The Ariel Quartet Welcomes Guest Artist Yura Lee for March 26 Concert at CCM

The Ariel Quartet concludes its 2018-19 concert series at UC’s College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) by showcasing the works of three masters of chamber music at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26, in the acoustically stunning Corbett Auditorium. Tickets to the performance are on sale now and available for purchase online.

The concert opens with Ludwig van Beethoven’s joyous String Quartet No. 5 in A Major, Op. 18, which was modeled after Mozart’s String Quartet No. 18 in A Major, K. 464.

Next on the program is Robert Schumann’s intensely expressive String Quartet No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 41, No. 1.

Guest artist Yura Lee. Photo by Giorgia Bertazzi.

Finally, the Ariel Quartet will be joined by guest artist Yura Lee, viola, for a performance of Johannes Brahms’ magisterial String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111.

A performer of international renown, Lee has won top prizes for both violin and viola in numerous competitions. At the age of 12, she became the youngest artist ever to receive the Debut Artist of the Year prize at the “Performance Today” awards given by National Public Radio. She is also the recipient of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant given by Lincoln Center in New York City. Her CD with Reinhard Goebel and the Bayerische Kammerphilharmonie, titled Mozart in Paris (Oehms Classics), received the prestigious Diapason d’Or Award in France. Learn more about Lee at www.yuralee.com.

Described by the American Record Guide as “a consummate ensemble gifted with utter musicality and remarkable interpretive power,” the Ariel Quartet has earned a glowing international reputation. The ensemble is comprised of Alexandra “Sasha” Kazovsky, violin; Amit Even-Tov, cello; Gershon Gerchikov, violin; and Jan Grüning, viola. The group was formed in Israel in 1998 and has served as CCM’s string quartet-in-residence since 2012. Learn more about the Quartet by visiting www.arielquartet.com. Complete program information for the March 26 concert is below.

Repertoire

• BEETHOVEN: String Quartet No. 5 in A Major, Op. 18
• SCHUMANN: String Quartet No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 41, No. 1
• INTERMISSION
• BRAHMS: String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111

Performance Time

8 p.m. Tuesday, March 26

Location

Corbett Auditorium, CCM Village, University of Cincinnati

Purchasing Tickets

Tickets are $25 for general admission, $15 for non-UC students and FREE for UC students with valid ID. General admission and non-UC student tickets are on sale now. UC students can obtain one free ticket each with valid ID beginning Friday, March. 22.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online now through our e-Box Office! Visit ccm.uc.edu/boxoffice for CCM Box Office hours and location.

Parking and Directions

Parking is available in the CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit uc.edu/parking for more information on parking rates.

For detailed maps and directions, please visit uc.edu/visitors. Additional parking is available off-campus at the U Square complex on Calhoun Street and other neighboring lots.

For directions to CCM Village, visit ccm.uc.edu/about/directions.

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The Ariel Quartet’s 2018-19 CCM concert series is made possible by the generous contributions of an anonymous donor, The Estate of Mr. William A. Friedlander, Mrs. William A. Friedlander, Dr. Randolph L. Wadsworth, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Bloom, Mr. and Mrs. J. David Rosenberg, Mr. and Mrs. Harry H. Santen, Mr. and Mrs. Paul G. Sittenfeld, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas E. Stegman, Dr. and Mrs. Theodore W. Striker and Mrs. Harry M. Hoffheimer.

Featured image at top: Photo/Saverio Truglia
Inset image: Photo/Giorgia Bertazzi

The Ariel Quartet Opens 2016-17 CCM Concert Series with Faculty Artist Soyeon Kate Lee

Soyeon Kate Lee

The internationally acclaimed Ariel Quartet will open its four-part concert series at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music at 8 p.m. on Sept. 6 in Corbett Auditorium. The concert features works by Ludwig van Beethoven and Jörg Widmann, along with a performance of Robert Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat Major featuring renowned pianist and CCM faculty member Soyeon Kate Lee.

Named CCM’s string quartet-in-residence in 2012, the Ariel Quartet has been praised by the New York Times for its “gift for filling the pristine structures of Classicism with fire.” The talented string musicians will hold four concerts at CCM during the 2016-17 season: Sept. 6, Oct. 25, Jan. 24 and March 10.

First prize winner of the Naumburg International Piano Competition and the Concert Artist Guild International Competition, Soyeon Kate Lee has been lauded by the New York Times as a pianist with “a huge, richly varied sound, a lively imagination and a firm sense of style.” She will join the Ariel Quartet for the season opening performance on Sept. 6. See full concert program details below.

The Ariel Quartet is comprised of Alexandra Kazovsky, violin; Amit Even-Tov, cello; Gershon Gerchikov, violin; and Jan Grüning, viola. The Quartet was formed in Israel 18 years ago when its members were young students, and they have been playing together ever since. Recently awarded the prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award, the Quartet serves as the string quartet-in-residence at CCM where they direct the chamber music program and perform their own annual series of concerts.

REPERTOIRE
BEETHOVEN: String Quartet No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18, No. 1
JÖRG WIDMANN: String Quartet No. 3 (“Hunting”)
SCHUMANN: Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44
Featuring Soyeon Kate Lee, piano

PERFORMANCE TIME
8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 6

LOCATION
Corbett Auditorium, CCM Village
University of Cincinnati

PURCHASING TICKETS
Tickets are $25 for general admission, $15 for non-UC students and FREE for UC students with valid ID.

Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online now through our e-Box Office! Visit ccm.uc.edu/boxoffice for CCM Box Office hours and location.

PARKING AND DIRECTIONS
Parking is available in the CCM Garage (located at the base of Corry Boulevard off Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. Please visit uc.edu/parking for more information on parking rates.

For detailed maps and directions, please visit uc.edu/visitors. Additional parking is available off-campus at the U Square complex on Calhoun Street and other neighboring lots.

For directions to CCM Village, visit ccm.uc.edu/about/directions.

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CCM Season Presenting Sponsor and Musical Theatre Program Sponsor: The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation

The Ariel Quartet’s 2016-17 CCM concert series is made possible by the generous contributions of Anonymous, The Estate of Mr. William A. Friedlander, Mrs. William A. Friedlander, Dr. & Mrs. Randolph L. Wadsworth, Mr. & Mrs. Frank Bloom, Mr. & Mrs. J. David Rosenberg, Mr. & Mrs. Harry H. Santen, Mr. & Mrs. Paul G. Sittenfeld, Mr. & Mrs. Thomas E. Stegman, Mr. & Mrs. Theodore W. Striker and The Thomas J. Emery Memorial.

The Ariel Quartet’s Acclaimed CCM Concert Series Continues Tomorrow

From left to right: Amit Even-Tov, Jan Grüning, Alexandra Kazovsky and Gershon Gerchikov are the Ariel Quartet. Photography by Saverio Truglia.

The Ariel Quartet‘s CCM Concert Series continues at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21, with a program featuring the works of Menachem Wiesenberg, Robert Schumann and Maurice Ravel.

Grand Prize winners at the 2006 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and 2014 recipients of the prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award, the Ariel Quartet thrilled audiences with its first complete cycle of Beethoven’s String Quartets at CCM last season.

During the CINCYinNYC showcase week this May, the New York Times proclaimed that the Quartet has “a gift for filling the pristine structures of Classicism with fire.”

Janelle Gelfand called the Quartet’s season-opening performance with Menahem Pressler last month “inspiring” in her review for the Cincinnati Enquirer. You can read her full review of that performance here.

Repertoire

• WIESENBERG: Between the Sacred and the Profane
• SCHUMANN: String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, Op. 41, No. 2
• RAVEL: String Quartet in F Major, M. 35

CCM Presents a Plethora of Piano Performances This February

CCM will celebrate the art of the piano with a series of special events this February. The fifth annual Bearcat Piano Festival presents master classes and guest artist concerts from Feb. 6 – 11 in the Robert J. Werner Recital Hall and the Mary Emery Hall Master Classroom, followed by the ninth edition of CCM’s Pianopalooza showcase at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 16, in Corbett Auditorium.

Launched in 2010 by CCM’s Piano Department Chair Awadagin Pratt, the Bearcat Piano Festival has grown into a veritable piano spectacular with several days of master classes and recitals by piano greats. This year’s Festival will feature a “Friends, Family and Favorites” theme:

• Performances by “friends” include Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Louisville Dror Biran and University of Michigan doctoral student pianists.
• The festival celebrates “family” as Professor Emeritus Frank Weinstock returns to the CCM stage, while Momoro Ono – Juilliard graduate and brother of UC President Santa J. Ono – makes his CCM debut.
• As for “favorites,” CCM presents performances by acclaimed pianist Boris Slutsky and 2013 World Piano Competition Gold Medalist Marianna Prjevalskaya (who also studied with Slutsky). This will mark the first time in the history of the World Piano Competition that the winner is presented in a public recital.

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, Pianopalooza IX, directed by CCM’s Division of Keyboard Studies Head Michael Chertock, will include songs of love and romance. The program showcases spectacular student pianists and features special appearances by CCM faculty artists including Awadagin Pratt, James Tocco and Chertock himself. Pratt will perform music by Rachmaninoff, Tschaikovsky, Schumann and celebrated jazz pianist (and Cincinnati native) Fred Hersch. Tocco and Chertock will present selections from Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story.

Pianopalooza IX and the Bearcat Piano Festival promise to excite audiences with the beautiful sound and versatile styles that this popular and complex instrument has to offer — the perfect listening opportunity for music and keyboard enthusiasts of all ages.

Event Information
Please see individual listings below for additional information. The Boris Slutsky, Marianna Prjevalskaya and Pianopalooza IX concerts require paid admission. All other Bearcat Piano Festival events are free and open to the general public. All dates and programs are subject to change.

CCM Events Featured In The News Record’s Top 10 Entertainment Moments For 2010

Tis the season for reflection and end of the year list making. The editors for UC’s independent student newspaper The News Record recently published their “Top 10 Moments in Entertainment for 2010” and CCM made a strong showing on the list.

You can view Ariel Cheung and Kelly Tucker’s full story here.

CCM’s Sandra Rivers Performs at Steinway Hall This Thursday

Photography by Jay Yocis.

Professor of Collaborative Piano Sandra Rivers continues CCM’s 2010-11 Steinway Hall Series of Concerts this Thursday, Dec. 9. Her program will include Beethoven’s Sonata Op.54 in F Major, Chopin’s Ballade in A-flat Major; Rachmaninoff’s Etudes Tableaux Op. 39 Nos. 8 and 9 and Schumann’s Symphonic Etudes. The concert is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Steinway Hall, 109 West 57th Street in New York City. The CCM Steinway Hall Series is open to the general public, but seating is limited. The next installment of this concert series will occur on Thursday, Jan. 13 and will feature Hitomi Koyama, a doctoral student of Elisabeth and Eugene Pridonoff.

CCM’s Schumann Bicentennial Festival Concludes Tonight

CCM Orchestras’ celebration of Robert Schumann’s repertoire concludes this evening (Nov. 5) with an 8 p.m. finale concert in Corbett Auditorium featuring the Philharmonia Orchestra. Ulrich Nicolai, conductor and professor at the Hochscule für Musik und Theater (University of Music and Performing Arts) in Munich, guest conducts. Tickets are $10 general admission, $5 non-UC students, UC students FREE.

CCM Orchestras Commemorate the 200th Anniversary of Robert Schumann’s Birth

Annunziata Tomaro conducts a rehearsal in Teatro Nuovo.

CCM Orchestras will begin its fall concert season with the Schumann Bicentennial Festival, a celebration of Schumann’s timeless compositional prowess and diverse repertoire. Performances will showcase symphonies, overtures and the Piano Concerto in A Minor, with soloist and Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music, James Tocco. Ulrich Nicolai, conductor and professor at the Hochscule für Musik und Theater (University of Music and Performing Arts) in Munich, will guest conduct the festival’s opening and closing concerts. A series of free Schumann Festival Atrium Concerts will also be held to commemorate the 200th Anniversary of Robert Schumann’s birth.