Classical Music News of the Week, June 24, 2012


Matthew Oltman Joins Distinguished Concerts International New York

Music Director Emeritus of Chanicleer Joins DCINY's Program Development Team.



Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY) is
delighted to welcome Matthew Oltman to the company’s Program Development team.





Throughout his career as a singer, conductor and educator,
and as Music Director Emeritus of the Grammy award-winning male vocal ensemble
Chanticleer, Matthew Oltman has experienced the profound impact of music on
both performer and listener. During his tenure, Mr. Oltman led Chanticleer
through three-critically acclaimed seasons, which included over 300 concerts in
more than a dozen countries.  He helped
launch the Chanticleer Live in Concert or "CLIC" recording label, and
was the editor of the Chanticleer Choral Series, published by Hinshaw
Music.  He also conducted over 450 high
school choral and orchestral students from across the country in Chanticleer's
first National Youth Choral Festival, The Singing Life, and led numerous
day-long Youth Choral Festivals in communities in several states.





“DCINY is thrilled to have Matt on board,” says Iris
Derke, General Director and Co-Founder, “He is uniquely positioned to connect
with fine programs from around the world and to further DCINY’s mission of
quality programming, education and exquisite memories for all involved.”





“DCINY is a company whose core values I have long
admired,” says Oltman, continuing, “DCINY concerts are a once-in-a-lifetime experience
for singers. In addition to being a part of a spectacular performance, they get
to meet other talented musicians from across the globe who share their passion
for singing and making music. I know first-hand how life changing this can be,
and I am thrilled that I will get to spend my time enabling highly dedicated
and motivated choirs to experience something unforgettable.”





Oltman will join DCINY starting immediately from his
current home in San Francisco and will relocate to New York City in September.                                                                         





Matthew Oltman first joined Chanticleer in 1999 as a tenor
and in 2004 was named Assistant Music Director under Joseph Jennings, a post
which he held until his appointment to Music Director in 2009. During his
decade singing with the ensemble, he appeared on twelve albums and toured
extensively throughout North America, Europe and Asia.  During the 2011-2012 academic year, Mr.
Oltman served as Guest Director of Choral Activities at UC Berkeley where he
conducted the University Choir and the University Chamber Singers.  Recently, he was a featured clinician at the
first Anúna International Choral Summer School (Ireland) and has led countless
clinics and master classes with choirs from across the globe.   Originally from Des Moines, Iowa, Matthew
Oltman earned a B.M. in Vocal Performance from Simpson College and an M.A. in
Music from the University of York in England with the aid of a Rotary
Ambassadorial Scholarship. Before joining Chanticleer, Mr. Oltman sang with the
Santa Fe Desert Chorale and was on the faculty of Simpson College where he
taught harmony, French diction, choral techniques and voice.





Founded by Iris Derke (General Director) and Jonathan
Griffith (Artistic Director and Principal Conductor) Distinguished Concerts
International New York is driven by passion, innovative vision, a total belief
in its artists, and unwavering commitment to bringing forth unforgettable
audience experiences. DCINY is a creative producing entity with unmatched
integrity that is a talent incubator, a star-maker, and a presenter of broadly
accessible, world-class musical entertainment.





--Shira Gilbert
PR





Jonathan Biss
Announces Schumann: Under the Influence, an International Initiative of over 30
Concerts Examining the Works of Robert Schumann


Performances in London, Amsterdam, New York, San
Francisco, Boston, and Kansas City.





Collaborations with tenor Mark Padmore, soprano Camilla
Tilling, violist Kim Kashkashian, clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois, violist
Scott St. John, clarinetist Carey Bell, and the Elias String Quartet.





With over 30 concerts throughout Europe and North America
over an eight month span from October 2012 to May 2013, Schumann: Under the Influence is a season-long exploration of the
composer's role in musical history. Pianist Jonathan Biss and several
hand-picked collaborators will perform Schumann's work, music by his notable
influences such as Beethoven, Schubert, and Purcell, and selections from his
long list of successors ranging from Berg and Janácek to 26-year-old composer
Timothy Andres. As Biss explains, "This series of concerts takes a deeply
affectionate look at the man whose music I find so endlessly fascinating and
moving, and attempts to 'place' him--to explore the rather complex relationship
he has with the composers who inspired him, and to show on every level how poor
indeed we would be without him, his music, and his legacy."





The initiative is unique among presenters and soloists.
Biss personally curated each concert with a mind towards creating a complete
whole. He notes, "The impetus for Schumann:
Under the Influence
was--of course--Schumann's music itself. My feelings
for this music go beyond love, though there's also plenty of that: silly as it
may sound, I feel somehow protective of him. This is first of all because his
music is so deeply personal and achingly vulnerable, it tends to inspire these
feelings in those who respond deeply to his music. But equally, it comes from
my sense that for a composer of his stature, he is subject to a remarkable
number of misconceptions, and to an attitude that can at times be downright
condescending. I wanted to show Schumann's music exactly as it is--deeply
poetic, fragile, obsessive, evocative, whimsical, internal." Unlike a
traditional artist-in-residency, Schumann: Under the Influence allows Biss to
create a sprawling, roving Schumann festival in multiple countries, with
various presenter partners, and, perhaps most importantly, with a diversified
set of artist co-conspirators.





Biss will be joined in this project by tenor Mark Padmore,
soprano Camilla Tilling, violist Kim Kashkashian, clarinetist Romie de
Guise-Langlois, Scott St. John, Carey Bell, and the Elias String Quartet. Says
Biss, "It is no accident that most of the music on these four programs is
collaborative. Given that this project is to such a large degree about
exploration, there is enormous pleasure to be found in opening it up to other
viewpoints, to the voices--literal in some cases--of other musicians. And so,
while the other performers involved are in many respects very different from
one another, they are similar in that they all approach music with an attitude
of curiosity." Over the course of the 2012-13 season, Biss also plays
Schumann with orchestras including the Prague Philharmonia, the San Francisco
Symphony, the Orchestra National de Belgique, and the Swedish Radio Symphony
Orchestra.





Biss's May 2013 recital at Wigmore Hall in London will be
recorded for the Wigmore Hall Live label. Launched in 2005, Wigmore Hall Live
has released over 40 records to great critical acclaim. This performance
includes Schumann's Phantasiestücke
interspersed with selections from Janác(ek's Along an Overgrown Path. The evening concludes with Berg's Piano Sonata and Davidsbündlertänze by Schumann.





Jonathan Biss has appeared with the foremost orchestras of
North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Widely regarded known not only for
his artistry and poetic interpretations but also for his deep musical curiosity,
Biss performs a diverse repertoire ranging from Mozart and Beethoven, through
the Romantics to Janácek and Schoenberg as well as works by contemporary
composers such as Gyorgy Kurtág and including commission from Leon Kirchner,
Lewis Spratian and Bernard Rands. Biss has a noted recording career. His
recordings include an album of Schubert sonatas and two short Kurtág pieces
that was named by NPR Music as one of the best albums of the year. His recent
albums for EMI won a Diapason d'Or de l'année award and an Edison Award. In
January 2012, Onyx Classics released the first CD in a nine-year, nine-disc
recording cycle of Beethoven's complete sonatas. Biss wrote about this
recording project and also and about his relationship with Beethoven's music
more generally for a 19,000-word essay called “Beethoven’s Shadow” that was
published electronically as a "Kindle Single" and is available from
Amazon online stores. Biss studied at Indiana University and at The Curtis
Institute of Music, where he was appointed to the piano faculty in 2010. His
blog featuring music ruminations, reflections about his life as a musician, and
interviews can be found at www.jonathanbiss.com.





--Amanda Ameer, First Chair Promotion





Conductor Donato
Cabrera 2012-2013 Concert Season


Cabrera continues as Resident Conductor of the San
Francisco Symphony (SFS), Music Director of the SFS Youth Orchestra, and
Director of the Green Bay Symphony Orchestra. 
And he will have additonal performances with Orquesta de Concepción,
Chile; Orquesta Clásica Santa Cecilia, Madrid;


New Hampshire Music Festival; California Symphony; Elgin
Symphony Orchestra; and the Grand Rapids Symphony.





Donato Cabrera: www.donatocabrera.com


Full Schedule: www.donatocabrera.com/Schedule.html





During the 2012-2013 concert season, conductor Donato
Cabrera continues in his three posts as Resident Conductor of the San Francisco
Symphony (SFS), Music Director of the Green Bay Symphony, and Wattis Foundation
Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra (SFSYO). In demand
as a guest conductor as well, this season he makes his debuts with the Elgin
Symphony Orchestra, Grand Rapids Symphony, and at the New Hampshire Music
Festival, and returns to lead the California Symphony, the Orquesta de
Concepción in Chile, and the Orquesta Clásica Santa Cecilia in Madrid.





At the San Francisco Symphony, Donato Cabrera works
closely with SFS Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas and frequently conducts
the San Francisco Symphony throughout the year, including the annual Día de los
Muertos Community Concert, as well as the Concerts for Kids, Adventures in
Music, and Music for Families concerts, which annually draw more than 60,000
young people and their families from throughout the Bay Area to Davies Symphony
Hall.





Under Cabrera’s direction, the SFSYO was awarded the
2011-2012 ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming for American Programming on
Foreign Tours by the League of American Orchestras on June 8 at the League’s
Annual Conference in Dallas.





Cabrera and the SFSYO depart for the orchestra’s eighth
European tour, visiting some of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, on
June 20. Cabrera says, “I’m thrilled to be taking the SFSYO on a multi-city
European tour, with a performance at the Berlin Philharmonie, at the invitation
of Sir Simon Rattle, of John Adams’ Shaker Loops, Grieg’s Piano Concerto with
the fantastic Lars Vogt as soloist, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1. The tour will
end in Salzburg where the American Austrian Foundation is celebrating my tenth
anniversary as a Herbert von Karajan Conducting Fellow for the Salzburg
Festival.”





In addition to his work with the SFS and SFSYO, Cabrera
took the podium as Music Director of the Green Bay Symphony in 2011. 2012-2013
will be the orchestra’s 99th concert season. Cabrera says, “As we approach the
Green Bay Symphony Orchestra's 100th anniversary season in 2013, I’m very
excited to begin a Beethoven cycle with them, as well as introduce new and
engaging works to this great community of music lovers and enthusiasts which
I’m so happy to have joined.” 





During the 2011-12 season Donato Cabrera made his debut
conducting Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Orquesta Clásica de Santa Cecilia
in Madrid, immediately being reengaged for the 2012-13 season. He also debuted
with the California Symphony, conducting Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 for their
25th Anniversary Season Finale, and will return for their 2012-13 season.  Cabrera was also a guest conductor for the
Illinois Symphony Orchestra and The Bay Brass. During the 2010-11, season he made
his Carnegie Hall and Cal Performances debuts, conducting the world and
California premieres, respectively, of Mark Grey’s A(tash Sorushan. In April
2010, Cabrera stepped in on short notice for the acclaimed British
composer/conductor/pianist, Thomas Adés, conducting the Saint Paul Chamber
Orchestra.





Cabrera made his San Francisco Symphony debut in April
2009 when he conducted the Orchestra with 24 hours notice in a program that
included Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 and Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s
Pictures at an Exhibition.  In March
2012, he conducted the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, with Paul Jacobs on
organ, in the world premiere of Mason Bates’ Mass Transmission, subsequently
conducting it with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City in Carnegie Hall
for the American Mavericks Festival. From 2005 to 2008, Cabrera was Associate
Conductor of the San Francisco Opera, where he prepared the cast and conducted
the first rehearsals for the world premiere of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic as
well as conducting performances of Die Fledermaus, Don Giovanni, Tannhäuser,
and The Magic Flute.  In December 2009,
he made his debut with the San Francisco Ballet, conducting performances of The
Nutcracker.





A champion of new music, Cabrera is a co-founder of the New
York based American Contemporary Music Ensemble, which is dedicated to the
outstanding performance of masterworks from the 20th and 21st Centuries,
primarily the work of American composers. 
He is dedicated to music education and has worked with members of the
young artist programs of the San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and
Portland Opera. Cabrera has also been a frequent conductor of Young People’s
Concerts of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra.





In 2002, Cabrera was a Herbert von Karajan Conducting
Fellow at the Salzburg Festival.  He has
served as assistant conductor at the Ravinia, Spoleto (Italy), and Aspen Music
Festivals, and as resident conductor at the Music Academy of the West.  Cabrera has also been an assistant conductor
for productions at the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Los
Angeles Philharmonic.





Cabrera was the rehearsal and cover conductor for the
Metropolitan Opera production and DVD release of Doctor Atomic, which won the
2012 Grammy® Award for Best Opera Recording. In February 2010, he was
recognized by the Consulate-General of Mexico in San Francisco as a, Luminary
of the Friends of Mexico Honorary Committee, for his contributions to promoting
and developing the presence of the Mexican community in the Bay Area.  In March 2009, Cabrera was asked to be one
of eight participants in the 2009 Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview,
leading the Nashville Symphony over two days in a variety of works.  He holds degrees from the University of
Nevada and the University of Illinois and has also pursued graduate studies in
conducting at Indiana University and the Manhattan School of Music.





--Christina Jensen PR





The National
Philharmonic to Perform with Folk-Pop Sensation Sarah McLachlan at Merriweather
Post Pavilion


The National Philharmonic will accompany Grammy
Award-winner singer, songwriter Sarah McLachlan in a performance on Thursday,
July 5 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion.





Since her debut in 1988, Ms. McLachlan's atmospheric
folk-pop has gained a devoted following not only in her native Canada, but also
in the United States and England. Known for her emotional ballads, including
Arms of the Angel and I Will Remember You, Ms. McLachlan has sold more than 40
million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is Surfacing,
for which she won two Grammy Awards. In addition to her personal artistic
efforts, she founded the Lilith Fair tour, which helped other female
songwriters break into the mainstream during the late 1990s. Since 2006 she has
also been known as a highly visible supporter of the ASPCA, as well as various
other charities.





Doors open at 6 pm. Tickets start at $41 for the lawn
& at $56 for the Pavilion. To purchase please visit
http://ticketf.ly/JtRfcq. For more information about the concert and Ms.
McLachlan, visit http://www.merriweathermusic.com and  http://www.sarahmclachlan.com/.





About the National Philharmonic:


Led by dynamic Music Director and Conductor Piotr
Gajewski, the National Philharmonic is known for performances that are “powerful,”
impeccable” and “thrilling” (The Washington Post). The Philharmonic boasts a
long-standing tradition of reasonably priced tickets and free admission to all
young people age 7-17 under the All Kids, All Free, All the Time program,
assuring its place as an accessible and enriching component in Montgomery
County and the greater Washington, DC area.





As the Music Center at Strathmore’s ensemble-in-residence,
the National Philharmonic showcases world-renowned guest artists in
time-honored symphonic masterpieces conducted by Maestro Gajewski and
monumental choral masterworks under National Philharmonic Chorale Artistic
Director Stan Engebretson.





The National Philharmonic also offers exceptional and
unique education programs. Each year, in partnership with Strathmore and
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), the Philharmonic performs for all MCPS
2nd and 5th grade students in concerts specifically catered to their age
groups. The concerts take place at Strathmore over six days, making it possible
for nearly 20,000 children to experience the thrill of hearing a live orchestra
each year.  In addition, annual winners
of the high school concerto competition are given the exciting opportunity to
perform as guest soloists with the





Philharmonic at the fall concerts for MCPS second-grade
students. Throughout the year, the Philharmonic offers master classes in which
talented young musicians perform for and are mentored by critically acclaimed
guest artists who appear in concert with the Philharmonic at the fall concerts
for MCPS second-grade students. Throughout the year, the Philharmonic offers
master classes in which talented young musicians perform for and are mentored
by critically acclaimed guest artists who appear in concert with the orchestra.
All National Philharmonic concerts at the Music Center at Strathmore are
preceded by free pre-concert lectures at the Education Center.





Each summer, the National Philharmonic’s String Institutes
offer talented and aspiring middle and high school musicians an intensive week
of mentoring, chamber music coaching, individual lessons and ensemble
rehearsals led by Maestro Gajewski, Associate Conductor Victoria Gau, members
of the Philharmonic and other distinguished faculty. Another summer program
invites talented high school singers for intensive vocal training, master
classes and rehearsals led by National Philharmonic Chorale Artistic Director
Stan Engebretson and Montgomery College Choral Director Molly Donnelly. For
more


information, visit www.nationalphilharmonic.org . The
attached photo of the National


Philharmonic was taken by Jay Mallin.





--Deborah Birnbaum, National Philharmonic





America’s First
Yellow Lounge Kicks Off “A New York City Classical Summer”


Soho event on June 19 draws hundreds, including Miss USA
2012 Olivia Culpo and star violinist Johsua Bell, with performances by rising
stars Avi Avital and Nicola Benedetti.





Established seven years ago in the Berlin club scene,
Yellow Lounge is a classics-meets-club concept, seeking out new spaces for an
innovative sound and visual experience. A growing global phenomenon, Yellow
Lounge brings together the best emerging classical performers with cutting edge
DJ sets and multi-media elements in urban spaces. London, Berlin, Amsterdam,
Vienna and Seoul have already experienced the exhilaration of Yellow Lounge,
and on June 19th, the party came to America for its inaugural evening at New
York City’s 82 Mercer in the heart of Soho.





With several hundred attendees, the event was sponsored by
Decca & Deutsche Grammophon U.S., along with Karlson’s Gold Vodka, and
featured performances by mandolin player Avi Avital and violinist Nicola
Benedetti, each dazzling the audience with their own respective sets, and
culminating in an inspired classical “jam” wowing the crowd.  The innovation extended to interactive
stations including a graffiti wall and photo booth. VIP’s including Miss USA
2012 Olivia Culpo and Joshua Bell mingled among the guests. 





Max Hole, Chief Operating Officer of Universal Music Group
International says, "In America, as elsewhere around the world, our goal
with Yellow Lounge is to extend the reach of classical music to draw in
audiences of all ages who are curious about the music but deterred by some of
its long-standing conventions. This unique event breaks down boundaries and
brings together audiences, performers and music more intimately than
ever."





Paul Foley, General Manager of Decca & Deutsche
Grammophon U.S. says, “Our first Yellow Lounge was a tremendous success. The
enthusiasm and energy in the room makes it evident that audiences of all ages
are excited and eager to hear classical music in a new and innovative
environment. We look forward to launching our next Yellow Lounge on the West
Coast later this year.”





--Olga Makrias, Universal Music



Young People's Chorus of News York City Closes Its 2011-2012 Season with "A New Beginning" at Manhattan's Church of the Holy Trinity, Friday, June 29, at 7 p.m.

YPC Introduces TRANSMUSICA with Guest Artists from Indonesia - Manado State University Choir



The Young People's Chorus of New York City and its artistic director/founder Francisco J. Núñez introduce TRANSMUSICA, their new music series, with a free concert on Friday, June 29, at 7 p.m. at Church of the Holy Trinity (316 East 88th Street). The first concert in the series, created to encompass cross-cultural and transformative musical ideas, will feature the award-winning Manado State University Choir, an a cappella choir from North Sulawesi, Indonesia, under the direction of conductor and professor of music at Boston University, André de Quadros. The Manado State University Choir is known for its internationally diverse programming, designed to build bridges to other cultures and communities of the world.



Each of the two choirs will sing a set of music individually and then come together to sing songs from three different lands: Janger, from Bali, I himmelen, from Sweden, and Vela! Asambeni Siyekhaya, a traditional Zulu piece. The choirs re-imagine choral music as a contemporary convergence of cultures expressed in drama, dance, and song.



Admission is free for TRANSMUSICA, and no reservations are required. For any additional information, call 212-289-7779, Ext. 10.



--Angela Duryea, Young People's Chorus of New York

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