Bullock Performance Institute presents

 

Dalton Wed@7:30pm: Live and Interactive!

 

2013–14 Season                                      Wednesday 2 October 2013

 

67th Concert                                                Dalton Center Recital Hall

 

                        7:30 p.m.

 

                        Pre-Concert talk with Dr. Dan Jacobson at 7 p.m.

                    

 

 

SPHINX VIRTUOSI

 

CATALYST QUARTET

 

 

 

 

Jessie Montgomery                   Strum  (Sphinx Virtuosi Composer-in-Residence)

 

b. 1982

 

 

 

Benjamin Britten                     Simple Symphony  Opus 4

 

1913–1976                                  I.   Boisterous Bourree

 

    II.   Playful Pizzicato

 

   III.   Sentimental Sarabande

 

  IV.   Frolicsome Finale

 

 

 

 

Johann Sebastian Bach              Brandenburg Concerto Number 6 in B-Flat Major  BWV 1051

 

1685–1750                                  I.   Allegro

 

    II.   Adagio ma non tanto

 

   III.   Allegro

 

 

 

 

Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson       Louisiana Blues Strut: A Cakewalk

 

1932–2004

Ade Williams, Violin

 

 

 

 

Paquito D'Rivera                      Wapango

 

b. 1948

 

 

 

Antonio Vivaldi                       Concerto for 2 Cellos in G Minor  RV 531

 

1678–1741                                  I.   Allegro (moderato)

 

    II.   Largo

 

   III.   Allegro

 

 

Gabriel Cabezas and Christine Lamprea, Cello

 

 

 

 

Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson       Sinfonietta Number 1 for Strings

 

   III.   Rondo: Allegro furioso

 

 

 

 

 

The national Sphinx Virtuosi tour is made possible with the generous support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with additional support from Art Works, the MetLife Foundation, and Aetna. The 2013 Sphinx Virtuosi Composer-in-Residence Partnership was funded by a gift from Linda and Stuart Nelson.

 

The Sphinx Virtuosi and Catalyst Quartet are exclusively represented in North America by California Artists Management (www.CalArtists.com).


THE SPHINX VIRTUOSI is a conductor-less ensemble of soloists, comprising top alumni of the national Sphinx Competition for young Black and Latino string players. This unique group earned rave reviews from The New York Times during its highly acclaimed Carnegie Hall debut in December 2004. Allan Kozinn described the performance as "first-rate in every way" and the ensemble "produced a more beautiful, precise and carefully shaped sound than some fully professional orchestras that come through Carnegie Hall in the course of the year." The ensemble has returned to Carnegie Hall annually since 2006, presenting outstanding programs to sold-out halls of more than 2,800 and earning outstanding reviews from The Times each year. The Sphinx Virtuosi continues to garner critical acclaim during its national tours in many of the country's leading venues, including the Kennedy Center, New World Center, Harris Theater, Penn State University, Stanford University and the University of Michigan. The second national tour brought performances in thirteen venues as the Virtuosi have continued to increase their audience reach throughout the U.S.

Inspired by Sphinx's overarching mission, the Sphinx Virtuosi work to advance diversity in classical music while engaging young and new audiences through performances of varied repertoire. Masterpieces by Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart and Tchaikovsky are performed alongside the more seldom presented works by composers of color, including Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, George Walker, Michael Abels and Astor Piazzolla.

 

Members of the Sphinx Virtuosi have completed and continue to pursue their studies at the nation's top music schools, including Juilliard, Curtis, Eastman, Peabody, Harvard, and the University of Michigan. Several members now hold professional orchestral positions with the Oregon, Grand Rapids and San Antonio symphonies. Roster members have been named Laureates of other prestigious international competitions, including the Queen Elizabeth and Yehudi Menuhin. Sphinx Virtuosi members have also performed as soloists with the New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony and Philadelphia Orchestra. Principal players are members of the Catalyst Quartet, which independently has garnered acclaim for its performances around the world. The Sphinx Virtuosi's first recording was released in 2011 on the White Pine label with music of Mendelssohn, Sibelius, Gabriela Lena Frank and George Walker.

 

 

Hailed by The New York Times at their Carnegie Hall debut as "invariably energetic and finely burnished and playing with earthy vigor," the CATALYST QUARTET, prizewinner of the Gianni Bergamo Classical Music Award 2012 (Switzerland), is comprised of top Laureates and alumni of the internationally acclaimed Sphinx Competition. Founded by the Sphinx Organization, the Catalyst Quartet combines a serious commitment to education with a passion for contemporary works. Their mission is to advance diversity in classical music and inspire new and young audiences with dynamic performances of cutting-edge repertoire by a wide range of composers. In addition to leading the Sphinx Virtuosi on the annual national tours, Catalyst Quartet maintains a busy performing schedule of its own. Last season the quartet had concert tours in Virginia, Hawaii, California and Minnesota, and performed on the cafe series at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Upcoming engagements include the Pop-Up Series at Columbia University's Miller Theatre, concerts in Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Washington DC, and a spring tour in Mexico and California.

 

The quartet has held residencies and given master classes both domestically and abroad at the University of Michigan, Rice University, Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, In Harmony–El Sistema in London, and the University of South Africa. They participated in the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar and have performed at the Grand Canyon Music Festival and the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. Catalyst Quartet serves as principal faculty at the Sphinx Performance Academy at Oberlin College and Northwestern University, and its members are visiting teaching artists at the Sphinx Preparatory Music Institute, hosted by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and made possible in part through the generous support of Stuart and Maxine Frankel. Catalyst Quartet has been featured in The Strad and Strings magazines, on American Public Media's Performance Today, and on Houston Public Radio and Detroit Public Radio and Television.

 

Catalyst Quartet proudly endorses Pirastro strings. www.pirastro.com.

 

 

 

 

 

This concert is a Bullock Performance Institute (BPI) presentation. BPI events are made possible through the cooperation and support of several community fine arts units: the Donald P. Bullock Music Performance Institute;  WMUK National Public Radio; the Western Michigan University College of Fine Arts, School of Music, and WMU's chapters of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and Sigma Alpha Iota music fraternities.

 

 

 

 

Building emergencies will be indicated by flashing lights and spoken announcement within the seating area. If the notification is for fire, please exit the building immediately. The tornado safe area in Dalton Center is along the lockers in the brick hallway to your left as you exit to the lobby behind you. In any emergency, walk—do not run—to the nearest exit. Please turn off all cell phones and other electronic devices during the performance. Because of legal issues, any video or audio recording of this performance is forbidden without prior consent from the School of Music. Thank you for your cooperation.