould, movement, Mozart, Music, Musical ensemble, organ, Overture, percussion, percusssion, Piano, Rhapsody in Blue, solo, string bass, String quartet, strings, trio, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, winds, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, YouTube
Classical music: The Madison Symphony Orchestra unveils its 2016-17 season. Plus, the Oakwood Chamber Players perform “Children’s Games” this Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. The program features music by Bizet, Jack Gallagher and Irving Fine.
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ALERT: Today — as of midnight plus one minute — the Madison Symphony Orchestra is announcing its new season for 2016-17. The eight-concert season features many returning soloists, 13 first-time performances for the MSO, two multi-media events and another Beyond the Score that was so popular when it premiered several years ago. Here is a link to check it out for yourself:
http://www.madisonsymphony.org/16-17
By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear has received the following note:
THE OAKWOOD CHAMBER PLAYERS PRESENT: Children’s Games
Join the Oakwood Chamber Players (below) as they continue their concert season with the theme of playful whimsy in a concert entitled Children’s Games on Saturday, March 5, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 6, 1:30 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased with cash or personal checks at the door – $20 general admission, $15 seniors and $5 students. Visit www.oakwoodchamberplayers.com or call (608) 230-4316 for more information.
Children over 6 years of age will receive free admission to either performance.
The concerts will both be held at the Oakwood Center for Arts and Education, 6209 Mineral Point Road, on Madison’s far west side..
The concert title is drawn from the composition Jeux d’enfants or Children’s Games by French composer Georges Bizet (below). You can hear the original version played by sister Katia and Marielle Labeque in a YouTube video at the bottom.
Originally a 12-movement work written for two pianos, a representative suite has been arranged by the Oakwood Chamber Players for woodwind quintet. It includes the energetic march “Trompette et tambour”; the compelling melodic exchanges in “Petit mari, petite femme”; “La toupie” which depicts the frantic spinning of a top; the lulling berceuse of “La poupee”; and the exhilarating galop dance form in “Le bal.”
The woodwind quintet will also perform contemporary Ancient Evenings and Distant Music by American composer Jack Gallagher (below).
The title of this work is inspired by a poignant toast given by a character in the best-selling romantic novel The Bridges of Madison County by Robert Waller The work includes a prologue followed by eight brief variations based on historic compositional styles enlivened by 20th-century technique.
The woodwind quintet includes two guest artists: flutist Dawn Lawler (below top) and oboist Jennifer Morgan (below bottom).
The ensemble’s performance will also include the engaging, tongue-in-cheek composition “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe” by American composer Irving Fine (below) who sets up delightful dueling interplays between two woodwinds (oboe and clarinet) and two string instruments (violin and cello).
Overall, the program will provide a fascinating combination of compelling and entertaining compositions.
This is the fourth of five concerts in the Oakwood Chamber Players 2015-2016 “Play” season series titled Play. Summer Splash on May 14 and 15 will be final concerts of the season.
The Oakwood Chamber Players is a group of Madison-area professional musicians who have rehearsed and performed at Oakwood Village for over 30 years.
The Oakwood Chamber Players are a professional music ensemble proudly supported by Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries and the Oakwood Foundation.
Tags: America, American, Arts, Beyond the Score, Bizet, Bridges of Madison County, Cello, Chamber music, Chldren's Games, Classical music, composer, Concert, flute, France, French, Georges Bizet, Irving Fine, Jack Gallagher, Jacob Stockinger, Labeque, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, multi-media, Music, Musical ensemble, novel, Oakwood Chamber Players, Oboe, Paris, Piano, play, Robert Waller, soloist, strings, Suite, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, variations, Viola, Violin, Wisconsin, woodwinds, YouTube
Classical music: The Oakwood Chamber Players will perform playful works by Elisenda Fabregas, Malcolm Arnold and Robert Schumann this Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Oakwood Chamber Players (below) continue the concert season theme of “Play” with playful whimsy in a concert entitled Fairy Tales and Other Stories, on this Saturday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Jan. 17, at 1:30 p.m.
The concerts will both be held at the Oakwood Center for Arts and Education, 6209 Mineral Point Road, on Madison‘s far west side.
Tickets can be purchased with cash or personal checks at the door. They are $20 for general admission, $15 for seniors and $5 for students. Visit www.oakwoodchamberplayers.com for more information.
This concert features the chamber ensemble’s talented pianist Vincent Fuh (below top) who will perform solo selections from “Scenes from Childhood” By Robert Schumann (below bottom, in 1850). This piece captures a wide range of expressivity and shifts in energy illuminated by the composer‘s musical imagination. (You can hear “Scenes From Childhood” performed by Martha Argerich in a YouTube video at the bottom.)
The program will also include “Voces di mi Terra” (Voices of My Land) by the compelling Catalan/American composer Elisenda Fabregas (below), written for flute, cello and piano.
The Quintet for violin, viola, flute, horn and bassoon by British composer Malcolm Arnold is a clever and varied composition that shows an upbeat and playful approach to a non-traditional combination of instruments.
Robert Schumann’s Fairy Tales, Op. 132, for clarinet, viola and piano will give the audience a glimpse into a dream world of music that is sometimes uplifting and sometimes mysterious.
This is the third of five concerts in the Oakwood Chamber Players 2015-2016 season series titled “Play.” Remaining concerts include Children’s Games on March 5 and 6; and Summer Splash on May 14 and 15.
The Oakwood Chamber Players is a group of Madison-area professional musicians who have rehearsed and performed at Oakwood Village for over 30 years.
The Oakwood Chamber Players are a professional music ensemble proudly supported by Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries and the Oakwood Foundation.
Tags: American, Arts, Bassoon, Britain, British, Catalan, Catalonia, Cello, Chamber music, childhood, clarinet, Classical music, composer, Eilsenda Fabregas, fairy tale, flute, Horn, Jacob Stockinger, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Malcolm Arnold, Martha Argerich, Music, Musical ensemble, Oakwood Chamber Players, Orchestra, Piano, play, quintet, quntet, Roert Schumann, Scenes From Childhood, story, UK, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: The Oakwood Chamber Players will give two performances of “Holiday Fun” this coming Sunday afternoon.
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By Jacob Stockinger
The Ear’s friends at The Oakwood Chamber Players write:
Join the Oakwood Chamber Players as they present two performances of Holiday Fun, their annual Christmas Lights concert on this coming Sunday, Nov. 29.
Holiday Fun, which will mix in the sweet appeal of pieces such as Home for the Holidays, the upbeat It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, and Vaughan-Williams’ gentle and lulling Withers Rocking Song.
Also on the program is Old World Wisconsin Christmas arranged for the group by Wisconsin composer and arranger Pierre LaPlante.
An array of holiday songs and carols, interspersed with stories, will fill out the concert programming. The group will offer a range of combinations from solo piano to keyboard plus a variety of winds and strings.
The ensemble is pleased to feature the talents of soprano Heather Thorpe (below) who will collaborate with the Oakwood Chamber Players on “The Oxen,” which brings to life the poetry of Thomas Hardy in a setting by Paul Brantley, as well as Pietro Yon’s “Gesu Bambino.” (You can it sung by Kathleen Battle and Frederica von Stade in a popular YouTube video at the bottom.)
Both performances are on Sunday afternoon and will be held at the Oakwood Center for Arts and Education, 6209 Mineral Point Road, on Madison far west wide. The first performance will be 1 p.m. with a second performance at 3:30 p.m.
Tickets are available at the door. Prices are $20 for general admission, $15 for seniors and $5 for students. Visit www.oakwoodchamberplayers.com for more information.
This is the second of five concerts in the Oakwood Chamber Players’ 2015-2016 season series titled “Play.” Remaining concerts include Fairy Tales and Other Stories on Jan. 16 and 17, Children’s Games on March 5 and 6; and Summer Splash on May 14 and 15.
The Oakwood Chamber Players is a group of Madison-area professional musicians who have rehearsed and performed at Oakwood Village for over 30 years.
The Oakwood Chamber Players is a professional music ensemble proudly supported by Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries and the Oakwood Foundation.
Tags: arranger, Arts, Baroque, Cello, Chamber music, choral music, Christmas, Classical music, composer, Early music, Frederica von Stade, Gesu Bambino, Heather Thorpe, Holiday, holiday music, Jacob Stockinger, Kathleen Battle, Madison, Music, Musical ensemble, Oakwood Chamber Players, Oakwood Village, Old World Wisconsin, Piano, Pierre LaPlante, Pietro Yon, Poetry, pop music, strings, Thomas Hardy, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Viola, Violin, vocal music, winds, Wisconsin, YouTube
Classical music: Amateurs who dream of playing with a professional orchestra should listen to this story.
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By Jacob Stockinger
Violinist Tanesha Mitchell (below in a photograph by Richard Anderson) isn’t alone.
Like her, there are many string and brass players, wind players and percussionists, who have studied music and have become pretty accomplished amateurs.
And many of them, The Ear, suspects, dream of playing even just one concert with a professional orchestra.
Enter the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (below top) and its famed music director and conductor Marin Alsop (below bottom).
Baltimore Symphony November 20, 2008
Talk about community outreach!
Each year, the BSO holds an amateur week – it is called Academy Week — in which 80 talented amateurs get to play with and under the tutelage of professionals in the symphony orchestra and its conductor. Participants get seven rehearsals and a full concert as well as private lessons.
The Ear wonders how much it costs and how they choose participants.
You can hear more about it in a YouTube video from 2011 at the bottom.
It seems kind of like Interlochen summer music camp, but for adults instead of teens.
Here is a story that aired Saturday on NPR or National Public Radio.
For those amateurs with dreams of professional music-making glory – for even just a week – it is a must-hear story.
And it makes you wonder if it could help the future of classical music if more symphony orchestras and chamber orchestras – including the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra – adopted something similar.
What do you think?
The Ear wants to hear
Tags: Academy Week, amateur, Arts, Baltimore, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, brass, Classical music, conductor, Jacob Stockinger, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Marin Alsop, Music, Music director, Musical ensemble, National Public Radio, NPR, Orchestra, percussion, professional, strings, United States, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Violin, winds, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, YouTube
Classical music: The Oakwood Chamber Players perform an all-Czech program of music by Smetana, Janaceck and Adolf Schreiner this Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
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By Jacob Stockinger
Our friends at the Oakwood Chamber Players write:
This weekend, the Oakwood Chamber Players (below) continue to celebrate its 30th anniversary season with an all-Czech program called “Recapitulate!”
The two performances of the program are on this coming Saturday, January 17, at 7 p.m. and Sunday afternoon, January 18, at 1:30 p.m.
Both concerts will be held at the Oakwood Center for Arts and Education, 6209 Mineral Point Road. It is a comfortable and wheelchair-accessible space with good acoustics and sight-lines.
Tickets are available at the door – $20 general admission, $15 seniors and $5 students. Visit www.oakwoodchamberplayers.com for more information.
The program features three favorites from past OCP seasons:
Bedrich Smetana (below) — Trio for violin, cello and piano, Op. 15 in G minor (originally performed May, 2004)
Leos Janacek (below) — Mladi (Youth) for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn and bass clarinet (originally performed July, 1989 and again May 2004)
Adolf Schreiner – “Immer Kleiner” (Always Smaller) for clarinet and piano (originally performed May, 2006). You can hear it at the bottom in a YouTube video.
The Smetana work is an exciting and beautiful whirl of piano trio fun
The ensemble has performed the Janacek piece more than once and is happy to have Greg Smith, Jennifer Morgan and Dawn Lawler reunite for this performance.
The seemingly short and sweet “Immer Kleiner” is a comedic homage to the clarinet (below) that includes disassembling the instrument.
This is the third of five concerts in their celebratory 30th anniversary season series titled “Reprise! Looking Back Over 30 Years.”
Remaining concerts include:
- Replay! – March 14 and March 15
- Reissue! – May 23 and May 24
For more details, including programs as well as critical reviews, player biographies and recordings, visit:
The Oakwood Chamber Players is a group of Madison-area professional musicians who have rehearsed and performed at Oakwood Village for 30 years. Many of them play in other professional groups including the Madison Symphony Orchestra and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra.
The Oakwood Chamber Players are a professional music ensemble proudly supported by Oakwood Lutheran Senior Ministries and the Oakwood Foundation.
Tags: Adolf Schreiner, Arts, bass clarinet, Bassoon, Cello, Chamber music, clarinet, Classical music, Czech music, Czech Republic, Czechoslovakia, flute, Horn, Jacob Stockinger, Janacek, Madison, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Music, Musical ensemble, Oakwood Chamber Players, Oakwood Village, Oboe, Piano, Smetana, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Violin, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, YouTube
Classical music: University of Wisconsin percussion group Clocks in Motion will give a FREE concert of unusual new music, including the world premiere of the winner of its first composing contest, this Sunday afternoon. Plus, on Saturday a harpsichord recital of Baroque masters will be given at the First Unitarian Society.
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ALERT: This Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the Landmark Auditorium at the historic Meeting House at the First Unitarian Society of Madison, 900 University Bay Drive, Stephen Alltop of Northwestern University will give a harpsichord recital. The program features the music of Johann Sebastian Bach (Toccata in E minor, Preludes and Fugues in D major and D minor from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I), Domenico Scarlatti (two sonatas), Jean-Philippe Rameau (Suite in A Minor), Franz Joseph Haydn (Sonata No. 6 in G Major) and George Frideric Handel (Suite in G Minor). A free will offering will be taken.
By Jacob Stockinger
Clocks in Motion, Madison’s cutting-edge new music ensemble, will present Unfamiliar Voices 1.0, an expansive program featuring music from both the heart of the established percussion ensemble literature and the forefront of modern percussion composition.
The FREE performance is this coming Sunday, Feb. 16, at 3 p.m. in Mils Hall. It will celebrate composer and UW-Madison student Ben Davis, the 2014 Clocks in Motion Call for Scores winner, with the world premiere of his exciting new work, “Night.”
The ensemble will also perform the meditative percussion quartet, “Threads,” by Paul Lansky and the grand percussion sextet, “Kryptogramma,” by Georges Aperghis.
Ben Davis (below), a composer, trumpeter and teacher from Richmond, Virginia, writes for unique instruments built by Clocks in Motion. His new work employs sixxen — large aluminum keyboard instruments that are tuned microtonally (vastly different from the standard repeating 12-tone scale in most western music).
The three sets of sixxen (below, in the foreground with other percussion instruments) in the piece are purposefully out of tune with each other, creating an entrancing sound cloud of beading frequencies for the listener. In contrast, the other three players in the piece each play a bombastic multi-percussion setup of tom toms, snare drums, kick drums, and china cymbals. Davis’ innovative work is sure to impress.
Paul Lansky (below) shares some insightful thoughts on his 2005 work: “Threads… is a half-hour long ‘cantata’ for percussion quartet in ten short movements. (You can hear it at the bottom in a YouTube video performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.)
Adds Lansky: “There are three “threads” that are interwoven in the piece: Arias and Preludes that focus on the metallic pitched sounds of vibraphones, glockenspiel and pipes; Choruses in which drumming predominates; and Recitatives made largely from John Cage-like noise instruments, bottles, flower pots, crotales, etc. The aim of the different threads is to highlight the wide range of qualities that percussion instruments are capable of, from lyrical and tender to forceful and aggressive, and weave them into one continuous ‘thread.’ The movements are performed without interruption.”
Georges Aperghis’ 1970 composition “Kryptogramma” is a massive undertaking. Puzzling instrumental combinations and bizarre rhythmic structures make this one of the most fascinating and complex percussion ensemble works ever written.
“Kryptogramma” means “concealed text/writing”. In the words of composer Aperghis (below): “Every cyptogram [in the piece] conceals a text or number sequence, behind which information is hidden…simple rhythms…are developed in a tapestry of soaring movements, and…subjected to a mass of variation.”
Clocks in Motion members are Dave Alcorn, Jennifer Hedstrom, Sean Kleve, Michael Koszewski James McKenzie, and Joseph Murfin. For the concert on Feb. 16, Clocks in Motion will welcome percussionists Vincent Mingils and Somali Wilson as guest performers.
All performers are either current or former students of the UW-Madison percussion studio.
Hailed as “nothing short of remarkable” (ClevelandClassical.com), Clocks in Motion is a group that performs new music, builds rare instruments, and breaks down the boundaries of the traditional concert program.
Formed in 2011, the ensemble is currently in residence at the University of Wisconsin School of Music. The individual members of Clocks in Motion’s unique skill sets and specialties contain an impressive mix of musical styles including, rock, jazz, contemporary classical music, orchestral percussion, marching percussion, and world music styles.
Among its many recent engagements, the group served as resident performers and educators at the Interlochen Arts Academy, Rhapsody Arts Center, University of Michigan, Baldwin-Wallace University, and the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art.
Admission is free. For more information, including repertoire, upcoming events, biographies, and media, visit http://clocksinmotionpercussion.com.
Tags: Arts, Baldwin-Wallace University, Baltimore, Ben Davis, Chamber music, Classical music, Clocks, Clocks in Motion, Contemporary classical music, Domenico Scarlatti, First Unitarian Society of Madison, Franz Joseph Haydn, fugue, George Frideric Handel, Georges Aperghis, harpsichord, Interlochen Center for the Arts, Jacob Stockinger, Jazz, John Cage, Johns Hopkins University, Madison, microtone, Musical ensemble, New Music, Northwestern University, Paul Lansky, Peabody Conservatory of Music, Peabody Institute, percussion, Percussion instrument, Prelude, Rock, sixxen, Sonata, Suite, Sunday, toccata, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Well-Tempered Clavier, YouTube
Classical music: Here is the impressive concert lineup for Semester II — the Spring Semester — for the 2013-14 season at the University of Wisconsin School of Music.
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By Jacob Stockinger
It is only mid-July and Kathy Esposito, the concert manager and director of public relations at the University of Wisconsin School of Music is on the job.
Kathy has sent out the copy for the UW School of Music’s new brochure with the dates and artists for the impressive lineup of concert during the upcoming 2013-2014 season.
You will notice that a lot of artists and groups have still not yet submitted programs. But whatever is available right now is here.
So get out your datebooks and start checking for conflicts and penciling in your favorites.
The list is long, so the first semester – the Fall Semester — appeared yesterday; only the second semester – the Spring semester — is featured TODAY.
Here is Kathy’s introduction:
Hello all,
Attached herewith is our 2013-14 season schedule, which is in the end stages of design and will be printed and mailed this August. I wanted to give you a heads-up, for obvious reasons.
You’ll notice a slew of very interesting concerts. We will feature several highly successful UW alumni, including conductor Ken Woods (below, now working in England); Nate Stampley, Broadway singer; Chris Washburne, a trombonist now based in NYC; and Ilia Radoslavov, a pianist now at Truman State University.
Other guests include Todd Reynolds, a violinist from NYC, Taiseer Elias & Menachem Wiesenberg (presenting classical Arabic and Israeli music), duoARtia (the piano duo of Jeri-Mae G. Astolfi & Holly Roadfeldt), and Third Coast Percussion of Chicago.
Our tuba professor and SOM director John Stevens (below top) is retiring this year, and he will conduct Chicago Symphony Oecgestra’s Gene Pokorny in the work that Stevens wrote for CSO, some years ago. Opera director Bill Farlow (below, in a photo by Katrin Talbot) will also retire, and will present Hector Berlioz’ “Beatrice et Benedict” in his final appearance as director.
We also have much in the way of more contemporary music, both new classical and electro-acoustic, plus many masterclasses and talks that are open to the public. There’s a lot of experimentation happening all the time at the UW School of Music (SOM).
Best of all: all concerts are free – unless noted otherwise with $$.
SEMESTER II
JANUARY
Martha Fischer, piano, and Friends will celebrate the birthday of Franz Schubert (1797-1828) with an all-Schubert program. Faculty Concert
Fri 31, Mills Hall, 8 pm
FEBRUARY
Stephanie Jutt, flute Faculty Concert
Sat 1, Morphy Hall, 8 pm
Les Thimmig, “The Feldman Trios” Part III Faculty Concert
Sun 2, Mills Hall, 1 pm
Prof. Les Thimmig, flutes; Jennifer Hedstrom, keyboards; Sean Kleve, percussion.
Three lecture-performances of the late-period work of American composer Morton Feldman. Final concert.
UW Symphony Orchestra with Concerto Competition Winners
Sat 8, Mills Hall, 8 pm
James Smith, conductor
Our school’s talented musicians perform with the university symphony orchestra.
John Stevens, tuba Faculty Concert
Tues 11, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
With guest artists David Perry, Sally Chisholm, Parry Karp, & Martha Fischer
Mozart’s Horn Quintet, Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer, and Brahms’s Horn Trio. All works adapted for tuba.
Daniel Grabois, horn Faculty Concert
Wed 12, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Works by UW composers John Stevens, Laura Schwendinger (premiere), and Les Thimmig.
UW Black Music Ensemble
Thurs 13, Morphy Hall, 8:30 pm
Richard Davis, director
An eclectic group of musicians exploring repertoire of black composers.
Tues 18, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
James Smith, conductor
Todd Reynolds, Violinist Guest Artist
Concert: Wed 19, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Masterclasses on composing, electronic music, violin performance, & entrepreneurship: Wed/Thurs 19/20
Violinist, composer, educator, and technologist Todd Reynolds (below) is the violinist of choice for Steve Reich, Meredith Monk, and Bang on a Can, and is a founder of the string quartet Ethel. His performance and compositional style is a hybrid of old and new technology, multi-disciplinary aesthetic, and pan-genre composition and improvisation. Emerging from the classical tradition, Reynolds is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Reynolds studied with violin legend Jascha Heifetz and was principal second violin of the Rochester Philharmonic.
UW Western Percussion Ensemble
Thurs 20, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Anthony Di Sanza & Tom Ross, directors
UW Wind Ensemble
Sat 22, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Scott Teeple, director
Woodwind-Piano Duo Competition: Winners’ Recital
Sun 23, Morphy Hall, 1:30 pm
Generously supported by former UW Chancellor Irving Shain.
UW Concert Band
Sun 23, Mills Hall, 2 pm
Michael Leckrone, director
Hunt Quartet
Sun 23, Morphy Hall, 3:30 pm
Paran Amirinazari, Ju Dee Ang, Lindsey Crabb, Elspeth Stalter
The Hunt Quartet, a joint effort of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, UW and area schools, is comprised of outstanding graduate students from the School of Music who introduce students in grades K-3 to chassical music. This year’s members include Paran Amirinazari, Ju Dee Ang, Lindsey Crabb, and Elsbeth Stalter.
Hunt quartet
UW Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
Tues 25, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
UW composer Laura Schwendinger, director (below)
CCE continues its mission to present the music of living composers. This year’s featured composers include Kathryn Alexander, Suzanne Sorkin, and David Gompper.
Wingra Woodwind Quintet UW Ensemble in Residence
Thurs 27, Morphy Hall, 7:30 pm
Stephanie Jutt, flute; Kostas Tiliakos, oboe; Linda Bartley, clarinet; Marc Vallon, bassoon; Linda Kimball, horn
Christopher Taylor, piano Faculty Concert
Fri 28, Mills Hall, 8 pm
MARCH
Musicians of the Sibelius Academy, Finland Guest Artists
Aulikki Eerola, Pertti Eerola, & Eija Järvelä
In residency: March 1-8
Concert: Sat 8, Luther Memorial Church, time TBD.
Masterclasses: Please check website for details.
Three revered Finnish musicians, all from the faculty of the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, will be in residency at the School of Music during the first week of March 2014 to present master classes, workshops, discussions on Finnish music education, and a concert at Luther Memorial Church on Saturday, March 8th. This residency is made possible by support from the Vilas Trust, the Kemper Knapp Bequest, the Finlandia Foundation, the Department of Scandinavian Studies, Luther Memorial Church, and the Association of Church Musicians.
Pro Arte Quartet UW Ensemble in Residence
Sat 1, Mills Hall, 8 pm
David Perry & Suzanne Beia, violin; Sally Chisholm, viola; Parry Karp, cello
Music of Arriaga, Korngold, and Beethoven.
Piano Performance Extravaganza
Featuring Prof. Johannes Wallmann and the students of Martha Fischer, Jessica Johnson, Christopher Taylor, and Todd Welbourne.
Performances: Sat 1, Morphy Hall, all day
Masterclasses & workshops: See website for details.
UW University Bands
Sun 2, Mills Hall, 2 pm
Matthew Mireles, conductor
Winds of Wisconsin
Sun 2, Mills Hall, 6 pm
Scott Teeple, director
A premier high school wind ensemble on the UW-Madison campus.
Blue Note Ensemble, Jazz Composers’ Septet, & Contemporary Jazz Ensemble
Thurs 6, Morphy Hall, 7:30 pm
Johannes Wallmann & Les Thimmig, directors
Ilia Radoslavov, piano Guest Artist & UW Alumnus
Fri 7, Morphy Hall, 8 pm
A native of Bulgaria, pianist Ilia Radoslavov (below) earned his doctorate in piano performance at UW-Madison, where he studied with Christopher Taylor and received the Paul Collins Distinguished Graduate Fellowship. In 2009, Radoslavov was the gold medalist in the 2009 Seattle International Piano Competition and also earned first prize in the American Protege International Piano and Strings Competition, followed by a performance at Carnegie Hall’s Weil Recital Hall. Dr. Radoslavov is now on faculty at Truman State University.
Parry Karp, cello Faculty Concert
Sat 8, Mills Hall, 8 pm
With Eli Kalman, piano
Works of Beethoven, Ettore Desderi, and Shostakovich/Lera Auerbach.
John Stevens, tuba & euphonium Faculty Concert
Sat 8, Music Hall, 4 pm
A chamber music concert featuring compositions of Prof. Stevens, with guests from the Wisconsin Brass Quintet.
Tuba/Euphonium Extravaganza
Sun 9, Mills Hall, 2 pm
Matthew Mireles, director
Presenting the works of Prof. John Stevens, performed by current and former students.
UW Symphony Orchestra with guest artist Gene Pokorny
Sun 9, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
James Smith, conductor, and John Stevens, guest conductor
Performing Journey, composed by UW Prof. John Stevens.
Gene Pokorny (below) has been the tuba player in the Chicago Symphony since 1989 and was previously a member of the Israel Philharmonic, Utah Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, and Los Angeles Philharmonic. In addition to playing film scores in Hollywood such as Jurassic Park and The Fugitive, he has played in chamber music, opera orchestras, and orchestra festivals worldwide. Journey, a concerto for tuba written by UW Prof. John Stevens, was originally commissioned and premiered in 2000 by Gene Pokorny and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
John Stevens, who will retire from UW-Madison at the end of this year, has been professor of tuba and euphonium at UW-Madison since 1985 and was director of the School of Music from 1991-1996 and 2011-2013. He is also a member of the Wisconsin Brass Quintet. As a composer and arranger Stevens is internationally renowned for his works for brass, particularly for solo tuba, euphonium and trombone, tuba/euphonium ensemble, brass quintet, and other brass chamber combinations. In addition to Journey, Stevens’ other compositions include the Concerto for Euphonium and Orchestra composed for Brian Bowman, Symphony in Three Movements, a composition for wind band commissioned by a consortium of fourteen American universities, and Monument for solo tuba and strings, commissioned by tuba icon Roger Bobo in memory of the great LA studio tubist, the late Tommy Johnson. Stevens has been a member of the International Tuba Euphonium Association (ITEA) Executive Committee and was recently been awarded the ITEA’s prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor in his field.
UW Jazz Orchestra & UW Platteville Jazz Ensemble
Mon 10, Location TBD, 7:30 pm
Johannes Wallmann & Allen Cordingley, directors
Opera Workshop
Tues 11, Music Hall, 7:30 pm
William Farlow & Mimmi Fulmer, directors
UW Chamber Orchestra
Wed 12, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
James Smith, conductor
UW Percussion Studio Recital
Thurs 13, Morphy Hall, 7:30 pm
Anthony Di Sanza, Todd Hammes, & Tom Ross, directors
UW Concert Band
Tues 25, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Michael Leckrone, director
Paul Rowe and Martha Fischer Faculty Concert
Wed 26, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Hugo Wolf’s Italienisches Liederbuch performed by guest artist and UW voice almuna Julia Foster, soprano.
Wisconsin Brass Quintet Ensemble in Residence
Sat 29, Mills Hall, 8 pm
John Aley & Jessica Jensen, trumpets; Dan Grabois, horn; Mark Hetzler, trombone; John Stevens, tuba
APRIL
James Doing & Martha Fischer, tenor & piano Faculty Concert
Thurs 3, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Marc Vallon Faculty Concert
Fri 4, Morphy Hall, 6:30 pm
Presenting “Domaine Musicale”, an homage to Pierre Boulez’s legendary group.
Uri Vardi, cello, with Taiseer Elias & Menachem Wiesenberg Guest Artists
Sat 5, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Presenting “Fusions Continuum,” a recital of Jewish music and Arabic art music.
A master of both Eastern and Western music, oud and violin artist Taiseer Elias enjoys an international career as a performer, conductor, and composer. He is founder and conductor of the first Orchestra of Classical Arabic Music in Israel and is currently the musical director and conductor of the Arab-Jewish Youth Orchestra.
Menachem Wiesenberg is a Professor and Dean of Composition, Conducting, and Music Education at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and also a senior consultant to the Jerusalem Music Center.
Uri Vardi (below) is professor of cello at UW-Madison.
Beethoven Piano Competition: Winners’ Recital
Sun 6, Morphy Hall, 3:30 pm
Generously supported by former UW Chancellor Irving Shain.
Kostas Tiliakos, oboe Faculty Concert
Mon 7, Morphy Hall, 7:30 pm
Twisted Metal
Tues 29, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
The UW horns perform their second annual concert as Twisted Metal, a rock band playing original songs and arrangements by ensemble members.
University Opera $$
Fri 11, 7:30 pm / Sun 13, 3 pm / Tues 15, 7:30 pm, Music Hall
William Farlow, director
James Smith, conductor
Hector Berlioz, Beatrice et Benedict
Call (608) 265-ARTS (2787) for ticket info.
The Center for New Music, University of Iowa Guest Artists
Fri 11, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Presenting performances devoted to late 20th and early 21st-century repertoire.
UW Concert Choir & UW Chamber Orchestra $$
Sat 12, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Beverly Taylor, conductor
J.S. Bach, The Passion of St. John
The Perlman Piano Trio
Sat 12, Morphy Hall, 3:30 pm
Daniel Ma, violoncello; Alice Bartsch, violin; SeungWha Baek, piano
The Perlman Piano Trio 2012 members below) is sponsored by retired UW research scientist Dr. Kato Perlman and provides annual awards for a violinist, cellist, and pianist who present one concert each year of great masterpieces of the piano literature. The UW thanks Dr. Perlman for her support.
UW Chorale
Sun 13, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Bruce Gladstone, director
Anthony Di Sanza, percussion Faculty Concert
Mon 14, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Guitar Ensemble
Wed 16, Mills Hall, 8:30 pm
Javier Calderon, director
Black Music Ensemble
Thurs 17, Morphy Hall, 8:30 pm
Richard Davis, director
An eclectic group of musicians exploring repertoire of black composers.
Pro Arte Quartet UW Ensemble in Residence
Thurs 17, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
David Perry & Suzanne Beia, violin; Sally Chisholm, viola; Parry Karp, cello
Music of Onslow, Schoenberg, and Mendelssohn.
Tuba/Euphonium Ensemble
Sat 19, Mills Hall, 4 pm
John Stevens, director
Madrigal Singers
Sat 19, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Bruce Gladstone, director
Blue Note Ensemble, Jazz Composers’ Septet, & Contemporary Jazz Ensemble
Tues 22, Morphy Hall, 7:30 pm
Johannes Wallmann & Les Thimmig, directors
Western Percussion Ensemble
Wed 23, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Anthony Di Sanza & Tom Ross, directors
UW Wind Ensemble
Fri 25, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Scott Teeple, director
UW Choral Union $$
Sat 26, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Beverly Taylor, director
Sergei Rachmaninoff, Vespers
Call (608) 265-ARTS (2787) for ticket info.
University Bands
Sun 27, Mills Hall, 2 pm
Matthew Mireles, conductor
Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
Laura Schwendinger, director
Mon 28, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
CCE continues its mission to present the music of living composers. This year’s featured composers include Kathryn Alexander, Suzanne Sorkin, and David Gompper.
MAY
Brian Lynch, trumpet, with UW Jazz Orchestra & UW High School Honors Jazz Band Guest Artist
Thurs 1, Music Hall, 7:30 pm
Johannes Wallmann, director
Grammy Award Winner Brian Lynch is as comfortable negotiating the complexities of clave with Afro-Caribbean pioneer Eddie Palmieri as he is swinging through advanced harmony with bebop maestro Phil Woods. Having honed his chops as a member of both Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and the Horace Silver Quintet, Lynch has been a valued collaborator with jazz artists such as Benny Golson, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and Charles McPherson; Latin music icons as diverse as Hector LaVoe and Lila Downs; and pop luminaries such as Prince.
World Percussion Ensemble
Sat 3, Music Hall, 12 pm
Todd Hammes & Tom Ross, directors
UW All-University Strings
Sat 3, Mills Hall, 4 pm
Janet Jensen, director
UW Women’s Chorus & University Chorus
Sat 3, Mills Hall, 8 pm
Beverly Taylor, director
UW Concert Band
Sun 4, Mills Hall, 2 pm
Michael Leckrone, director
UW Chamber Orchestra
Sun 4, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
James Smith, conductor
Master Singers
Mon 5, Mills Hall, 7:30 pm
Bruce Gladstone, conductor (bel0w)
Tags: Eastman School of Music, Franz Schubert, Gene Pokorny, Gustav Mahler, Irving Shain, Jacob Stockinger, Laura Schwendinger, Madison Symphony Orchestra, Meredith Monk, Mills College, Mills Hall, Musical ensemble, New York City, Orchestra, Sibelius Academy, Truman State University
Classical music: The period-instrument, early music ensemble Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble will give two performances of 17th and 18th century chamber music this weekend.
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By Jacob Stockinger
The period-instrument, early music ensemble Wisconsin Baroque Ensemble (below) will give two performances of 17th and 18th century chamber music this weekend.
The program includes music by Vivaldi, Bon, Telemann, Schenck, Monteverdi and Strozzi.
Performances are this Saturday, November 24, at 8 p.m. with repeat performance on Sunday, November 25, at 3 p.m. at the historic landmark Gates of Heaven Synagogue (below), 300 East Gorham Street, in downtown Madison.
Tickets at the door only: $15 for the public, $10 for students.
Feel free to bring your own chair or pillow.
Performers (below) are Consuelo Sañudo, mezzo-soprano; Monica Steger, traverse flute; Eric Miller, viola da gamba and cello; Anton TenWolde, cello and viola da gamba; and Max Yount, harpsichord.
For more information, call (608) 238-5126 or email info@wisconsinbaroque.org or visit www.wisconsinbaroque.org.
Tags: Antonio Vivaldi, Baroque, Chamber music, Gates of Heaven Synagogue, Madison, Musical ensemble, Saturday, Viol, Wisconsin
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