Photo by Mike Canale.

In 2011, Andrew’s original composition “Hercules” was heard on Introductions as part of the Generation Next Young Composers Competition. He performed it himself at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston: http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2011/03/29/music-institute-of-chicagos-generation-next-composers/

Andrew Guo, 13, started piano lesson at age 4 and had his first solo recital at 6. Andrew is currently a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies piano and composition with MIC artist faculties Alan Chow and Matthew Hagle respectively. Andrew was a first place winner of Steinway Young Artist Competition, Society of American Musicians Competition, and Confucius Music Festival Competition.

Andrew began making music as soon as he started playing piano. The 5-year-old Andrew’s gift for his mother’s birthday was a piece of music he improvised at the piano. In 2011 at age 12, Andrew won the first prize of Generation Next Young Composer’s Competition. His winning piece, “Hercules”, a quartet for flute, viola, bass, and piano, was on WFMT’s Introductions with Andrew playing at the piano.

As a frequent concert performer Andrew has performed at Grand Park Music Festival, Ravinia Music Festival, Chicago Cultural Center, and among others.

Andrew is a member of The Study of Exceptional Talent in Johns Hopkins University.

The Campanella Children’s Choir was founded in the spring of 2000, at that time a group of only a couple of children. Since then, the choir has been growing vigorously, having developed into a competitive ensemble that is the core of the entire Campanella Educational Center. The choir sings a diverse repertoire of music in multiple languages and performs in numerous community events throughout the year. Among some of the recent venues are the Chicago Cultural Center, the Museum of Science and Industry, Northbrook Public Library, Wheeling Park District, and Skokie Public Library.

In 2008, Campanella Children’s Choir participated in the Chicago Heritage Festival and received the Outstanding Choral Group award, as well as the Certificate of Excellence; in addition, the choir was invited to take part in the 2009 National Invitational Choral Festival (Festival of Gold), in which it was subsequently a gold medal recipient. Moreover, selected Campanella choristers participated in the Festival’s final concert, held at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall.

Kate Lee is a senior at Vernon Hills High School and will attend Northwestern University in the fall for voice and music education.

We’ll start off today’s program with a performance in our Levin Performance Studio and continue with the winner of this year’s Midwest Young Artists Walgreens National Concerto Competition, violinist Gallia Kastner.

Kate Lee, currently a senior at Vernon Hills High School, has been keeping quite busy these past few years.  She is the president of her senior class and is on the leadership team for several clubs.  Kate has performed in six theatrical productions and even directed a one act.  Since she joined choir her freshman year, she has performed with with Treble Choir, Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, and the girl’s a cappella group “Lovenotes.”  She has also been in the IMEA District 7 Choir for three years and IMEA All-State Honors Choir for two years. Last May, Kate participated in her first competition held by Classical Singer Magazine in Los Angeles and was honored to be a national semifinalist. She had the opportunity to take two life-changing trips in 2011: a choir tour to Ireland in March, which showed her the beauty of shared music, and a humanitarian trip to Uganda, which showed her the necessity of it.  And so, she hopes to make the world a better place by sharing music, whether it be by performing or teaching.  She is the student director of the Chamber Choir and will be teaching and conducting a piece with the Treble Choir this spring. Next fall she will be attending Northwestern University to study Voice and Music Education.

Links referred to during Kate’s performance:

• www.covealliance.org is the organization in Mundelein that builds schools in Uganda! VHHS teamed up with them to build a primary school in Kapeeka, and I got to visit over the summer.
• www.vhhscougars.org/choir is our choir program.
• Favorite singers:
  -Barbara Bonney singing “Laudate Dominum” by Mozart

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ug0PYot-mE

  -”Ach Ich Fuhl’s” from Die Zauberflote by Mozart

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmHyA4WsJAZ

  -Sylvia McNair singing “Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion” from Messiah by Handel

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGkn91ywbsU

  -Favorite symphony: Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection” Symphony

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rECVyN5D60I&list=FLTVzvatNVk0Q8DcLwdMROEw&index=1&feature=plpp_video

Program
Kate Lee with pianist Dr. William Crowle:
-”Diaphenia” by Dominick Argento
-”O mio babbino caro” by Puccini
-”O del mio dolce ardor” by Christoph Willibald von Gluck

18 year old violist Ariel Chapman, MYA Senior Division Winner of the Walgreens National Concerto Competition
with the Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra, Dr. Allen Dennis, conductor
Zwischen Berg und tiefem Tal (Between Mountain and Deep Valley) by Paul Hindemith

15 year old violinist Gallia Kastner, Open Division Winner of the Walgreens National Concerto Competition
with the Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra, Dr. Allen Dennis, conductor
Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 by Tchaikovsky
First Movement

17 year old cellist Ben Manis

Today we present of a rebroadcast of a program that first aired in December, 2011.

***

Ben Manis is a 17-year-old cellist from Chicago.  He studies with Richard Hirschl of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.  Ben is co-principal cellist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and performs in the Principal Players ensemble of CYSO.  His trio won the Rembrandt Chamber Competition held at Northwestern University in 2011 and also advanced to the semi-final round of the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition in 2011.  Ben’s idea of fun is to spend an evening sight-reading music with friends!

Program (listen to individual pieces): Performed with pianist Daniel Schlosberg

Beethoven:  Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 4 in C Major, Op. 102
I.

JS Bach:  Sixth Suite for Solo Cello
1. Prelude

Samuel Barber: Cello Concerto in A Minor, Op. 22

Tchaikovsky: Pezzo Capriccioso, Op. 62

Become a member: wfmt.com/support

Introductions takes a break today as WFMT continues with its annual spring membership drive. Consider becoming a member today by calling 773-279-2100 to speak with a phone volunteer, or by visiting wfmt.com/support.

18 year old pianist Wonjin Hahn is a senior at Conant High School.

This evening we present a rebroadcast of a program that first aired in December, 2011.

A senior at James B. Conant High School in Hoffman Estates, Wonjin Hahn is a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies piano with MIC artist faculty member Alan Chow. Wonjin has studied in the United States, South Korea, and China during his eleven years as a pianist. His principle teacher during those years was Dr. Haysun Kang at Loyola University Chicago.  In 2011, Wonjin was a winner in the Steinway Young Artists Competition, and he won Second Place in the Music Festival in Honor of Confucius Competition. That same year, he performed with his piano quintet as part of the Gail Borden Library Concert Series in Elgin, Illinois. He attended the Bienen School of Music’s summer pre-collegiate program in 2009, and the summer International Institute for Young Musicians in 2011. Wonjin’s various musical activities have included accompanying choirs and singers, playing in a jazz combo, playing clarinet, and singing in the chamber choir at his high school.

In our interview, Wonjin mentioned his interest in composing pop and rap music and recommends that those interested in learning more about rap begin with Eminem and Twista.

Program:

R. Schumann: Abegg Variations, Op. 1

Beethoven: Sonata No. 21, Op. 53 “Waldstein”
I. Allegro con brio
II. Introduzione: Adagio molto
III. Rondo: Allegretto moderato – Prestissimo

C. Debussy: L’isle Joyeuse

Become a member: wfmt.com/support

WFMT will continue its annual spring membership drive today and we’ll present highlights from the last several months of Introductions. We hope you’ll consider becoming a member of our Fine Arts Circle to help support programming such as Introductions by calling 773-279-2100 or visiting wfmt.com/support.

Music Institute of Chicago

*Broadcast begins at 10AM instead of the usual 11AM due to an early start of today’s live broadcast of the Metropolitan Opera from New York.

While there are abundant performance opportunities and competition for young musicians, there are far fewer opportunities through which young composers can have their talents recognized.  In an effort to stimulate interest in the music of our time and support young composers in their endeavors, the Music Institute of Chicago (MIC) began the Generation Next Young Composer’s Competition in 2006.

Each year, the winning scores from the competition are performed live in concert, by talented young musicians from MIC’s Academy and Community Music School Programs.  The concerts take place at MIC’s Nichols Concert Hall in downtown Evanston, Illinois.  Called a “visual and sonic gem” by Chicago Tribune critic John von Rhein, the hall provides young composers the rare opportunity to hear their works performed by top musicians in an acoustically and visually beautiful concert hall.

We look forward to hearing another year of the best and brightest in new music by aspiring young composers.

Program:

MIC Composer’s Lab Showcase (Students of Mischa Zupko)
Whispering Oaks by David Jin
My Last Farewell by Ben Medina
Rivers by Johny Cruz
Piano Trio No. 1 by David Flowers

Above performed by violinist Lara Madden, cellist Mariel Werner, pianist Mischa Zupko, violinist Jonas Tarm

2012 Generation Next Awards and Concert

First Place: Las Ruinas Circulares by Jonas Tarm, Highland Park, IL
Alexandria Hoffman, flute
Alan Snow, violin
Yong Park, cello
Remington Clark, piano

Second Place: Beatitudes by Robert Didier, St. Charles, IL
Hyun-Jae Lim, piano
Robert Dider, piano

Third Place: Mediterrarabian Pastiche, Op. 10 for Solo Clarinet in B-flat by Chason Goldfinger, Valley Forge, PA
Daniel Mills, clarinet

The Illinois Music Educators Association is the largest fine arts education organization in Illinois.

The 2012 All-State Honors Chorus and Band concert of the Illinois Music Educators Association’s annual conference in Peoria. The IMEA is the largest fine arts education organization in Illinois, and this concert features some of the most advanced high school band and choral students in the state. Students practiced last summer for an audition to participate in the November IMEA District ensembles, and students from each district were then chosen to participate in the All-State Conference in January. Another audition at the conference further narrowed down musicians to participate in the orchestra we’ll listen to today.

From Carver Arena in the Peoria, Illinois Civic Center
January, 28 2012

Honors Chorus conducted by Brad Holmes, Millikin University, East Lansing, Michigan

Honors Band conducted by James Lambrecht, Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois

Hannah Young is principal harpist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Hannah Young is a high school senior pursuing a harp performance degree. She is the principal harpist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra since and 2010 and has performed with the DuPage Symphony Orchestra, the Lake Geneva Symphony Orchestra, Wheaton Conservatory Choir and Harp Ensemble, St. Xavier University Orchestra, the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the West Suburban Youth Orchestra.

She has studied at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute with Ann Hobson-Pilot, retired principal harpist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. The preceding summers Hannah studied at the Sewanee Summer Music Festival with Marian Shaffer, principal harpist of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, and she attended the Ann Yeung Summer Harp Institute at the University of Illinois. Hannah was selected to perform with both the All-State Honors Band and All-State Orchestra.  She was a member IMEA District Orchestra for four years. Hannah has also performed in master classes with Isabelle Perrin, harpist of the Orchestre National de France, and Faye Seeman, harp professor at Wheaton Conservatory.

Hannah is also principal harpist of the District 99 Symphonic Orchestra and has performed Handel Concerto in B-flat major with that ensemble. She is also a member of her school’s Marching Band, Symphonic Band, Jazz Lab Band, and A Cappella Choir.

18 year old pianist James Stinehart.

James G. Stinehart, age 18, is a senior at New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois.

James’s debut as a pianist was at age 9, when he played a Haydn piano concerto in two concerts in Indiana with the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra. As a junior, he won the New Trier High School concerto competition, and performed Prokofieff piano concerto No. 2 with the New Trier Symphony Orchestra. He won first place in the senior division of the Steinway piano competition. He also was selected to play in the Young Steinway Concert
Series, and performed a piano recital at Skokie Library.

As a sophomore, James took first place in the North Shore Music Teacher’s Association Piano Competition, and placed second in the state of Illinois in the senior division of the Illinois State Music Teacher’s Association finals. James has won the MYA piano division of the Walgreen’s concerto competition three times. His piano teacher is Brenda Huang.

James is principal cellist in the New Trier Symphony Orchestra, which is taking a tour to Sidney, Australia over spring break. James is playing in the Illinois All-State Orchestra concert in Peoria later this month. James also plays cello with the Midwest Young Artists (MYA) Symphony Orchestra, which has toured Germany and China. His chamber ensemble made it to the semi-finals in the Fischoff national competition held at Notre Dame. Two of James’s string ensembles have performed on WFMT radio, including playing several of his original compositions. As a composer, he won first place in the Music Institute of Chicago’s music composition competition in the spring of 2010.

James frequently volunteers and loves to play piano and cello at retirement homes, as well as other social service functions. As for non-musical interests, James is fluent in Chinese and is learning German, and he is on the New Trier varsity volleyball team.

Program:

Nico Muhly: Quiet Music

Rachmaninoff: Piano Sonata No. 2
Allegro agitato
Non allegro

Liszt: Waldesrauschen (“Forest Murmurs”)

Debussy: Images Book 1 –Reflets dans l’eau (“Reflections in the Water”)

Debussy: L’isle Joyeuse (“The Island of Pleasure”)

Highlights from MYA's February concert from Pick-Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston.

Highlights from the February Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra concert at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston. Featuring winners of the latest Walgreens Concerto Competition.

Broadcast begins at 10AM (instead of 11AM, due to an early start of Live from the Metropolitan Opera).

Ridgeway will be performing Beethoven's Third Piano Concert with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestra, of the southwest suburbs, in May.

Thomas Ridgway is a homeschooled senior from Shorewood, IL. He was chosen as a Rising Star by the Friends of the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and has performed for the organization in a benefit concert. In addition, he recently performed in the “Stairway to the Stars” concert to benefit the Grande Prairie Choral Arts, a Chicago Southland organization.

This past November, he was the winner of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestraʼs (southwest suburbs) concerto competition and will be performing Beethovenʼs Third Piano Concerto in May. He is a two time winner of the American College of Musiciansʼ International Piano Program and a seven time winner of their National Piano Program.

For the past two summers, he has attended the Indiana University Piano Academy where he attended masterclasses by artists such as Karen Shaw, Andre Watts, and Menahem Pressler. Since 2002, he has studied with Mrs. Patricia Windt, a faculty member of Prairie State College.

In addition to piano, Thomas also plays the bassoon. Last year, he was a member of the Joliet Symphony Orchestra, and is now a bassoonist for the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestra. He studies with Gerik Fon-Revutzky.

Thomas is currently in the audition process at several universities and plans to pursue a
degree in piano performance in the fall.

Program:

Beethoven: Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”
I. Allegro
II. Andante
III. Allegro ma non troppo

Chopin: Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23

Prokofiev: Sonata No. 7 in Bb major, Op. 83
III. Precipitato

Photo by Mike Canale

**Andrew was not able to join us today due to illness. We will reschedule his performance for later this spring. Instead, today we enjoyed a rebroadcast of a program featuring the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Encore Chamber Orchestra from December, 2011.

Andrew Guo, 13, started piano lesson at age 4 and had his first solo recital at 6. Andrew is currently a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies piano and composition with MIC artist faculties Alan Chow and Matthew Hagle respectively. Andrew was a first place winner of Steinway Young Artist Competition, Society of American Musicians Competition, and Confucius Music Festival Competition.

Andrew began making music as soon as he started playing piano. The 5-year-old Andrew’s gift for his mother’s birthday was a piece of music he improvised at the piano. In 2011 at age 12, Andrew won the first prize of Generation Next Young Composer’s Competition. His winning piece, “Hercules”, a quartet for flute, viola, bass, and piano, was on WFMT’s Introductions with Andrew playing at the piano.

As a frequent concert performer Andrew has performed at Grand Park Music Festival, Ravinia Music Festival, Chicago Cultural Center, and among others.

Andrew is a member of The Study of Exceptional Talent in Johns Hopkins University.

"Performathon" is Merit's annual weekend-long music festival featured dozens of ensembles and hundreds of performers.

Introductions is on hiatus today as WFMT instead features live coverage of Performathon 2012 from the Merit School of Music from 9AM until 12PM. Hosted by Steve Robinson and David Polk.

Performathon is Merit’s annual showcase of students from its Alice S. Pfaelzer Tuition-Free Conservatory in 12 hours of non-stop classical, big band, jazz blues and vocal performances.

All proceeds support Merit School of Music’s programming including the Alice S. Pfaelzer Tuition-free Conservatory:

Each year, approximately 350 students, ages 9-18, engage in a rigorous and progressively challenging music education curriculum that runs 26 weeks, on Saturdays, from October through May. The nationally recognized curriculum includes theory, instrumental, vocal techniques and ensemble training, an extensive Honors Program, as well as performance competitions/scholarships and “preparing for college” workshops. Admission to the program is based on audition only, and offers an average of $2,500 of tuition-free music instruction to each student annually. More than half of our students are from low-income families.

A full program is downloadable here: http://www.meritmusic.org/support/fe_performathon.php

Listen to hour 1 of 3:

Listen to hour 2 of 3:

Listen to hour 3 of 3:

Highlights from this years all-state concert in Peoria, Illinois.

The 2012 All-State Honors Orchestra concert of the Illinois Music Educators Association’s annual conference in Peoria. The IMEA is the largest fine arts education organization in Illinois, and this concert features some of the most advanced high school orchestral students in the state. Students practiced last summer for an audition to participate in the November IMEA District ensembles, and students from each district were then chosen to participate in the All-State Conference in January. Another audition at the conference further narrowed down musicians to participate in the orchestra we’ll listen to today.

The IMEA All-State Honors Band and Chorus performances will air Saturday, March 31 at 11AM.

Program:
From Carver Arena in the Peoria, IL Civic Center
Conducted by Kevin Noe, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
January 28, 2012

Berlioz: Roman Carnival Overture

Copland: Billy the Kid

13 year old pianist Roger Shen of Northbrook

Roger Shen, 13, is a 7th grader at Northbrook Junior High in Northbrook, IL. Roger loves classical music and began to learn piano at the turn of age 7. His current teacher is Sueanne Metz. Among the awards, all in Junior Division, he won the 1st prize winner of 2011 Brandshaw & Buono International Piano Competition, the 1st place of the 6th Aloha International Piano Competition in 2011, the 1st place of 2010 Chicago area Steinway Young Artist Competition, the Early Music Category winner of 2010 Walgreens National Concerto Competition, the 2nd place of 2010 Society of American Musicians (SAM) Piano Competition, 2nd place of 2010 and 2011 Sejong Music Competitions, and the first Alternate for 2011 Music Teacher National Association (MTNA) piano competition.

Roger has made frequent public appearances, including performances at Weill Hall of the Carnegie Hall twice, Chicago Cultural Center, the 2010 International Conference on Clinical Excellence as a guest performer (invited to perform and be interviewed for one of the conference events), and Hawaii Convention Center. He attended the International Institute of Young Artists (IIYM) 2011 summer camp, and was selected to perform in two IIYM honor recitals. Roger is also active in his community. He performed several times for the Parisian Salon Concert at Northbrook library, participated in and was selected as one of the three finalists of the Northbrook’s 1st Talent Showdown competition, and performed in 2011 Northbrook’s AutumnFest. He also performed for the seniors at 2011 Northfield Seniors Center Holiday Party.

Program:

Prokofiev: Sonata in D Minor, Op.14, No.2
IV. Vivace

J.S. Bach: Well-Tempered Clavier Book II, Prelude 7 & Fugue 7, E-Flat Major

Mozart: Sonata in B flat Major, K281, No. 17,
III. Allegro

Chopin: Etude in C Major, Op.10, No.1
Chopin: Etude in A Minor, Op.10, No.2

Beethoven, Sonata in C major, Op. 53, No. 21 “Waldstein”
III. Rondo

Chopin, Ballade in A flat Major, Op. 47, No.3

Triumvirate is a chamber ensemble of Midwest Young Artists in Highwood.

The Triumvirate is a piano-viola-clarinet trio of the Midwest Young Artists chamber program, and they have been playing together for one year.

Under the directorship of Dr. Allan Dennis, MYA provides over 900 young artists with music education for jazz, orchestra, chamber, and theory. The group is coached by Dileep Gangolli, former assistant principal clarinetist of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. He is the founder and current director of the Illinois Woodwind Academy and performs with various orchestras in the Chicago area.

The Triumvirate is named after the alliance between Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey during the fall of the Roman Republic. The members of the trio all enjoy history, and the name just made sense.

Ari Bakke and Kevin Xu are both juniors at Stevenson High School where they participate in the music program, and Torin Bakke is an 8th grader at Twin Groves Middle School. Ari has studied viola for nine years with Sarah Montzka and Lewis Rosove. Kevin has studied piano for eleven years with Carol Honigberg. Torin has studied clarinet for four years with Dileep Gangolli.

Program: (The Triumvirate is Coached by Dileep Gangolli)

Robert Schumann: Fairy Tales (Märchenerzählungen) for clarinet, viola and piano Op. 132
I. Lively, but not fast
II. Fast and very accentuated
III. Calm tempo with delicate expression

Mozart: Trio in E flat major, K. 498, “Kegelstatt” for clarinet, viola and piano
I. Andante
II. Menuetto
III. Rondo: Allegretto

JS Bach: Prelude to the Cello Suite No. 5 in Cm, BWV 1011
16 year old Viola soloist Ari Bakke

This week we feature original award-winning compositions by 17 year old Jonas Tarm. Photo credit: Mike Canale

The second of two programs featuring Highland Park High School senior Jonas Tarm. This week, we’ll hear some of Jonas’s award-winning original compositions. In November, we featured him in a violin recital featuring music by Beethoven, JS Bach, Rachmaninoff and Estonian composer Heino Eller and you can listen to it here.

***

Jonas Tarm, 17, was born and lived in Tallinn, Estonia for ten years and has studied violin starting at the age of seven. Jonas is an active chamber musician, orchestral musician, soloist, composer and arranger in the Chicago area. He currently is a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies violin with MIC faculty member Gerardo Ribeiro and composition with Matthew Hagle.

Jonas was a highly active member of the Midwest Young Artists program for 4 years; there, he soloed with the I’Solisti Orchestra and was part MYA’s Symphony and intensive chamber music program. Jonas also has soloed with the Highland Park High School Symphony and Chamber orchestras. Summer programs include, MYA Chamber Music Camp, International Haapsalu String Festival, Meadowmount School of Music and more. A senior, Jonas currently serves as concert master of the Highland Park High School Symphony Orchestra and Honors Chamber Orchestra; he also has served as co-principle second in the 2011 IMEA All-State Honors Orchestra.

Currently Jonas is the Illinois State Representative for the 2012 MTNA National Composition Contest. He also at the moment has a merit fellowship, the Kal Novak Musicianship Award, with Mischa Zupko and the MIC Composer’s Lab. As a composer, Jonas has collaborated with musicians and composers from Chicago Symphony Orchestra MusicNOW, Eight Blackbird, Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, Fulcrum Point New Music, Chicago Lyric Opera and more. Jonas has won an award for arranging in the IMEA composition contest and has been a finalist in the ASCAP Morton Gould prize and BMI Young Composers Competition. He currently is looking forward to record one of his compositions with Grammy winning new music group “Orchestra of Our time”. Jonas’s playing and composition, “Las Ruinas Circulares”, has been previously featured on WFMT Introductions. Jonas is a member of ASCAP.

Jonas is also a current member of the Ravinia Festival Student Marketing Board, part of a mission to promote classical to younger audiences.

Program:

• Las Ruinas Circulares

Jorie Butler-Geyer (violin), Letitia Chim (flute), Yong Park (cello) and Anne McLaughlin (piano)

1st place in the IMEA Composition Contest Instrumental Category, currently the Illinois Representative for the Music Teachers National Association Regional Composition Competition, finalist in BMI Young Composer Competition and won the Orchestra of Our Time Call for Scores.

This work is based on a short story by the celebrated Argentinean writer Jorge Luis Borges. Since the story is from Argentinean culture, I was also influenced by Latin and Argentinean music, such as the tango, and also by the composer Astor Piazzolla. Borges paints a landscape of a surreal world and he challenges the concept of what is real and what is not. To incorporate this, I decided to put different types of music against each other: tonal, chromatic, atonal, graphic, messianic and more. Each one tries to find the answer to the question – “What is real?” -JT

• World Premiere: “Nachtmusik: Vokalise der Nacht” for High Voice and String Quartet

Henriët Fourie (voice), Zach Spontak and Allie Switala (violins), Devon Naftzger (viola), Ye Young Yoo (Cello)

Finalist in the ASCAP Young Composer’s Competition.

• World Premier: “Two Pieces for Violin and Piano”

Laura Park (violin), Matthew Hagle (piano)
Recorded in WFMT’s Levin Performance Studio for this broadcast.

Music from the CYSO's November, 2011 concert at Orchestra Hall.

Music from the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s November 2011 performance at Orchestra Hall in downtown Chicago, conducted by music director Allen Tinkham.

Program:

Samuel Barber:  Second Essay, op. 17

Richard Strauss:  Don Juan, op. 20

Alexander Scriabin: The Poem of Ecstasy, op. 54

The Maud Powell String Quartet of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra's Chamber Music Institute

The Maud Powell String Quartet is the premiere string quartet of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra Chamber Music Institute, selected by competitive audition in June, and offered on full scholarship.  It provides a chance to study and perform significant chamber music literature at the highest level and to work with some of the finest artist teachers and chamber music coaches in the Chicago area.  The Quartet works with coach Ray Ostwald and regular guest coaches Rachel Barton Pine, Isabella Lippi, Roland Vamos, Matthew Agnew, and members of the Pacifica Quartet.

The group is named after acclaimed Maud Powell (1867-1920), the first American violin superstar to achieve international fame.  Maud Powell gave the American premieres of the violin concertos of Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, and Sibelius, and was the first violinist to make best-selling recordings.  Maud grew up in Aurora, Illinois in the Fox River Valley, and her career included playing under Gustav Mahler with the New York Philharmonic, and touring with the John Phillip Sousa band.  Her career and dedication to music education inspired thousands of young people to take up the violin in the early 20th century.

Members:

Patrick Connolly, 18, Conant High School, violin
Katie Gallagher, 15, Saint Francis High School, violin
Bradi Pirtle, 16, College of DuPage, viola
Christopher Mendez, 17, Dundee Crown High School, cello

Program:

Cappricco in E Minor, Op. 81
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)

Crisantemi
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)

Quartet in G Major, Op. 18, No. 2
Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827)
I. Allegro
II. Adagio cantabile
III. Scherzo: Allegro
IV. Allegro molto quasi presto

Music from the Encore Chamber Orchestra's October, 2011 concert at the Harold Washington Library Center in Chicago.

Music performed by the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Encore Chamber Orchestra from their October, 2011 concert given at the Cindy Pritzker Auditorium at the Harold Washington Library Center in downtown Chicago. Conducted by music director Allen Tinkham.

Program:

Pablo de Sarasate:  Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), Op. 20
featuring violinist Tabitha Oh

Sergei Prokofiev:  Sinfonia Concertante, op. 125
I. Andante
II. Allegro
featuring cellist Austin Huntington

Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D major, op. 36
IV. Allegro molto

We’ll listen to a sampling of some of the many holiday albums that youth ensembles from the Chicago area have released over the last several years.

18 year old pianist Wonjin Hahn is a senior at Conant High School.

A senior at James B. Conant High School in Hoffman Estates, Wonjin Hahn is a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies piano with MIC artist faculty member Alan Chow. Wonjin has studied in the United States, South Korea, and China during his eleven years as a pianist. His principle teacher during those years was Dr. Haysun Kang at Loyola University Chicago.  In 2011, Wonjin was a winner in the Steinway Young Artists Competition, and he won Second Place in the Music Festival in Honor of Confucius Competition. That same year, he performed with his piano quintet as part of the Gail Borden Library Concert Series in Elgin, Illinois. He attended the Bienen School of Music’s summer pre-collegiate program in 2009, and the summer International Institute for Young Musicians in 2011. Wonjin’s various musical activities have included accompanying choirs and singers, playing in a jazz combo, playing clarinet, and singing in the chamber choir at his high school.

In our interview, Wonjin mentioned his interest in composing pop and rap music and recommends that those interested in learning more about rap begin with Eminem and Twista.

Program:

R. Schumann: Abegg Variations, Op. 1

Beethoven: Sonata No. 21, Op. 53 “Waldstein”
I. Allegro con brio
II. Introduzione: Adagio molto
III. Rondo: Allegretto moderato – Prestissimo

C. Debussy: L’isle Joyeuse

17 year old violinist Jorie Butler-Geyer is a senior at Stevenson High School and concertmaster of the Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra

Winner 2010 DePaul University Concerto Festival competition, winner Music Festival in Honor of Confucius VGB Scholarship, winner Charles Pikler Merit Scholarship with Midwest Young Artists, finalist with Glacking and West Suburban Symphony Young Artists competitions, honorable mention wins with Chicago Symphony, Walgreens and Confucius competitions.

Soloist with Oistrach Symphony, Bach and Beyond Orchestra, Kankakee Symphony, iSolisti Chamber Orchestra.  Featured artist with Young Steinway Concert series, WFMT Introductions (with Trio Bravo), Millenium Park, Symphony Center and Art  Institute concert series.  Semi-Finalist Fischoff National Chamber Music competition with Trio Bravo.  2nd place winner Jules M. Laser chamber music competition.

Concertmaster of Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra.  Toured China, Korea, Germany and upcoming tour of Prague, Vienna and Krakow.  Performed with Gustavo Dudamel and Ricardo Muti.  Attended Aspen Music Festival summers of 2010 and 2011.

Member Young Music Scholars program, teaching music to underprivileged youth.  National Honor Society, Tri-M Music Honor Society, Freshmen Mentor leader, AP Scholar with Honor.

Program: Performed with pianist Milana Pavchinskaya

Beethoven: “Spring” Sonata for Violin and Piano, No. 5 in F Major, Op. 24
I. Allegro

Samuel Barber:  Violin Concerto in G Major, Op. 14
I. Allegro

JS Bach: Partita in G Minor
Adagio
Presto

Ravel:  Tzigane, Concert Rhapsody

17 year old cellist Ben Manis

Ben Manis is a 17-year-old cellist from Chicago.  He studies with Richard Hirschl of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.  Ben is co-principal cellist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and performs in the Principal Players ensemble of CYSO.  His trio won the Rembrandt Chamber Competition held at Northwestern University in 2011 and also advanced to the semi-final round of the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition in 2011.  Ben’s idea of fun is to spend an evening sight-reading music with friends!

Program (listen to individual pieces): Performed with pianist Daniel Schlosberg

Beethoven:  Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 4 in C Major, Op. 102
I.

JS Bach:  Sixth Suite for Solo Cello
1. Prelude

Samuel Barber: Cello Concerto in A Minor, Op. 22

Tchaikovsky: Pezzo Capriccioso, Op. 62

Highland Park High School senior Jonas Tarm is looking forward to recording one of his compositions with Grammy winning new music group “Orchestra of Our time.” Photo credit: Mike Canale

The first of two programs featuring Highland Park High School senior Jonas Tarm. This week, we’ll hear Jonas in music for violin. In January, we’ll spend an hour listening to some of Tarm’s award-winning original compositions.

***

Jonas Tarm, 17, was born and lived in Tallinn, Estonia for ten years and has studied violin starting at the age of seven. Jonas is an active chamber musician, orchestral musician, soloist, composer and arranger in the Chicago area. He currently is a scholarship recipient and member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program where he studies violin with MIC faculty member Gerardo Ribeiro and composition with Matthew Hagle.

Jonas was a highly active member of the Midwest Young Artists program for 4 years; there, he soloed with the I’Solisti Orchestra and was part MYA’s Symphony and intensive chamber music program. Jonas also has soloed with the Highland Park High School Symphony and Chamber orchestras. Summer programs include, MYA Chamber Music Camp, International Haapsalu String Festival, Meadowmount School of Music and more. A senior, Jonas currently serves as concert master of the Highland Park High School Symphony Orchestra and Honors Chamber Orchestra; he also has served as co-principle second in the 2011 IMEA All-State Honors Orchestra.

Currently Jonas is the Illinois State Representative for the 2012 MTNA National Composition Contest. He also at the moment has a merit fellowship, the Kal Novak Musicianship Award, with Mischa Zupko and the MIC Composer’s Lab. As a composer, Jonas has collaborated with musicians and composers from Chicago Symphony Orchestra MusicNOW, Eight Blackbird, Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, Fulcrum Point New Music, Chicago Lyric Opera and more. Jonas has won an award for arranging in the IMEA composition contest and has been a finalist in the ASCAP Morton Gould prize and BMI Young Composers Competition. He currently is looking forward to record one of his compositions with Grammy winning new music group “Orchestra of Our time”. Jonas’s playing and composition, “Las Ruinas Circulares”, has been previously featured on WFMT Introductions. Jonas is a member of ASCAP.

Jonas is also a current member of the Ravinia Festival Student Marketing Board, part of a mission to promote classical to younger audiences.

Program:

Beethoven: Sonata No. 5, Op. 24 “Spring Sonata”
I. Allegro
II. Adagio molto espressivo

Bach: Partita in B minor
(I.)Allamande
(III.)Sarabande

Rachmaninoff: Vocalise (from 14 Romances for Voice) Op.34 Arranged for Solo Violin

Heino Eller(1887-1970): Fantasy for Solo Violin

Cellist Pierre Viallant is a 9th grader at Central High School in Champaign, IL.

Pierre Viallant has won and/or placed at several competitions including the MTNA Junior Competition, the Gail and Harry Adams Young Artists Concerto Competition, Arcadia Chamber Music Competition, 2009 Baroque Young Artists, DOCHA Chamber Music Competition and the IHSA Solo Competition where he was awarded “Best of Day”. He was also a finalist of the Delta Symphony Young Artists Concerto Competition and the Paducah Symphony Orchestra Young Artist Competition.

Pierre was a scholarship recipient of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program for gifted pre-college musicians and the Meadowmount School of Music. Currently he studies privately with Hans Joergen Jensen and Brandon Vamos. Pierre is a member of the ECIYO Youth Orchestra and the Urbana Pops Orchestra, where he is assistant principal.

Pierre plays on a modern instrument made by Gary Garavaglia.

Pierre is in the 9th grade at Central High School in Champaign, Illinois. His hobbies are playing basketball and skateboarding.

Today, we were also thrilled to have in our studio audience guests from the Suburban Youth Symphony Orchestra: syso.net

Program:
Performed with pianist Ann Newton Vaughen

Beethoven: Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 5 No. 1
Adagio
Rondo

Georg Goltermann: Etude-Caprice

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Vocalise

Become a member: wfmt.com/support

Today we’ll listen to highlights from the past several months of Introductions and hope that you’ll call 773-279-2100 or visit wfmt.com/support to become a member of WFMT.

Tonight’s rebroadcast is at 11PM instead of 10PM due to last night’s live broadcast from Roosevelt University. Preceding the program will be two editions of Exploring Music instead of one.

This week we bring you a performance by the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra from Orchestra hall in Chicago.

The CYSOis almost in its 65th year and serves 450 young Chicago-area musicians aged 7-18 through six orchestras, a chamber music program and composition and theory classes.

This hour, we’ll hear their top Symphony Orchestra in part of Shostakovich’s 10th symhony Lowell Leibermann’s fun Concerto for Flute and Orchestra featuring CYSO Concerto Competition Winner Christine Murphy…but we start with the orchestra now in Samuel Barber’s Overture to The School for Scandal, op 5…music director Allen Tinkham conducts.

Program:

Overture to The School for Scandal
Samuel Barber

Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, Op. 39
Lowell Liebermann
Christine Murphy, Flute

Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93, mvt 4
Dmitri Shostakovich

Listen to full audio

Become a member: wfmt.com/support

Today we’ll listen to highlights from the past several months of Introductions and hope that you’ll call 773-279-2100 or visit wfmt.com/support to become a member of WFMT.

17 year old pianist Kathy Qiu

A senior at University Laboratory High School in Champaign-Urbana, Kathy Qiu began playing piano at the age of five and a half. She was the Piano Category Winner of the 2010 Walgreens National Concerto Competition, performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1, and the winner of the 2009 Gail & Harry Adams Young Artists Competition. Kathy’s other major awards include 3rd place in the 2011 American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition, 1st place in the 2010 Music Festival in Honor of Confucius, 2nd place in the 2010 ISMTA State Competition, 1st place in the 2011 Young Baroque Artists Competition, and 2nd place in the Olympic Division of the 2010 Granquist Music Competition. Furthermore, Kathy’s trio won 1st place in the 2011 DoCha Young Artists Chamber Music Competition and was featured in a master class with the Grammy-winning Pacifica Quartet. In 2009, Kathy performed Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Danville Symphony Orchestra.

Kathy’s current teacher is Professor Christos Tsitsaros. She has also studied with Brenda Huang.

In addition to piano, she plays violin in the East Central Illinois Youth Orchestra and the IMEA All-District Orchestra. Also, Kathy enjoys competing in math, tennis, chess, writing, and science contests. In her spare time, she loves to draw and watch reality TV.

Program:

Chopin:  Scherzo No. 2
Ravel:  Oiseaux Tristes
Beethoven:  Sonata Pathetique
Chen Peixun:  Thinking of Spring
Liszt:  Hungarian Rhapsody No. 8

Violist Stephanie Block

Seventeen year old Stephanie Block began studying violin at age four through the Suzuki Music School of Barrington and moved to the Music Institute of Chicago in 2006 to study with Desiree Ruhstrat. She began studying viola with Ms. Ruhstrat in 2007, and is currently principal viola with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and the CYSO Encore Orchestra.

She has been performing with the award winning CYSO “Principal Players” chamber group (S*M*A*K* in 2009-2010 and Schroeder Trio in 2010-2011). Stephanie was selected as a winner in the DePaul Concerto Festival for Young Performers in January, 2011; was a finalist in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth auditions, February, 2011; and was a finalist in the CYSO concerto competition in March 2010 and 2011. She was also a top prizewinner in the Society of American Musicians viola competition in 2008 and 2010 and in the James Glacking Young Musicians competition in November, 2010.

She has toured and played in Germany with the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp International Symphony Orchestra, performed in Argentina and Uruguay with the CYSO, and studied in Italy in connection with the Casalmaggiore International Music Festival. Stephanie is a senior at Barrington High School and plays viola in the Barrington HS Chamber Orchestra. She also enjoys competing in triathlons, running, swimming, dancing and playing the piano.

Program: (performed with pianist Mary Drews)

William Walton: Viola Concerto
I. Andante comodo

JS Bach:  Cello Suite No. 3
Prelude
Sarabande
Bourrée
Gigue

Carl Stamitz: Viola Concerto
I.
II.

Alan Hovhaness: Chahagir for solo viola, op. 56

Paul Hindemith: Sonata for viola, op. 25, no. 1

No Introductions due to Operathon. Introductions will return next week.

WFMT devotes the programming day to the annual Lyric Opera of Chicago Operathon.

Fascinating interviews with major stars and Lyric insiders plus music from your favorite operas. Lyric’s annual on-air fundraiser is a project of the Lyric Opera Chapters. The 16-hour marathon proceeds benefit Lyric’s education and community-engagement programs.

In addition to the star studded broadcast, you also have an opportunity to buy unique Lyric Opera merchandise plus premiums and restaurant certificates.

The Okemo String Quartet

The Okemo String Quartet is named after an idyllic Vermont mountain where the group found its collective voice, practicing and rehearsing tirelessly at the rigorous Okemo Young Artists Festival in the summer of 2010. Violinists Adé Williams (homeschooled) and Hansuh Rhee (Springman Middle School), violist Mira Williams (Kenwood Academy), and cellist Josiah Yoo (Northbrook Junior High) are a passionate bunch of 13-year-olds with an impressive list of accomplishments. Hansuh and Adé share first and second violin positions for the quartet.

Individually, all of the members have won numerous awards, scholarships, top competition prizes, and prestigious solo opportunities. As an ensemble, they have now won their first competition: the 2011 Jules M. Laser Chamber Music Competition, presented by the Society of American Musicians and Music in the Loft. Because of this win, they have played two concerts at Music in the Loft and look forward to their radio debut on WFMT 98.7. Okemo was named semi-finalist in the 2011 St. Paul String Quartet Competition and in the 2011 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. They were Fischoff’s youngest ever semi-finalists (2011) and quarter-finalists (2010).

The Okemo String Quartet has played together since late 2009. Their high honors to date include being selected to play at MIC’s 80th and 81st Galas honoring Yo-Yo Ma (2010) and Maestro Riccardo Muti (2011), WFMT’s annual fundraiser (2011), the Fortnightly of Chicago (2010), the annual birthday memorial/Fourth of July celebration at President Calvin Coolidge’s homestead (2010).

As scholarship recipients, Okemo was assembled within the Music Institute of Chicago (MIC) Academy, a program for gifted pre-college musicians, by their coach, artist faculty member Marko Dreher. Quartet members study privately with artist faculty Almita Vamos (Adé), Almita and Roland Vamos (Hansuh), Marko Dreher (Mira), Gilda Barston (Josiah), and Hans Jørgen Jensen (Josiah). Adé performs on a violin by Jan van Rooyen, 2008, after the “Comte de Villares” Stradivarius, 1720, on generous loan from the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation. Hansuh performs with a sponsored Prfetzschner bow. Mira performs on a Bronek Cison violin, 2006, on generous loan from William Harris Lee.

Program:

Beethoven:  String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Opus 18

Haydn:  String Quartet No. 3 in G Minor, Opus 74
Finale: Allegro Con Brio

Dvorak: “American” String Quartet No. 12 in F, Opus 96
II: Lento

Shostakovich:  Polka

Debussy:  Quartet in G Minor, Opus 10

Shostakovich:  Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Opus 110

DePaul Concert Hall

Each year, traditional and Suzuki students in piano, violin, viola, cello and flute have the opportunity to audition for the Annual DePaul Concerto Festival for Young Performers held by DePaul’s Community Music Division in January. Winners perform a movement of a concerto with the Oistrach Symphony Orchestra, led by Mina Zikri. The orchestra is made up of recent grads and young professionals from the Chicago Area.

This is the second of two programs in 2011 featuring winners from the competition. You can listen to the first program, featuring music by Shostakovitch, JS Bach, Saint-Saens and more by clicking here.

Program:

Elgar:  Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
I. Adagio-Moderato
II. Lento-Allegro molto
Christopher Gao, cello, 14

Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major, K. 216
I. Allegro
Giancarlo Latta, violin, 16

Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488
I. Allegro
Colin Choi, piano, 10

Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64
III. Allegretto non troppo-Allegro molto vivace
Michaela Wellems, violin, 14

Rebroadcast from July, 2011

In the first half of today’s program, we featured 18 year old soprano Michelle Boggess of Mt. Prospect High School, who will be attending DePaul University in the fall.  In the second half, we featured members of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Music Institute, including their Sterling Brass Quintet and the Maud Powell String Quartet.  Both ensembles are the most advanced of their kind in the institute.  We ended with a waltz performed by the entire orchestra.

Tune in again Saturday, August 27th at 11AM when we feature the entire Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra in a separate program.

Program:

Widmung by Robert Schumann
Le Berceaux by Gabriel Fauré
Sure on this shining night by Samuel Barber
Amorosi Miei Giorni by Stefano Donaudy
Au bord de l’eau by Gabriel Fauré
Michelle Bogess, 18, soprano

Students of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra:
Quintet No. 3, Op. 7, mvt 1, by Victor Ewald
Sterling Brass Quintet
Mitch Kleban and Ethan Woyach, trumpets; Amanda-Rose Deligiannis, horn; Joseph Wais, trombone; Tyler Zeman, tuba

“American” String Quartet No. 12 in F, mvt 1, Antonin Dvorak
Maud Powell String Quartet
Patrick Connolly and Jonathan Lee, violins; Bobby Pirtle, viola; Christopher Mendez, cello

Emporer Waltz by Johann Strauss, Jr.
Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra
Randall Swiggem, conductor and music director

Michelle’s Complete Bio:

Michelle is a 2011 graduate of Prospect High School, and will attend DePaul University in the fall
majoring in vocal performance and music education. She has privately studied voice and piano for seven
years, and she currently studies with Tamaron Conseur at Prospect High School, and Tracy Watson in
Evanston, IL. She performed with Honors Chorus, Madrigal Singers and Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Prospect
High School, and was honored to be awarded the “Best of District 214” by Prospect Administration.
Michelle has also been a chorister for four years with Anima Young Singers of Greater Chicago (formerly
the Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus). There, she has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
in Orchestra Hall, and the Grant Park Symphony at Millennium Park. Singing with Anima, she was a
featured soloist in Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night ‘s Dream, and was a soloist with ANIMA at the
ACDA convention in March, 2011. She participated in a two week tour to Spain and Morocco with
Anima in the summer of 2010. Michelle has competed in three National Association of Singers of
Teachers competitions in two years, most recently placing in the top five in the High School division.
She was also a semi-finalist in the Classical Singer Magazine vocal competition in May, 2010 held in New
York City. She has participated in Illinois Music Educators Association District 7 chorus for 3 years and All
State Chorus for two years.

Alan Snow, 17, has won multiple concerto competitions throughout the Chicago area.

Alan Snow was born in 1994 into a family of musicians.  He is 17 years old and a senior at John Hersey High School in Arlington Heights. Alan started playing violin at age 8 and currently studies with Gerardo Ribeiro in Highland Park.

"Performathon" is Merit's annual weekend-long music festival featured dozens of ensembles and hundreds of performers.

This past February, WFMT broadcast part of the Merit School of Music‘s annual “Performathon” music festival, which features hours of music performed by dozens and ensembles and hundreds of students from the Merit School of Music.

Today, we’ll hear some music we didn’t get to feature in winter.

Program:

Bruckner/arr. Ralph Sauer:  Vexilla Regis
Merit Trombone Choir; Timothy Riordan, Director

Nigel Coombes: Trumpet Salutation
Honors Trumpet Ensemble; Paul Lowry (The Tom and Sue Pick Trumpet Chair), Director

D. McCarthy:  Children of the Corn
Jan Koetsier: Sonata da Chiesa, Op. 146
I. Variations on a Song by Karl Lowe (1827)
Merit Brass Ensemble; Timothy Riordan, Director

Smetana: Piano Trio in G Minor, Op. 15
III. Finale-Presto
Ann R. Monaco Honors Piano Trio: Lara Madden, violin; Jacqueline Robertson, cello; Mimi Liu, piano; Ann Birman (The Alice S. Pfaelzer Piano Chair) & Paula Kosower (The Alice and Ellard Pfaelzer Jr. Cello Chair), Directors

Percy Grainger/arr. S. Knight: Molly on the Shore
Merit Clarinet Choir; Bonnie Campbell (The Ruth and Clarence Heagy Woodwind Chair), Director

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade
I. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake
I. Scène
III. Danses des cygnes
V. Danse hongroise (Czardas)
Merit Symphony Orchestra; Robert Hasty, Director

Highlights from the EYSO's spring 2011 concert

We’ll hear highlights from the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra’s spring 2011 concert at the Blizzard Theatre at Elgin Community College.  The EYSO just celebrated its 35th concert season.

Program: Conducted by Music Director Randal Swiggum

Mozart: Concerto for Oboe in C major, K. 314
I.
Emily Fagan, soloist

Ravel:  Jardin Féerique

Rachmaninoff:  Symphony No. 2 in E minor
Guest conducted by Daniel Boico, former assistant conductor of the NY Philharmonic

I.  Largo — allegro moderato
IV.  Allegro vivace

MIC's "Academy" is an advanced program for gifted pre-college classical musicians who aspire to professional performance careers.

Highlights from the Music Institute of Chicago‘s Academy Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Roland Vamos, performed at Ganz Hall at Roosevelt University this past May.  The Academy prepares gifted pre-college classical musicians who aspire to have professional careers.

Program

Academy Strings, Jim Setapen, conductor:
Mozart: Piano Concerto #14, K. 449
III.
Ryan Jannak-Huang, soloist

Ben Fried (MIC Alum): Rambunctious Rabbit

Sibelius: Andante Festivo

Haydn, arr. Merle J. Isaac: Symphony #88
IV.

Academy Chamber Orchestra, Roland Vamos, conductor:
Michael McLean: Elements for Violin and String Orchestra
Fire
Zachary Spontak, soloist

Dvorak: Serenade for Strings, op. 22
I.
II.
V.

Recorded at Ganz Hall in the Auditorium Building of Roosevelt University in downtown Chicago, May 2011 by Eric Arunas.

The Encore Chamber Orchestra is one of many ensembles at the CYSO.

Today we bring you highlights from a concert given by the CYSO’s Encore Chamber Orchestra in March in the Cindy Pritzker Auditorium at the Harold Washington Library.

“CYSO” has become an umbrella term for an organization that not only offers several orchestra programs (including the namesake and most advanced “Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra”), but chamber ensembles and an orchestra, too.  On this program we’ll hear the chamber orchestra in music by local composer Brian Baxter, part of the percussion concerto by Joseph Schwantner performed by CYSO concerto competition winner Isaac Stevenson and the Symphony No. 1 by Samuel Barber.

Program: Conducted by CYSO Music Director Allen Tinkham

Brian Baxter (b. 1985):  Symphony in Movement

Joseph Schwantner (b. 1943):  Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra, movement 1
Isaac Stevenson, percussion

Samuel Barber (1910 – 1981):  Symphony No. 1, Op. 9 (In One Movement)

The 2011 Chicago Youth in Music Festival brought together young musicians from around the Chicago area.

This past May, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Institute for Learning, Access and Training organized a city-wide festival celebrating the participation of youth in music.  The 2011 Chicago Youth in Music Festival which took place May 5 – 15, 2011, aimed to extend and deepen the engagement of youth in music throughout Chicago, foster critical mass and visibility among local youth music providers and strengthen ties between Chicago’s providers and counterparts both nationally and internationally.

A highlight of the festival were performances by the Carlos Chávez Youth Orchestra of Mexico City, Mexico, which took place both downtown and at schools in Chicago’s Albany Park and Pilsen Neighborhoods.

On today’s program, the second of two parts, we bring you a chamber concert given by the full Carlos Chávez Youth Orchestra in the auditorium of Hibbard Elementary School in Albany Park.
Program:

Dukas:  Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Chavez:  Sensemaya
Copland: El Salon Mexico
Hernandez Medrano: 1962: An Homage to Copland
Marquez:  Danzon #8
Ginastera:  Malambo
Moncayo:  Huapango
Marquez:  Danzon #2

This video about the Festival, produced by Green River Films, was shown at A Celebration of Youth in Music on Sunday, May 15 at Symphony Center.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The 2011 Chicago Youth in Music Festival presented young musicians from across the Chicago area.

This past May, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Institute for Learning, Access and Training organized a city-wide festival celebrating the participation of youth in music.  The 2011 Chicago Youth in Music Festival which took place May 5 – 15, 2011, aimed to extend and deepen the engagement of youth in music throughout Chicago, foster critical mass and visibility among local youth music providers and strengthen ties between Chicago’s providers and counterparts both nationally and internationally.

A highlight of the festival were performances by the Carlos Chávez Youth Orchestra of Mexico City, Mexico, which took place both downtown and at schools in Chicago’s Albany Park and Pilsen Neighborhoods.

On today’s program, the first of two parts, we bring you a chamber concert given by the Carlos Chávez Woodwind Quintet at Benito Juarez Community Academy in Pilsen.  We’ll also preview next week’s program featuring the whole Chavez Youth Orchestra at Hibbard Elementary School in Albany Park.

Program:

Debussy:  from Suite No. 1, “Minstrels”

Danzi: Quintet Op. 67, No. 2
3 mvts.

Holst: Wind Quintet in A flat Op 14 (H67)
2 mvts.

Golliwog’s Cake Walk (encore)

This video about the Festival, produced by Green River Films, was shown at A Celebration of Youth in Music on Sunday, May 15 at Symphony Center.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The full CYSO performs music by Stravinsky.

John von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune wrote that in this performance of the CYSO’s Rite of Spring by Stravinsky, conductor and music director Allen Tinkham’s “…vigorous, communicative baton brought forth an adrenalin rush of superior playing from his high-school-age champs.  I had nothing but admiration for the solo playing in both performances.”  (from “Civic Orchestra, Chicago Youth Symphony have ‘Rite’ stuff (and then some),” June 1, 2011 — link opens pdf file)

Today on Introductions, we’ll hear this performance plus Michael Daugherty’s Route 66 and the Prelude and Liebestod from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde. It’s this kind of eclectic programming that won the CYSO another first place award from ASCAP for adventurous programming in 2011!

Listen to full program:

Students of the Hall School of Music (Wheaton, IL) in WFMT's Levin Performance Studio

finest private music schools in Chicagoland. The school operates a chamber music and orchestral program on Saturday’s conducted by Drostan Hall. Drostan is also the Music Director of Camerata Chicago. The Training and Baroque Festival Orchestras represents the most advanced students enrolled at the school. In 2008 the Baroque Festival Orchestra received an invitation from Chicago radio station WFMT to perform live on Introductions a weekly show featuring the best young musicians from Chicago.

Many of their students hold principal positions in their school orchestras and are members of local youth orchestras including the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra.  Several of the school’s graduates have gone on to study at the Julliard School of Music,
Northwestern University and with the Vermeer Quartet at Northern Illinois University.  A few of the very best students have been selected to play in Camerata Chicago, a professional chamber Orchestra.

Program: Drostan Hall, Conductor

Piano Concerto in F by Haydn
Featuring pianist Celina Kobetitsch

Variations on Thaxted by Holst/Blumhofer

Hoe Down by Copland

17 year old saxophonist Tim He (second from left) was admitted early to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Tim He, a saxophonist from the Chicago area, was one of the first students to attend ChiArts, the new Chicago High School for the Arts and took early admission to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Program:

Six Metamorphoses after Ovid – Britten
I. Pan (2:30)
IV. Bacchus (2:00)

Concerto for Saxophone – Lars-Erik Larsson
II. Adagio (10:00)

Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano – Paul Creston
II. With Tranquility (4:30)
I. With Vigor (4:30)

Tableaux de Provence – Paule Maurice
I. Farandoulo di Chatouno (Farandoledes Jeunes Filles) (2:30)
II. Cansoun per Ma Mio (Chanson pour Ma Mie) (1:20)
III. La Boumiano (La Bohemienne) (1:15)
IV. Dis Alycamps L’Amo Souspire (Des Alyscamps L’Ame Soupire) (4:30)
V. Lou Cabridan (Le Cabridan) (4:00)

Biography:

Tianyao (Tim) He, 17, is  a sophomore at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign pursuing a BM in saxophone performance.  He has been playing the saxophone for nine years and clarinet for three.  Tim was a finalist for the 2010 Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions and a category winner of the 2010 Walgreens Concerto Competition. He was also an active member of Midwest Young Artist playing in the symphony orchestra as well as being involved in the chamber programs.

Currently he studies with Professor Debra Richtmeyer at UIUC and his past primary teachers include Jeremy Ruthrauff, Shawn Tracy, and Dileep Gangolli. He has also taken lessons with Eugene Rousseau, members of the Habanera Sax Quartet, Ken Radnofsky and masterclasses with Otis Murphy and Kenneth Tse.

Michelle Boggess, 18, Soprano

In the first half of today’s program, we featured 18 year old soprano Michelle Boggess of Mt. Prospect High School, who will be attending DePaul University in the fall.  In the second half, we featured members of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Music Institute, including their Sterling Brass Quintet and the Maud Powell String Quartet.  Both ensembles are the most advanced of their kind in the institute.  We ended with a waltz performed by the entire orchestra.

Tune in again Saturday, August 27th at 11AM when we feature the entire Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra in a separate program.

Program:

Widmung by Robert Schumann
Le Berceaux by Gabriel Fauré
Sure on this shining night by Samuel Barber
Amorosi Miei Giorni by Stefano Donaudy
Au bord de l’eau by Gabriel Fauré
Michelle Bogess, 18, soprano

Students of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra:
Quintet No. 3, Op. 7, mvt 1, by Victor Ewald
Sterling Brass Quintet
Mitch Kleban and Ethan Woyach, trumpets; Amanda-Rose Deligiannis, horn; Joseph Wais, trombone; Tyler Zeman, tuba

“American” String Quartet No. 12 in F, mvt 1, Antonin Dvorak
Maud Powell String Quartet
Patrick Connolly and Jonathan Lee, violins; Bobby Pirtle, viola; Christopher Mendez, cello

Emporer Waltz by Johann Strauss, Jr.
Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra
Randall Swiggem, conductor and music director

Michelle’s Complete Bio:

Michelle is a 2011 graduate of Prospect High School, and will attend DePaul University in the fall
majoring in vocal performance and music education. She has privately studied voice and piano for seven
years, and she currently studies with Tamaron Conseur at Prospect High School, and Tracy Watson in
Evanston, IL. She performed with Honors Chorus, Madrigal Singers and Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Prospect
High School, and was honored to be awarded the “Best of District 214” by Prospect Administration.
Michelle has also been a chorister for four years with Anima Young Singers of Greater Chicago (formerly
the Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus). There, she has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
in Orchestra Hall, and the Grant Park Symphony at Millennium Park. Singing with Anima, she was a
featured soloist in Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night ‘s Dream, and was a soloist with ANIMA at the
ACDA convention in March, 2011. She participated in a two week tour to Spain and Morocco with
Anima in the summer of 2010. Michelle has competed in three National Association of Singers of
Teachers competitions in two years, most recently placing in the top five in the High School division.
She was also a semi-finalist in the Classical Singer Magazine vocal competition in May, 2010 held in New
York City. She has participated in Illinois Music Educators Association District 7 chorus for 3 years and All
State Chorus for two years.

Mary Elizabeth Buckingham with members of her flute quartet

Mary Elizabeth Buckingham began playing flute when she was seven years old.  She has studied at the Music Institute of Chicago with Meret Bitticks for eight years and prior to that with Rebecca Luzzi. At New Trier High School she plays in Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra.  She also enjoys playing with a flute quartet outside of school.

Mary Elizabeth has also studied at many flute institutes.  She has attended: Oberlin Summer Flute Institute, Ohio State Flue Insitute, Sherwood Conservatory Flute Institute and many, many Suzuki flute institutes over the years.  She was a finalist in November of 2010 in the Senior Division of The Chicago Flute Club Competition.

We’ll also hear Elizabeth with members of her flute quartet, which is coached by Susan Levitin and which includes 16 year old Ellyn Butler, 17 year old Gracie Stone, and 22 year old Elizabeth Diaz.

Program: w/ pianist Timothy Mah

Chaminade: Concertino

Barber: Canzone

Bozza: Three pieces for four flutes

Ian Clarke: The Great Train Race

Frank Martin: Ballade

Sugar Strings

Since there was no new program last Saturday due to our spring membership drive, this evening we bring you a rebroadcast of a relatively recent program featuring the members of the Sugar Strings, a trio of first cousins who have performed for the Ravinia Festival, for Mayor Daley and the City of Chicago, with the Milwaukee and Chicago Symphony Orchestras and much more.

They’ve prepared for us an eclectic program of music this hour by American black composers and eastern european composers plus some new arrangements of familiar jazz and popular tunes.

13 year old violist and violinist Mira Williams of the Kenwood Academy
13 year old homeschooled violinist Adé Williams
and 18 year old cellist Ayanna Williams who started last semester at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana

Listen to the complete program online by clicking here.

Lewis Guitar Duo

Since last Saturday will have been our Spring, 2011 membership drive, this evening we bring you a program from our relatively recent archives: Some gorgeous music for duo guitar performed by two brothers of New Trier High School, 16 year old Aaron Lewis and his brother, 14 year old Jason Lewis.

You can listen to their entire program (including individual pieces) by clicking here.

Thomas Aquino, 18, is graduating from the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and will attend Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music in the fall.  At the Lab Schools, he participated in track, cross country, swimming, choir, and jazz band. As a senior, he pursued an independent course of study on the guitar with Katy Sinclair.

Thomas began guitar studies at Sherwood Academy with Mark Marston at the age of five and after three years began studies with Jack Cecchini, and has continued with Jack for the last ten years.

Thomas has also participated in two master classes taught by Christopher Parkening, a weekend session in February of 2009 at Pepperdine University, and the four day session in July of 2009 at Montana State University.

Program:

Thomas developed this program in consultation with Jack Cecchini. The program is intended to demonstrate, in a short time, the long history and breadth of musical styles included in the guitar literature. All of the pieces are favorites of his, and he’s played most of them for several years.

Three Renaissance Pieces arranged by Oscar Chilesotti (3:49)
- Vaghe belleze et bionde treccie d’oro vedi che per ti moro
- Se io m’accorgo
- Saltarello

Prelude from Cello Suite no. 1 by JS Bach(2:49)
Allemande from Cello Suite no. 3  JS Bach (3:47)

Estudio 17 by Fernando Sor (3:03)

Capricho Arabe by Francisco Tarrega(6:31)

Canzonetta by Alexandre Tansman(3:00)

Prelude no. 4 by Heitor Villa-Lobos(4:49)

Hommage a Tarrega by Juaquin Turina (4:30)
- Garrotin
- Soleares

Program:

Chopin: Piano Sonata #2 in Bb minor, Op.35 by Chopin
I. Grave-Doppio movimento
II. Scherzo

Liszt:  Ballade No.2

Barber:  Piano Sonata, Op. 26
III.  Adagio mesto
IV.  Fuga: Allegro con spirito

This is the first of two programs in 2011 featuring winners from the competition. The second program will air sometime this summer.

Program:

Saint-Saens: Danse Macabre, Op. 40
Oistrach Symphony Orchestra, Mina Zikri, Conductor

J.S. Bach: Concerto No. 1 in Am, BWV 1041, mvt 1
10 year old violinist Hannah White

Stamitz: Concerto No. 1 in Am, Op. 1
16 year old violist Stephanie Block

Kreisler: Praeludium and Allegro in the style of Pugnani
Genevieve Smelser, violin

Shostakovich: Concerto No. 2 in F, Op. 102, mvt 1
Featuring 10 year old pianist Samuel Liu

Listen to full audio:

Meshugene Quartet of Midwest Young Artists

The members of the Meshugene Quartet of Midwest Young Artists in Highwood, Illinois (MYA) were winners of the MYA division of the Discover National Chamber Music Competition in 2011.  They will also be competing in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition in May of this year.  The group is coached by Rami Solomonow and Allan Dennis.  Our program was broadcast live from the International Spring Antiques Fair at the Merchandise Mart in downtown Chicago.

Members:
Lisa Chertok, violin, 17
Rachel Stenzel, violin, 14
Ariel Chapman, viola, 17
Christopher Gao, 14, cello

Program:
Smetana:  String Quartet No. 1 in Em, “From My Life,” mvt 1 – Allegro vivo appassionato
Mozart:  String Quartet No. 17 in Bb Major K. 458, “The Hunt,” mvt 1 – Allegro vivace assai
Dvorak String Quartet No. 12 in F, Op. 96 “American,” movement IV

Glazunov: Novelettes for String Quartet, Op. 15, mvt. III – Interludium in Modo Antico
Bartok:  String Quartet No. 2 mvt 2 – Allegro molto capriccioso

Listen to full audio:

Our guest today was 14 year old violinist Jennifer Cha of Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville. Jennifer was a finalist in this year’s Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions and performed for us music by Spanish composer/violin virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate, Alexander Glazunov and more.

“Hot Canary” by Paul Nero

Biography

One of the rising stars of the Chicago music scene, 14 year-old violinist Jennifer Cha is already a veteran of the concert stage. Jennifer began playing the violin at the age of 4 while living in South Korea. She gave her first violin recital at the age of 7 and made her concerto debut at the age of 11 with the Oistrach Symphony Orchestra conducted by Maestro Mina Zikri. Miss Cha toured Germany in 2003 and Italy in 2005 for performances, including performing for Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican as part of the Betty Haag Magical Strings of Youth.

She has won numerous top prizes and awards from various competitions including the Sejong Cultural Society Concerto Competition, the Concerto Competition in Honor of Confucius, MYA Concerto Competition, and DePaul University’s Annual Concerto Festival. In 2009 and 2011, Jennifer was invited to perform at the Korean-American Day celebration at the Richard Daley Hall in Chicago. Jennifer has appeared at the Ravinia Music Festival as part of the Kraft for Kids series.

This season, Jennifer was chosen to be one of 15 finalists for From the Top’s Big Break Contest out over 400 applicants nationwide, and was featured on NPR’s website as a result. Most recently, Jennifer Cha became one of 6 finalists in the Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions. She performed in Music in the Loft’s March 11th concert. She has also been chosen to play in Music in the Loft’s 2013 season. From March 29-31st, she traveled to Cedar Falls, Iowa to perform on From the Top’s radio broadcast. As a result of winning the Neuqua Valley Concerto Competition, Jennifer performed Ziguenerweisen with the Neuqua Valley Symphony Orchestra on April 12th. Also, on April 16th, she will be performing on WFMT’s Introductions Series. On July 26th, Jennifer will be performing the Glazunov Violin Concerto with the Wheaton Symphony Orchestra.

She has also participated in master classes with Ida Kavafian and Ilya Kaler. Jennifer has also been chosen as a scholarship recipient of the Hotchkiss Summer Portals Program where she worked with Ida Kavafian, Melvin Chen, Christopher Shepard, Harumi Rhodes, Jessica Lee, Nicholas Canellakis, Melissa Reardon, and members of the Miró Quartet, the Brentano String Quartet, and the Shanghai Quartet. Jennifer volunteers for the Fine Arts Healing Program at Edward Hospital in Naperville along with her older sister and friend, where they perform for cancer patients and their families. As a string trio, they also volunteer, performing at various Ronald McDonald’s Houses in the Chicagoland area. Jennifer studies with Desiree Ruhstrat at the Music Institute of Chicago, where she is a merit scholar recipient. She is a freshman attending Neuqua Valley High School and currently resides in Naperville, IL with her parents, sister, and dog.

Program

Joy of Ong-He-Ya by Misook Kim
Violin Concerto in A minor Op. 82 by Alexander Glazunov
Jota Navarra by Pablo de Sarasate
Hot Canary by Paul Nero (listen above)

WHERE
Merchandise Mart
Corner of Wells and Kinzie Street
Chicago, IL

WHEN
Saturday, April 30, 2011, 10:00 am

Join us Saturday, April 30 at 10:00 am for a special live broadcast of WFMT’sIntroductions from the Merchandise Mart of Chicago featuring the Meshugene Quartet, an award-winning string quartet from Midwest Young Artists. WFMT and WTTW guests in attendance will enjoy VIP seating and a FREE two-day pass to the International Spring Antiques Fair running April 29 through May 2.

Seating for this broadcast will begin promptly at 10:00 am, with the performance beginning at 11:00 am. There is a designated elevator bank for the performance on the second floor of the Mart. After arriving, take the Orleans elevator to the eighth floor, following signs to the stage.

Click here for two complimentary passes to the fair. For more information, call (773) 279-2127.

Rachel Shekinah Hsu

Listen to the full audio

Rachel Shekinah Hsu is a fourth grade student at Romona Elementary School in Wilmette, IL. She has learned piano for five years and violin for six years. Currently she studies piano with Sueanne Metz and violin with Desiree Ruhstrat. Rachel has won many piano competitions, including 1st place at ISMTA, SAM, Confucius Music Festival, Illinois Music Association, the MACMO Piano Contest, CAMTA Roberta Savler Piano Contest, Granquist Music Competition in Olympic Division, as well as gold medals at the NSMTA and CAMTA Sonata-Sonatina Festivals. She was the winner in Steinway Young Artist Competition 2008, 2009, 2010 and her performance has been broadcast live on WFMT radio station as a winner in 2008. Rachel also won many violin competitions, including first-place awards in 2008 Confucius Music Festival and in 2009 SAM violin competitions. She received Honorable Mention in Walgreens National 2010 Concerto Competition and was the winner of 2009 DePaul Concerto Festival for Young Performers having chance to play violin solo with the DePaul Symphony Orchestra.

Rachel was interviewed and invited to perform piano and violin in the “Superior Performance Moments” program for the International Clinical Excellence Conference at Kansas City on October 2010. She will also have an interview and live performance on Introductions on WFMT as a piano soloist. It will be broadcast on Saturday 11AM, April 9 and Thursday 10PM, April 14, 2011. Her other interests include: singing, writing, drawing, reading and math.

Program

Mozart: Sonata in C Major K.330
Allegretto by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Scarlatti: Sonata in A major K.113
Debussy: “Gardens in the Rain” from Estampes
Chopin: Nocturne No. 20 Op. Posthumous in C-sharp minor
Chopin: Etude in C Major op. 10, No. 1
Liszt: “Un Sospiro” Etude No. 39 in D flat major

Marcelina Suchocka

Listen

Our guest, percussionist and Whitney Young High School junior Marcelina Suchocka, has had an amazing year: First, she won the Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions — a project of the League of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association — and because of that performed with the CSO in January. Later in 2010, she won From the Top’s “Big Break” competition, for which she’ll perform in Carnegie Hall later this month and appear on From the Top for a second time.

Marcy studies percussion with Patricia Dash and Douglas Waddell of the Percussion Scholarship Group, an program of the CSO’s Institute for Learning, Access and Training.

Program:

J.S. Bach: Cello Suite No. 1 – Courante

Eugene Novotney: Minute of News

George Winston: Canon (From “Thanksgiving and Canon”)
Performed with 17 year old Northside College Prep HS student John Ringor

Anders Koppel: Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra
Performed with pianist Dorota Suchocka

Andrew York: Sanzen-in
Performed with 15 year old Eric Goldberg of Whitney Young High School

Emmanuel Séjourné: Katamiya

Tomer Yariv: Gyro
Performed with John Ringor

Music Institute of Chicago

Listen

Music from a concert presented on March 11, 2011 by the Music Institute of Chicago at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston. The program showcased new works by student composers from around the Chicago area, including students who participated in the composition workshop of the Chicago-based organization Access Contemporary Music, the MIC Composers Lab and the Gen Next composer’s competition.

Access Contemporary Music Composition Showcase

Logical Philosophies by William Padera
Isithangami by Emma Daniels

Jeff Yang, violin
Carrie Jones, viola
Yong Park, cello

MIC Composer’s Lab Showcase

Ab initio Ab finem by Zach Moore
Leticia Chim, flute
Carrie Jones, viola
Yong Park, cello

Trio by Dylan Apple
Jonas Tarm, violin
Yong Park, cello
Anne McGlaughlin, piano

Ruinas Circulares by Jonas Tarm
Leticia Chim, flute
Jorie Butler-Geyer, violin
Yong Park, cello
Anne McGlaughlin, piano

2011 Generation Next Awards and Concert

An Argumentative Ensemble by Martynas Matutis
Laura Park, violin
Kelly Talim, violin
Grace Cho, cello
Kai Talim, piano

The Wanderers by Jared Hedges
Albessant Smith, voice
Jared Scott, cello
Andrew Tung, piano

Hercules by Andrew Guo
Caroline Pittman, flute
Michaela Wellems, viola
Misha Boutilier, bass
Andrew Guo, piano

Ryan Zerna, 18, of Oswego, IL, has been studying the flute for 8 years. He has studied with both Dr. Cate Hummel and Hideko Amano, and is currently a member of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. He has won several awards from: 1st place in the Society of American Musicians (2009) Flute Senior Division, 1st place in the Chicago Flute Club (2009) Senior Division, and recipient of the Edward and Ethel Martin Scholarship from the Union League Civic and Arts Foundation Competition (2009).

In both the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and CYSO’s Encore Chamber Orchestra, Ryan has played principal parts for three years, and went on tour with CYSO to South America in 2009. As a part of the CYSO Chamber Program, Ryan also played in last year’s Metal ‘n Wood Woodwind Quintet, winning honors in the Rembrandt Chamber Competition and also given the opportunity to play on Introductions last year. He also plays this year in the Zephyr Woodwind Quintet.

His program is also available here.

Lewis Guitar Duo

16 year old Aaron Lewis and his brother, 14 year old Jason Lewis study classical guitar at the Music Institute of Chicago with Dr. Julia Miller. In 2010, they performed at the Guitar Foundation of America International Convention and have performed around the Chicago area for various events. Thanks to both of them for a gorgeous hour of live music on WFMT!

Listen to the full program

Listen to individual pieces:

Isaac Albeniz: Capricho Catalan from Feuilles d’Album, Op. 165

Domenico Scarlatti: Sonata in G Major, L. 388

JS Bach: Prelude No. 15 in G Major, BWV 884 from the Well-Tempered Clavier Book II

Ferdinando Carulli: Serenade in A, Op. 96, No. 1
Largo maestoso – Allegro – Larghetto – Presto

Fernando Sor: L’Encouragement, Op. 34
Introduction
Theme and Variations
Valse

Astor Piazzolla: Tango #1 from Tango Suite

Instead, we will rebroadcast a program featuring 16 year old pianist Adam Kim.

Last year, Adam took first place in Crain-Maling Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Auditions, an annual competition where 7 finalists compete on the stage of Orchestra Hall in front of a jury and audience for the chance to perform with the CSO. Adam will perform in a series of youth concerts for school children next week…and while the concerts are only open to school groups, we get to hear him this hour in music by Beethoven, Chopin and Liszt. Adam studies piano with Alan Chow, associate professor of piano at Northwestern University and is a student at North Shore Country Day School.

Listen to full audio:

We’ll hear them in the Pines of Rome by Ottorino Respighi and music for band by Alfred Reed and James Barnes

Program:

Band, conducted by James M. Lambrecht of Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois
Variations on the Porazzi Theme form Wagner’s Symphony Number 3 by Alfred reed

Symphony #3 by James Barnes
II.
IV.

Orchestra, conducted by Jung-Ho Pak of the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra in Yarmouth Port, MA
The Pines of Rome by Ottorino Respighi

Band, Orchestra and Chorus (combined)
Battle Hymn of the Republic arr. Peter Wilhousky

Engineered by Mark Custom Recording: http://www.markcustom.com/

Listen to full audio

Marafiki String Quartet

Listen to full audio:

The Marafiki String Quartet of the Music Institute of Chicago Academy for gifted pre-college classical musicians in music by Ravel, Smetana, Glass and Stacy Garrop. Recorded in WFMT’s Levin Performance Studio. Rebroadcast from 2010.

Program:

Ravel: String Quartet in F
I. Allegro moderato

Smetana: String Quartet No. 1 “From My Life” in Em
Allegro vivo appassionato

Philip Glass Image from Flickr Creative Commons

Glass: Company for String Quartet
Stacy Garrop: String Quartet No. 2
Demons and Angels
Commissioned by Music in the Loft, Chicago

From the archives:

Solima: Alone for Solo Cello
18 year old cellist Ben Lash

Emilio del Rosario

Today on a special Introductions, we bring you highlights of a memorial concert honoring Emilio del Rosario, an acclaimed and beloved piano instructor who taught at the Music Institute of Chicago for over 40 years. His former students and colleagues cames together in Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston to share stories…and music by Enrique Granados, Mozart, Gershwin and more.

Mr. “D,” as he was known, died on October 3rd, 2010 in Cedarburg, Wisconsin after a three year battle with Cancer.

Born in Manila in the Phillipines in 1934, Mr. D was the first student of American pianist and conductor Leon Fleisher and had an extensive performing career including appearances at Carnegie Hall, Steinway Hall, the United Nations, Chicago’s Orchestra hall and more.

But he devoted his life to discovering and nurturing young musicians, explaining that he was “most gratified by finding music in a child and then developing it beyond the child’s wildest dreams.” And you’ve no doubt heard Mr. D’s work many time through both his recent students who appear on this program and established musicians that are heard on WFMT everyday.

On Sunday, January 23 at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston, friends, alumni and colleagues gathered to share music and anecdotes about Mr. D.

Program

excerpted from original program

Spanish Dance No. 5, “Playera”
Enrique Granados
Milton Ruben Laufer, piano

Sonata in B-flat Major, K. 333
III. Allegretto
Mozart
Andrew Guo, piano

The Man I Love
George Gershwin, arr. and performed by Elizabeth Roe, piano

Eclogue Op. 10 for Piano & Orchestra
Gerald Finzi
Eroica Chamber Orchestra (MIC alums)
Hanjay Wang, conductor
Matthew Hagle, piano

Duo for Violin & Viola in G Major
II. Adagio
Mozart
Almita and Roland Vamos

Rhapsodie Espagnole
IV. Feria
Maurice Ravel
Claire Aebersold & Ralph Neiweem, piano

Listen to full audio

Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras

This week we bring you a performance by the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra from Orchestra hall in Chicago.

The CYSOis almost in its 65th year and serves 450 young Chicago-area musicians aged 7-18 through six orchestras, a chamber music program and composition and theory classes.

This hour, we’ll hear their top Symphony Orchestra in part of Shostakovich’s 10th symhony Lowell Leibermann’s fun Concerto for Flute and Orchestra featuring CYSO Concerto Competition Winner Christine Murphy…but we start with the orchestra now in Samuel Barber’s Overture to The School for Scandal, op 5…music director Allen Tinkham conducts.

Program:

Overture to The School for Scandal
Samuel Barber

Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, Op. 39
Lowell Liebermann
Christine Murphy, Flute

Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93, mvt 4
Dmitri Shostakovich

Listen to full audio

Yoan Ganev

Yoan Ganev, fourteen, started playing the piano at the age of six, and studied at the National School of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria. He came to the United States five years ago where he has studied with Emilio del Rosario and Marta Aznavoorian. He has just started lessons with Dr. Theodore Edel.

Yoan has won numerous competition awards such as: First place in the Junior division of the Society of American Musicians competition.First place at the Chinese Fine Arts Society music competition, and second place at the Sejong Cultural Society music competition. He has performed twice on WFMT, Chicago’s fine arts radio station, after he won first place at the Steinway Young Artist competition, and in the program Introductions as a winner of the DePaul university Concerto Festival. The second broadcast featured his performance of Beethoven’s piano concerto No 1 with the Oistrakh Symphony Orchestra led by conductor Mina Zikri. In December 2010 he became the overall Open Junior Division winner at Midwest Young Artists Walgreens Concerto Competition, performing Brahms Piano concerto in D minor.Among his most cherished moments is his participation in the play “Leaping Leopold” by Bruce Adolphe in a piano quartet with Chicago Chamber Musicians at Navy Pier’s Shakespeare Theater. The last two seasons Yoan performed at Ravinia’s Pritzker Pavilion and Bennett Gordon Hall.

Program

Beethoven: Sonata Op. 3 No. 2, first mvt Allegro con Brio
Chopin: Ballade No. 4 in F minor Op. 52
Liszt: Mephisto Waltz No. 1
Ravel: Jeux d’Eau

Listen to full audio

Stella Tu

Today on Introductions our guest was 16 year old pianist Stella Tu, a junior at Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook. She performed at Carnegie Hall at age 11, and has won or placed in the Chopin Youth Piano Competition in Milwaukee, the MYA Walgreens National Concerto Competition, the Glenbrook Symphony Orchestra competition, and many more. And this hour she prepared for us music by Bach, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff and Chopin.

Program:

Bach: Prelude and Fugue #14 from The Well-Tempered Clavier, book 1
Beethoven: Sonate Op. 53
Rachmaninoff: Etude-Tableau No. 8
Chopin: Polonaise in G# minor
Chopin: Scherzo No.1 Op. 20

Listen to full audio

Sugar Strings

Today on Introductions our guests were the members of the Sugar Strings, a trio of first cousins who have performed for the Ravinia Festival, for Mayor Daley and the City of Chicago, with the Milwaukee and Chicago Symphony Orchestras and much more.

They’ve prepared for us an eclectic program of music this hour by American black composers and eastern european composers plus some new arrangements of familiar jazz and popular tunes.

13 year old violist and violinist Mira Williams of the Kenwood Academy
13 year old homeschooled violinist Adé Williams
and 18 year old cellist Ayanna Williams who started last semester at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana

Listen to full audio

Program

Lift Every Voice and Sing by J. Rosamond Johnson (Donna’s arrangement of Carter’s version) (aka Black National Anthem)
Precious Lord by Thomas Dorsey (said to be Dr. Martin Luther King’s favorite song)

Trio Sonata in G Minor, Finale by Vivaldi
Roumanian Folk Dances, Nos. 4-6 by Bartok
Hora Mare by Mimi Rabson
Solfeggiettissimo by J. C. Bach is arranged by Philip R. Buttall and Donna Williams

Salt Peanuts by Dizzie Gillespie

Spain by Chick Corea

Spies Among Us (arr. by Donna Williams)

Human Nature, made famous by Michael Jackson, arranged by Donna Williams, composed by Steve Porcaro and John Bettis

Kell HS Wind Symphony

In December, WFMT presented broadcast live during two days of the 2010 Midwest Clinic, one of the largest (if not *the*) largest music education conference in the world. A major component of the conference are performances given by wind ensembles, jazz ensembles and orchestras from around the world, ranging from junior highs school to professionals, and it’s a huge honor to be invited to perform in front of colleagues and peers.

We were thrilled to be able to feature one of the concerts, a performance given by the Kell High School Wind Symphony of Marietta, Georgia.

Listen to full audio

Jazz Ambassadors of Chicago

This hour we try to remember what summer was like with a performance recorded in our Levin performance studio in early September by a group of teens who participated in a Chicago summer program organized by the Chicago Park District in partnership with the Jazz Institute of Chicago.

The students auditioned and interviewed for the 6 week program that offered them the opportunity to rehearse under the direction of 3 Jazz Institute mentors–saxophonist Pat Mallinger; pianist Willie Pickens; and bassist Lorin Cohen, who coached the combo this hour.

The band performed at several parks around the city, as part of CPD’s Summer Performances in the Parks series — that where I first heard them — and completed their summer internship with a grand finale performance at the Chicago Jazz Festival programmed by the Jazz Institute of Chicago.

The members of the Jazz Ambassadors are:

Tyler Brooks, 18, piano, Kenwood Academy (attending Stanford in the fall)
Liam Cunningham, 17, bass, Whitney Young High School
Iman Jarad, 17, bass, North Side Preparatory High School
Yael Litwin, 17, percussion, The University of Chicago Laboratory School
Irvin Pierce, 16, saxophone, Bowen High School
Marcus Powell, 16, guitar, Kenwood Academy
Chakeiya Powell, 18, saxophone, Kenwood Academy
Joel Ross, 15, vibraphone, Chicago High School for the Arts
Joshua Ross, 15, percussion, Chicago High School for the Arts
Christopher Stein, 17, trumpet, Jones College Preparatory High School

And the ensemble was coached today by Chicago jazz bassist Loren Cohen.

The program is supported with funds from the Arts & Culture budget of the Chicago Park District, the Leo P. Guthman Foundation and by the Illinois Arts Council.

Program:

Cedar’s Blues by Cedar Walton. Arranged by Lorin Cohen
You’re My Everything by Harry Warren. (comp. Harry Warren, arr. Lorin Cohen)
Perky (comp. Liam Cunningham, arr. Liam Cunningham/Lorin Cohen)

3 piece segue:
Night Dreamer (comp. Wayne Shorter)
Translation Day (comp. Tyler Brooks arr. Tyler Brooks/Lorin Cohen)
Hope for Love (comp. Lorin Cohen arr. Lorin Cohen)

Played Twice (comp. Thelonious Monk)

Listen to the full audio

Palatine High School Pirate

Our guests are the members of the Palatine High School Concert Choir, directed by Steven Sisak, who last year performed at the White House as part of their holiday celebrations. They were invited back again this year but instead decided to spend some time here in our Levin performance studio, where they’ll perform a program of music for our own holiday celebration. The ensemble has travelled around the world, including to London two year ago and in a few days they’ll cruise to the Bahamas for tour.

Program

Sing We Now of Christmas: Traditional French Carol; Arr: John Leavitt
Pat-a-Pan: Burgundian Carol; Arr: Alf. S. Houkom
Goin’ On a Sleighride: Ralph Blane; Arr: Mac Huff

The Christmas Waltz: Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne; Arr: Paris Rutherford
Up on the Housetop: B.R. Hanby; Arr: Kirby Shaw
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/Angels We Have Heard on High: Felix Mendelssohn and Charles Wesley/Traditional French Carol; Arr: Dan Ponce for
Straight No Chaser

William Tell Overture: Gioacchino Rossini; Arr: Julie Eschliman
The Awakening: Joseph M. Martin

Chanukah in Santa Monica: Tom Lehrer; Arr: Joshua Jacobson
Carol of the Bells (Ukrainian Christmas Carol): M. Leontovich/Peter J. Wilhousky; Arr: Peter J. Wilhousky
Circle of Life, with “Nants’ Ingonyama”: Hans Zimmer and Lebo M, Elton John and Tim Rice;
Arr: Audry Snyder, Mac Huff, Steve Sivak

Jingle Bells; J. Pierpont; Arr: Audrey Snyder
Auld Lang Syne: Traditional Scottish folk song, words by Robert Burns; Arr: Joanna Forbes for the Swingle Singers

Listen to the full audio

Trio Bravo of Midwest Young Artists

This trio from the chamber music program of Midwest Young Artists has been together in one form or another for about three years, having won many awards in that time. Their repertoire is firmly rooted in the 20th century and later and they described why in our Levin Performance studio.

Jorie Butler-Geyer, violin, 16, Adlai E. Stevenson High School
James Gan Stinehart, cello, 17 New Trier High School
Hannah Kay, piano, 16, Adlai E. Stevenson High School

Winner Virginia G. Bernhardt Scholarship, Music Festival in Honor of Confucius, 2008
Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, semi-finalists, 2010
Featured artists at Young Steinway Concert Series (2008)
Art Institute Silk Road Series (2008)
Symphony Center Day of Music (2008)
Midwest Young Artists Early and New Music concerts (2009, 2010)
Rembrandt Chamber Players concert (2010)
Millenium Park concerts (2010)
Chinatown Concert Series (2009)
Fischoff Outreach Concert (2010)
Chicago Cultural Center (2008, 2011)
Featured performance for Lang Lang at MYA Gala, 2010
Honorable Mention Winner, Chicago National Chamber Music competition (2010)
Honorable Mention Winner, Rembrandt Chamber Players High School Chamber Music competition

Program

Shostakovitch: Piano Trio #2, Mvt 4, Allegretto
Ravel: Piano Trio, Mvt. 2, Pantoum-Assez Vif
Garrop: Silver Dagger
Rorem: Spring Music, Mvt 5, Presto
Smetana: Piano Trio in G Minor, Mvt 3, Finale:Presto

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Ryan Zerna

Ryan Zerna, 18, of Oswego, IL, has been studying the flute for 8 years. He has studied with both Dr. Cate Hummel and Hideko Amano, and is currently a member of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. He has won several awards from: 1st place in the Society of American Musicians (2009) Flute Senior Division, 1st place in the Chicago Flute Club (2009) Senior Division, and recipient of the Edward and Ethel Martin Scholarship from the Union League Civic and Arts Foundation Competition (2009).

In both the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and CYSO’s Encore Chamber Orchestra, Ryan has played principal parts for three years, and went on tour with CYSO to South America in 2009. As a part of the CYSO Chamber Program, Ryan also played in last year’s Metal ‘n Wood Woodwind Quintet, winning honors in the Rembrandt Chamber Competition and also given the opportunity to play on Introductions last year. He also plays this year in the Zephyr Woodwind Quintet.

Program

Cecile Chaminade: Concertino
Carl Nielsen: Flute Concerto, I. Allegro Moderato
Sigfrid Karg-Elert: 30 Caprices: No. 23, Adagio appassionato
Theobald Boehm: Grande Polonaise for Flute and Piano

Performed with Kanae Tsuruga, piano

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Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale

A group of 7 students from the Merit School of Music’s Alice S. Pfaelzer tuition-free conservatory got together this past summer to learn and to perform this hugely challenging work by Stravinsky, composed in the aftermath of World War I. The came to our Levin Performance Studio this fall to record the piece in our Levin performance studio in its entirety (the instrumental version).

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Quintethero of Midwest Young Artists

Quintet Hero is a group of boys who have been playing together since ninth grade. Now seniors, they are all principal players in their sections of Midwest Young Artists’ Symphony Orchestra. They are good friends and exceptionally talented musicians, and won first place in the 2010 Chicago National Chamber Music Competition and honorable mention in the 2010 Society of American Musicians Competition. Evan attends Lake Zurich High School, Sam and Zach attend New Trier High School, Ian attends Roycemore School, and Joshua attends Highland Park High School. Sam also plays in a Klezmer band that has been featured on WFMT, and the boys all enjoy sports as well as their music.

Evan Fojtik, flute
Sam Mattenson, clarinet
Ian Daugherty, oboe
Joshua Sechuan, bassoon
Zach Popp, horn

Program

Quintet, John Steinmetz (1951-)
Performed without breaks between movements
Prelude
I. Andanta-Vivace-Andante
II. Chanted-Grazioso-Presto
III. Intermezzo
IV. Adagio
V. Canon
VI. Poco Adagio

Quintet, Paul Taffanel (1804-1908)
I. Allegro con moto
II. Andante

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Devon Naftzger

Devon Naftzger, a junior at Stevenson High School, studies viola with Desiree Ruhstrat at the Music Institute of Chicago. Devon has played the violin since age 5, but last summer, at 15, she switched to the viola. She has received awards from: Society of American Musicians (SAM) Viola Senior Division, Walgreens Concerto Competition’s Early Music Category, North Suburban Symphony’s Concerto competition, Rami Solomonow Merit Scholarship winner, and Music Institute of Chicago Merit Scholarship Recipient. In addition, Devon performs in the Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra in Highwood, IL and was principal viola on the 2010 Germany Tour. With MYA, Devon participates in the early and new music ensemble, the Symphony orchestra, and a string quartet. She has also soloed with CSO’s Charlie Pikler’s I Solisti chamber orchestra. Devon enjoyed participating in the Aspen Music Festival this past summer. One of her favorite musical memories is getting to play the National Anthem at Wrigley Field for a Cubs game.

Program

with pianist Mary Drews

Carl Stamitz: Concerto in D Major, mvt 1 Op. 1

Max Bruch: Romanze for Viola

Max Reger: Suite No. 1 in G Minor op. 131d, mvt. IV Molto Vivace

Alan Hovhaness: Chahagir

Ernest Bloch: Suite for Viola Mvt. 4 Molto Vivo

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Bela Bartok

In this edition of Introductions, the Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra performs the complete Concerto for Orchestra by Bela Bartok. Allan Dennis conducts from Pick Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston.

Allan Dennis conducts from Pick Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston.

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]]> http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/30/mya-performs-bartoks-concert-for-orchestra/feed/ 0 http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/serena-harnack-12-violin/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=serena-harnack-12-violin http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/serena-harnack-12-violin/#comments Tue, 19 Oct 2010 10:00:00 +0000 David Polk http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/serena-harnack-12-violin/ more...]]>

Serena Harnack

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We started off the program with a remembrance of Music Institute of Chicago teacher Emilio del Rosario, who died that week. I spoke with WFMT program host Peter van de Graaff who was a student of Mr. Del Rosario.

Our guest was Serena Harnack, 12, who has been studying violin for 8 years. She has studied with Julie Maura, and was recently accepted as a student of Almita Vamos. Serena is a scholarship recipient of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program for gifted pre-college musicians where she will study privately with MIC artist faculty member Almita Vamos.

She has won 1st Place in the Chinese Fine Arts Society Confucius Competition, DePaul Concerto Festival, Musichorale Scholarship Competition, Glen Ellyn-Wheaton Scholarship Competition, and Youth Symphony of DuPage Concerto Competition. She was awarded Outstanding 5 years in a row at Granquist Music Competition in Geneva, and has received numerous awards from Midwest Young Artists and Sejong Music Competition.

Serena has been a member of Youth Symphony of DuPage since she was 8, serving as Concertmistress of the Preparatory Orchestra when she was 10, advancing to the Symphony Orchestra last year. She was accepted into the bi-annual Suzuki Youth Orchestra of the Americas as Principal 2nd violin in 2008, and Concertmistress this year, in Minneapolis. She was also accepted into the Brian Lewis Young Artist Program, an intense 2-week program for 12 highly gifted violinists, this past summer. She has extensive chamber experience on violin as well as viola.

Serena has attended Sound Encounters in Ottawa, KS, receiving Master Classes every year, ASI/Stevens Point, where she was a featured soloist, Mark O’Connor’s Fiddle Camp in TN, Practice Pathways/Ogontz in New Hampshire, Blue Lake Music Camp, SILK Music Camp, as well as numerous MIC, NIU, ISU and Wheaton College Workshops.

Serena performs the Messiah, and Mass at St. Petronille, as well as other area churches, and performs in many community service concerts at local retirement homes, hospitals, and fund-raisers. She also studies viola, flute, and piano, sings in show choirs, and school musicals. She loves art, ice-skating, and her two cats.

Program

Performed with Milana Pavchinskaya, piano

Lalo-Symphonie Espagnole, 1st mvmt
Brahms-Sonatensatz
J.S.Bach-Solo Sonata No. 3 in C Manjor, 4th mvmt
Bartok-Rumanian Folk Dances (all 6)
Kreisler-Praeludium and Allegro
Chattanooga Choo Choo-Glenn Miller

We also recorded Serena in Mozart/Kreisler’s Rondo from Serenade in D, “Haffner,” which can be heard here:

]]> http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/serena-harnack-12-violin/feed/ 0 http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/this-week-listening-to-young-pianists-in-warsaw/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=this-week-listening-to-young-pianists-in-warsaw http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/this-week-listening-to-young-pianists-in-warsaw/#comments Tue, 19 Oct 2010 05:00:00 +0000 David Polk http://blogs.wfmt.com/introductions/2010/10/19/this-week-listening-to-young-pianists-in-warsaw/ more...]]>

This week, David Polk and Lisa Flynn are in Warsaw, Poland to hear the world’s finest young pianists compete in the 16th Chopin International Piano Competition. Follow their reports on wfmt.com/chopin and live at 10AM every day this week.

And on Thursday at 12:30 pm WFMT presents the prizewinner’s concert live from the Warsaw Opera House.

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Mitchell Green

Mitchell Green, 16, of Northbrook, IL, is a scholarship recipient at the Music Institute of Chicago where he studies privately with faculty artist Dr. Julia A. Miller, his teacher since age four. Mitchell also received a scholarship to study under Sharon Isbin, from The Juilliard School for one month at the Aspen Music Festival. Mitchell’s accomplishments include participating in the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy program for gifted pre-collegiate musicians, winning the Glacking Young Musicians Competition, winning the Guitar Idol contest, receiving second place in the Society of American Musicians competition, and successfully competing in the Guitar Foundation of America’s International Youth Solo Competition.

Mitchell has performed at a variety of venues including radio, festivals, religious organizations, car dealerships, and retirement homes. He has been featured as a guest soloist with the North Suburban Symphony, the Glenbrook Symphony Orchestra’s Sinfonietta, and appeared at the Parisian Salon, the Lake Bluff Art Festival, and the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art. He also volunteers his time to play at retirement and convalsescent homes and particpates in Alzheimer patient therapy. Mitchell has received master classes from Sharon Isbin, Elena Papandreou, Jason Vieaux, Paul Henry, Gene Bertoncini, Frank Longay, Fareed Haque, and Joseph Pecoraro.

Mitchell is currently in his second year of teaching guitar at a music studio in the North Shore of Chicago and assists with music at a Sunday school in Northbrook. He is a Junior at Glenbrook North High School and also enjoys playing the electric guitar, the piano, and drums.

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Program

Roland Dyens: Fuoco, Movement III. from Libra Sonatine

Fernando Sor: Grand Sonata, Op. 22
III.Minuetto-Allegro
IV. Rondo

JS Bach: Gavottes 1 and 2

Isaac Albeniz: Asturias Leyenda

Heitor Villa-Lobos: Prelude No. 2

Carlo Domeniconi: Presto, from the Koyunbaba Suite for Guitar

Andrew York: Introduction and Sunburst

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Program

Chopin: Scherzo No 1 Op 30

Beethoven: Sonata 23 fm op 53 first movt

Chopin: Ballade no 1 Gm Op 23

Liszt: Mazeppa Transcendental Etude