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Faculty Concert Series

Faculty Concert Series at Bloomingdale School of Music

All concerts at FREE. Most are Fridays at 7pm in the David Greer Concert Hall, Bloomingdale School of Music, 323 West 108th Street, unless otherwise noted. *Denotes BSM faculty member.


 

9/30/16
HYPERCUBE presents:  Infinite Dimensions
A quartet of saxophone, electric guitar, piano and percussion, HYPERCUBE is a slick combination of chamber music and straight up rock-n-roll. Their goal is to bring new sounds to audiences through their modern approach to contemporary chamber music.  This concert will include a presentation on the new and extended techniques used in each piece as well as the rehearsal processes involved in preparing the music.

Andrea Lodge, piano and accordion*
Erin Rogers, saxophones
Jay Sorce, classical and electric guitars
Chris Graham, percussion


 

10/14/16
The Modern Ellington
Duke Ellington was one of the most prolific and iconic composers of all time.  His music was a great influence on BSM faculty member Nick Finzer and this program will present Nick and his ensemble performing the music of Ellington in a small group setting, creating a new context in which to appreciate these great works. The interpretations will translate Mr. Ellington’s music through the lens of the 21st Century, creating unexpected twists and turns within each song.

Lucas Pino, tenor saxophone
Or Bareketm, bass
Alan Mednard, drums
Samora Pinderhughes, piano
Nick Finzer, trombone*


 

10/21/16
Haydn and Brahms: Trios and Quartets
Chamber music for piano and strings is central to the works of Haydn and Brahms.   This program features one of the final piano trios by Haydn, followed by the last piano quartet of Brahms.  Haydn’s light-hearted and virtuosic trio is joyful and extroverted.  By contrast, Brahms’ quartet is brooding and dramatic as it journeys across a spectrum of tragedy and heroism.

Tim McCullough, piano*
Naho Parrini, violin*
Aundrey Mitchell, viola*
Alberto Parrini, cello


 

10/28/16
The Frog, the Cat & the Fiddle: Music in 17th century Germany    
Beneath the cheerful animal noises and jovial array of mimicked instruments lies a demanding virtuosity and intricate technique that ultimately influenced the violin music of J.S. Bach.  This concert presents the vivid programmatic music of the most important composers of violin music in 17th century Germany.  Join us as we explore these rarely heard works in an intimate setting.

Marina Fragoulis, baroque violin
Margalit Cantor, baroque cello*
Gabe Shuford, harpsichord


 

11/4/16
Around the World
Celebrating her 20th season teaching at BSM, Kaoru Hinata will celebrate the occasion by playing a recital of music she loves from around the world.  Featured on the program will be one of the most beloved flute pieces, the “Sonata for Flute and Piano” by Francis Poulenc.  Also to be performed is a collection of Hungarian folk songs and dances by Bela Bartók, a flute and guitar piece based on an Indian raga by Ravi Shankar and a beautiful lesser-known work by Otar Taktakishvili from the country of Georgia.

Kaoru Hinata, flute*
Junko Ichikawa, piano
Giacomo Baldelli, guitar


 

11/11/16
BLOOMINGDALE BIRTHDAY BASH!
Broadway Presbyterian Church, 601 West 114th Street at Broadway, 7pm

Bloomingdale School of Music celebrates its 52nd year with a festive birthday concert representing the incredible diversity of its musical community. The first half of the concert will feature BSM Assistant Director and trumpeter Brandon Vazquez with a faculty jazz ensemble in a performance titled Happiness Now.  They will showcase various musical genres such as Dixieland, Bebop, Fusion, Bossa Nova, and Funk.

The second half will feature BSM voice faculty member Jocelyn Medina and her group in works from her latest recording, Common Ground, music from Africa and Brazil.  Listeners will be taken through a cross-cultural musical journey where the boundaries of vocal jazz are extended to include the rhythms, improvisations and instrumentation of diverse world-music traditions.

Join us as we celebrate 52 years of incredible music making at BSM and look forward to the next 52 years and more!

Happiness is Now
Brandon Vazquez, trumpet*
Nick Finzer, trombone*
Michael Cochrane, piano*
Kevin Farrell, bass*
Jeremy Noller, drums*

Common Ground:  
Music by the Jocelyn Medina Group
Jocelyn Medina, voice*
Art Hiraharam piano
Evan Gregor, bass
Mark Ferber, drums
Steve Gorn, bansuri flutes


 

11/18/16
Voice of the Violin: Myths and Fantasms, Colorful Creatures and Characters
Tales of far-away lands and people have travelled over centuries to our ears through the voice of the violin. This concert is a musical journey beginning in the land of lotus-flowers, soon meeting goblins and dolls, dancing with Armenian sabers, and dancing tangos in Spain.  The concert closes with Szymanowski’s major work, “Mythes”, about the ancient Greek myths of Arethusa and the nature-god Pan. The shimmering colors of the violin take us out of everyday life and into these fantastical worlds.

Claudia Schaer, violin*
Julia den Boer, piano*
Alejandro Cote, guitar*
Eduard Laurel, piano


 

11/20/16
16 Silver Keys:  Music for the traditional (and not so traditional) flute
Sunday, November 20, 3:00 p.m.
David Greer Concert Hall

BSM flute faculty member Tia Roper showcases the flute through its versatility and captivating style. The musical selections will embrace a combination of classical, contemporary, and popular modes from South America to Europe. You will hear works of great virtuosity and lyricism highlighted by extended techniques, 21st century nuances, and contemporary lyrical genres, bringing to light the complete and modern capabilities of the flute.

Tia Roper, flute*
Alejandro Cote, guitar*
Mitchell Vines, piano


 

12/2/16
Music for the Movies
Faculty members Naho Parrini and Marc Peloquin perform music written for the movies by composers from around the world.  From a silent movie score by Saint-Saens to Darius Milhaud’s ‘Le boeuf sur le toit’ and John William’s music to ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ and ‘Schindler’s List’, this program will explore the rich diversity of music written for the silver screen.

Naho Parrini, violin*
Marc Peloquin, piano*


 

12/9/16
Jose Maldonado- Guitar Recital
BSM guitar faculty member Jose Maldonado presents a program of music spanning centuries and continents.   He will perform rarely heard works for the guitar from Spain and France as well as one of the masterpieces for the instrument, the “Second Suite for Lute” by J.S. Bach.  He will also present a piece by a composer from his native country, “Three Danzas of Puerto Rico” by Leonardo Egúrbida.  Join us for this world tour of fascinating music for the guitar.

Jose Maldonado, guitar*


 

12/16/16
Imaginative World
Three diverse composers for the piano come together for this program: Prokofiev, Debussy, and Schumann.  All three share in common an imaginative musical language and style. The first movement of Prokofiev’s “Sonata No.4” evokes images from Russian fairy-tales.  In Debussy’s “Reflets dans l’eau” we can imagine shimmering reflections in the water.  Schumann’s “Humoreske” is a grand fantasy in which moods are constantly changing from joyful to melancholic.

Anna Khanina, piano*


 

1/13/17
Celestial Mechanics
George Crumb’s “Celestial Mechanics” for piano four hands uses a groundbreaking musical language and incorporates various extended techniques such as playing directly on the piano strings.  Each movement is titled after the names of stars and creates, in the words of the composer, a “cosmic choreography”. Also presented will be two works by composers who greatly influenced Crumb and set the stage for his harmonic innovations:  Debussy’s “Petite Suite” and Faure’s “Dolly Suite”.  Join us for a sonic celebration of the piano.

Andrea Lodge, piano*
Julia Den Boer, piano*


 

2/3/17
The British are Coming!
There has been an intimate connection between poetry and music in Great Britain for centuries.  Their love of poetry includes well-known poets such as William Shakespeare as well as living poets of their time.  The composers’ admiration and friendship for their literary counterparts is apparent in their musical settings.  This evening’s program will include two of England’s greatest composers, Benjamin Britten and Ralph Vaughn Williams, in their musical settings of poetry by Edith Sitwell and A.E. Housman.

Lisa Pike, horn*
Naho Parrini, violin*
Christopher Lilley, tenor*
Elizabeth Rodgers, piano


 

3/3/17
The Music of Chick Corea 
Join three of BSM’s jazz faculty members led by pianist Michael Cochrane in a concert of music by Chick Corea, one of the most significant jazz pianists and composers since the 1960s.

Michael Cochrane, piano*
Kevin Farrell, guitar*
Jeremy Noller, drums*


 

3/17/17
True:  Part One, Acoustic
BSM guitar faculty member Mark Mollica presents a concert of diverse sound worlds. The program is inspired by acoustic and folk music and incorporates an improvisational and conversational style.  You will hear various American influences such as blues, jazz, church hymn, and country which will converge in this acoustical musical exploration.

Mark Mollica, acoustic guitar*
Nate Radley, acoustic guitar
TBA, upright bass
John Ellis, saxophone


 

4/28/17
Beethoven Violin Sonatas
Violinist Rolf Schulte and faculty pianist Judith Olson perform two contrasting Beethoven Sonatas:  the dramatic and passionate Sonata in C minor, Op. 30, No. 2, and the gentler, more intimate Sonata in G Major, Op. 96.  The C minor Sonata was written during a period of extraordinary distress for the composer as he was forced to accept the inevitability of his deafness.  The G Major Sonata contains many characteristics of Beethoven’s late style:  a heartfelt slow movement derived from the simplest materials; a sharply-focused and almost brusque scherzo; and a theme-and-variation finale of unusual structure and complexity.  Come hear these contrasting sides of Beethoven’s musical genius.

Rolf Schulte, violin
Judith Olson, piano*


 

5/12/17
The Piano Recital:  A Journey Through Time
BSM piano faculty member Allison Lander presents a recital of music spanning the 18th to the 20th Century. Included on the program is a C.P.E. Bach sonata, which unfolds like a miniature drama with sudden changes of mood. Liszt, known for an unsurpassed technical prowess and cult-like star power, wrote works that evoke images of his experience travelling in Italy and Switzerland.  Alexander Scriabin composed his piano sonatas at a time when artists were disillusioned by the atrocities of war and sought through music to create a new spirituality. American composer Frederic Rzewski has also written music with a distinct political consciousness and profound directness.  Join us for this pianistic journey through time.

Allison Lander, piano*


 

5/19/17
MUSICAL LANDSCAPES OF THE 20th CENTURY       
Broadway Presbyterian Church, 601 W. 114th Street at Broadway, 7pm

Join us in a very special joint concert exploring the richness of music in the 20th century.  Some of the greatest composers of that time gave voice to various historical events that would shape generations to come.  Hear how music can both express and transcend our world and enrich the experience of time and place.

The first half will feature three members of the BSM piano faculty in a program of music from France, The United States, Japan, and Russia.   From Parisian ballets at the start of the 20th Century to a passionate reaction to the turmoil of World War II, this program follows some of the cross-currents that span a century of dramatic and evocative music in works by such composers as Igor Stravinsky and William Bolcom.

BSM piano faculty member Sara Sherman will lead the second half as she takes us through a tour of Russian musical history.  From folk music of the Russian shtetl to songs of protest from the politically oppressed Soviet Union, you will journey through Russia’s sprawling musical landscape. Sara will be joined by BSM trumpet faculty member Rebecca Steinberg in a performance of Dmitri Shostakovich’s virtuosic “Concerto No. 1 for piano, trumpet, and strings.   Don’t forget your passport!

Echoes of a Century
Laurie Merchant, piano*
Mina Kusumoto, piano*
Tim McCullough, piano*

Russia’s Musical Landscape
Sara Sherman, piano*
Rebecca Steinberg, trumpet*
Halcyon String Quintet


 

5/26/17
Bach-Beethoven- Barber & Fugues
One of the most exciting features of music for the piano is the combination of fugues with other compositional forms, the most notable being J.S. Bach’s preludes and fugues in “The Well Tempered Clavier”.  By the early 19th century Beethoven began including fugues as final movements in his piano sonatas, a practice he continued and perfected throughout his life.  The 20th century American composer Samuel Barber also included a fugue as the final statement in his celebrated “Piano Sonata” from 1949.   This program illustrates the influence and treatment of fugue within a broader compositional spectrum by three masterful composers spanning 200 years.

Monica Verona, piano*


 

6/2/17
Transcendental Heart Strings
Faculty members Katherine Copland, Margalit Cantor, and Marc Peloquin collaborate on this concert-showcasing repertoire written specifically for the combination of voice, cello, and piano.   Featuring the works of great composers from Purcell to Previn, the recital will highlight compositions through the ages written for this combination. . We hope you can join us for a transcendental program that aims to pull on the listener’s heart-strings.

Katherine Copland, soprano*
Margalit Cantor, cello*
Marc Peloquin, piano*


 

6/11/17
Spirit of Argentina:  Piano Miniatures
Sunday, June 11, 3:00 p.m.
David Greer Concert Hall
The centerpiece of this concert is a performance of Ginastera’s set of eight charming “Children’s Pieces” from 1934.  The pieces have been recorded, but this will likely be the first live performance of the complete set in the United States. Ginastera, the leading Argentine composer of the twentieth century, is well known for incorporating Argentine national characteristics into an eclectic variety of contemporary styles. Guastavino and Gianneo, inspired equally by Argentine traditions and European Romanticism, worked with a more conservative harmonic palette inspired by the guitar.  Their colorful and vibrant music remains relatively unknown outside of Argentina.  Join us for a concert of rarely heard music that embodies the spirit of Argentina.

Judith Olson, piano*
Students of Judith Olson

About Bloomingdale School of Music

Now in its 52nd year, BSM has served more than 80,000 children and adults through group classes, private instruction, and performance opportunities in classical, jazz, and rock music. Each week, over 650 students of all ages participate in a wide range of music-making, including early childhood classes, a comprehensive pre-college program, free community concerts, and internet-based music programs. With accessibility central to its mission, more than 20% of Bloomingdale’s student body receives financial aid and scholarship assistance annually. For more information on Bloomingdale School of Music’s programs and concerts, visit www.bsmny.org, call the office at 212-663-6021, or email info@bsmny.org.

The Bloomingdale School of Music is a proud member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education and is made possible with support from:

Foundations: Morris and Alma Schapiro Fund, New York Community Trust, Pinkerton Foundation, Hyde and Watson Foundation, Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation, Brenner Family Foundation, Lotos Foundation, Columbia Community Service, Lucius N. Littauer Foundation, Exploring the Metropolis Con Edison Composers’ Residency Program, Libby Holman Foundation, D’Addario Foundation, Bernstein Family Foundation, Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation

Public: Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, New York State Council on the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York City Council Member Helen Rosenthal, New York State Assembly Member Daniel J. O’Donnell

Corporations: Colgate-Palmolive, and generous individual donors.

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