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Douglas Masek Saxophone Recital
2018-07-31

with Neal Stulberg (piano)

31 July 2018

Odeion

19:30

The Los Angeles-based duo, in the country for the SANNSS, is touring the major South African cities. Both Masek and Stulberg, leaders in their respective fields, are internationally acclaimed soloists. The duo performs rarely heard selections from the concert saxophone repertoire in major cities around the country. Their program includes music by well-known composers such as Astor Piazzolla, David Heath, and even the South African composer, Allan Stephenson.

Internationally renowned saxophonist DOUGLAS MASEK, whose performances emphasize his versatility in a wide range of musical styles, from classical and contemporary to jazz, has consistently garnered critical acclaim. : The Los Angeles Times writes, (Masek’s) “...playing is smooth, sinuous, stunning, stylish, dazzling, and glowing with the requisite rich color.” In South Africa, The Argus describes “Masek’s tone: beautiful and pure” and the Cape Times adds “dynamic and magical.” With extensive concert touring in the United States, Europe, Asia, South Africa, and South America, he has also performed as a soloist at numerous festivals. He has performed with notable conductors, including Esa-Pekka Salonen, Kent Nagano, Placido Domingo, John Mauceri, Andre Previn, Michael-Tilson Thomas, James Conlan, Gustavo Dudamel, Valery Gergiev, Giselle Ben-Dor, Rachael Worby, JoAnn Falletta, Arthur Rubinstein, Grant Gershon, Carlo Franci, Hubert Soudant, Paul Freeman, Allan Stephenson and Bernhard Gueller. He has also worked on motion picture sounds tracks for John Williams, Randy Newman, David Newman and others, for Sony, Warner, Paramount, Universal, Disney and 20th Century, along with television and radio broadcasts. Masek's discography includes seven solo CD collections; Distant Memories, Windwood, Recrudescence, Saxvoir Faire, Saxtronic Soundscape, Saxophone Alternative, and EclectSax. He has recorded for Centaur, Albany, Cambria, Atlantic, Navona, Koch International, Stereophile, Summit and Philips Classics recording companies. Masek completed his academic education with a D.M.A. from the University of Southern California. Currently Professor of Saxophone at UCLA, Douglas is also a Vandoren Elite Artist and Conn-Selmer Artist.

www.dougmasek.com

Although an acclaimed pianist in his own right, it is as an orchestral conductor that NEAL STULBERG has been heralded by the Los Angeles Times as "…a shining example of podium authority and musical enlightenment," Stulberg has garnered consistent international acclaim for performances of clarity, insight, and conviction. Since 2005, he has served as Director of Orchestral Studies at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music and currently serves as both Professor and Chair of the UCLA Department of Music. Stulberg has already led numerous North American orchestras, and international engagements have included the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Taipei Symphony Orchestra, Seoul Philharmonic, Korea Philharmonic (KBS), Queensland, Adelaide and West Australian Symphonies, to name but a few. Behind the keyboard, Stulberg appears as recitalist, chamber musician and with major orchestras and at international festivals as pianist/conductor. His performances of Mozart concertos conducted from the keyboard are uniformly praised for their buoyant virtuosity and interpretive vigour. He has recorded for West German Radio, Donemus, Yarlung Records, Sono Luminus and the Composers Voice label. Stulberg is a graduate of Harvard College, the University of Michigan and the Juilliard School. He studied conducting with Franco Ferrara at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (Rome), piano with Leonard Shure, Theodore Lettvin, William Masselos and Mischa Kottler, and viola with Ara Zerounia.

PROGRAMME:

  • Melvin Solomon (b.1947): ‘a la Mozart’
  • Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992): Café 1930 (arr. Isoda/Sugawa)
  • Maria Grenfell (b.1969): Time Transfixed
  • Allan Stephenson (b.1949): Introduction and Allegro
  • Maria Newman (b.1962): Parens (Ancestors)
  • Bill Cunliffe (b.1956): Bechet
  • David Heath (b. 1956): Coltrane (solo saxophone)
  • Pedro Iturralde (b.1929): Suite Hellenique
  • John Boswell (b.1960): Waterfall
  • John Boswell: Kindred Spirits

ADMISSION

  • R140 (adults)
  • *R100 (pensioners)
  • *R80 (UFS staff)
  • *R60 (students, learners and block bookings of 10+)

Tickets available at Computicket or online at http://online.computicket.com/web/

*Please note that tickets for pensioners, students, learners and UFS staff can only be purchased at a Computicket outlet (Shoprite Checkers) or at the doors since a valid card or ID has to be presented to qualify for the above-mentioned discount.

ENQUIRIES

Ninette Pretorius (tel. 051 401 2504)


Back
Koornhof-Hecht Duo

with celebrated SA violinist, Piet Koornhof, and American pianist, Thomas Hecht

 

7 May 2015

Odeion

19:30

 

“…major talent...”

— The New York Times

 

"Koornhof is an utterly brilliant performer”

— The Cape Times

 

“…fantastic...full mastery…”

— Gazzetta del Sud

 

Violinist Piet Koornhof has performed extensively as recitalist and chamber musician, and as soloist with orchestras in Southern Africa, Europe, North America, Russia, Singapore and New Zealand. His overseas performances include recitals with American pianist Thomas Hecht at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (Singapore) and at the Echos Festival (Italy).

 

In 1994 he was the first South African to undertake an extensive recital tour of Russia, with pianist Vladimir Yurigin-Klevke. In 1998 he gave masterclasses and performed at Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand). In 1999 he performed at the Palaces of St. Petersburg International Chamber Music Festival as a member of the Potch Trio, and appeared as soloist with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra.

 

Piet's most recent CD-recordings (Delos), are the complete JS Bach trio-sonatas for flute, violin and piano with Raffaele Trevisani and Paola Girardi, and the Hendrik Hofmeyr Double CSoncerto for flute, violin and string orchestra with Trevisani and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra led by Constantine Orbelian. His chamber music CD-recordings as founder and violinist of the South African Chamber Music Society for Koch Discover International have garnered high international acclaim. His CD-recording of piano trios of Babadjanian and Vasks as a member of the celebrated Potch Trio was released in South Africa in 2005. A CD of unusual short lyrical pieces for violin and piano with Truida van der Walt, “Remembrances”, became available in 2007. 

 

Piet made his concert debut at the age of nine while he was a pupil of Alan Solomon.  He was awarded scholarships by amongst others the South African Music Rights Organisation, Anglo American Corporation, the Aspen Music School and the Juilliard School where he studied with Dorothy DeLay. He also took part in masterclasses by Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman and Segiu Luca.

 

Piet has been teaching violin, viola, chamber music and methodology of violin at the School of Music of the North West University (Potchefstroom) since 1986. He holds a doctorate in music performance from the same institution where he is associate professor.  His masters thesis about the teaching strategy of renowned violin teacher, Dorothy DeLay, provided the material for his article in Strad magazine (August 2001).

 

American pianist Thomas Hecht was invited to Singapore in 2003 as the conservatory's Founding Head of Piano Studies. Over the span of nearly three decades he has concertized internationally as concerto soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and as a member of the acclaimed duo-piano team Hecht & Shapiro - winners of the Munich International Two Piano Competition and USA National Duo Piano Competition. He was the former Head of Piano Studies and Artist-In-Residence at the School of Music at Victoria University (New Zealand) and prior to that served for many years as Professor of Piano and Artist-In-Residence at the Cleveland Institute of Music (USA).  He has performed with leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra, Johannesburg Festival Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Artsakh Symphony Orchestra and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. 

 

Career highlights include performances at the Lincoln Center (New York), Berlin Philharmonic Hall, the Kennedy Center (Washington) and solo recitals in Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Italy, Serbia, Montenegro, Germany and throughout all the major centres of Australia and New Zealand. Hecht is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory where he won first prize in the concerto competition and the Kaufmann Award for excellence in chamber music.  Later he was accepted for graduate studies at the Peabody Institute as a student of Leon Fleisher.

 

Hecht enjoys a well-deserved reputation as one of the leading teachers of his generation, having produced a multitude of first prize winners in solo and two piano competitions throughout the United States, Europe and Australasia.   Throughout his career he has represented the USA, New Zealand and Singapore on jury panels of the Gina Bachauer, Geneva, Isangyun, Ibiza and Paralympic International Piano Competitions in addition to the national piano competitions of Japan, Thailand, Australia and South Africa.  He is a Steinway Artist and records for the Azica, Elysium and Atoll labels.

 

PROGRAMME

Arvo Pärt: Fratres

Giya Kancheli: Time…and again

Balys Dvarionas: Various compositions

 

ADMISSION

R130 (adults)

R90 (pensioners)

R70 (UFS staff)

R50 (students and learners)

R50 (group bookings of 10+)

Tickets available at Computicket.

 

ENQUIRIES

Ninette Pretorius (tel. 051 – 401 2504)

 

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