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Music at the Institute: Elegies and Memories

February 9, 2025 @ 5:00 pm - 7:30 pm

Music at the Institute presents Elegies and Memories on Sunday, February 9, 2025 at 5 PM. Join us for an evening of music that explores the power of remembrance and reflection. Elegies and Memories will take you on a deeply moving journey, exploring timeless works inspired by love, loss, and the enduring human spirit. Featuring breathtaking performances by world-class musicians, this concert invites you to connect with the beauty found within life’s most poignant moments. Experience the profound ability of music to honor memories, offer solace, and awaken our shared humanity.

Program: 

Alla Zahaykevych
Red Flowers (2023)
For baritone, oboe, and accordion
Text by Mykola Vorobiov (translated by Maria Rewakovych)

Lori Laitman
Long Pond Revisited (2002)
For baritone and cello
Poetry by C.G.R. Shepard

Anna Kuzina-Rozhdestvenska
Monologue of the Soul (2024)
For violin solo and tubular bell
Dedicated to the cherished memory of the victims of the July 8, 2024, tragedy, which took the lives of innocent children in a brutal missile attack on the “Okhmatdyt” Children’s Hospital in Kyiv
North American Premiere

Katherine Needleman
Land Where My Fathers Died (2022–2023)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Oboe Quartet in F Major, K. 370 (1781)

Performers: 

  • Randall Scarlata, baritone
  • Katherine Needleman, oboe
  • Hanzhi Wang, accordion
  • Solomiya Ivakhiv, violin
  • Jessica Thompson, viola
  • Marcy Rosen, cello

The Ukrainian Institute of America is grateful to Dr. Christina Stasiuk and Mr. George Farion for their generous sponsorship of this concert.

 

TICKETS

 

Baritone Randall Scarlata, praised by The New York Times as “an intelligent and communicative singer,” is celebrated for his extraordinary vocal range and ability to bring texts to life. With a repertoire spanning five centuries and 16 languages, Scarlata is a sought-after interpreter of new music, premiering works by leading composers like George Crumb and Lori Laitman. He has collaborated with renowned pianists, including Gilbert Kalish, with whom his recording of Schubert’s Winterreise earned a Grammy nomination. A dedicated educator, Scarlata serves on the faculty of Peabody Conservatory and Tanglewood Music Center, inspiring the next generation of musicians.

Katherine Needleman, principal oboist of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra since 2003, is a celebrated musician and first-prize winner of the International Double Reed Society’s Gillet-Fox Competition. A passionate advocate for contemporary music, she has premiered numerous works, including Kevin Puts’ Moonlight and Ruth Gipps’ Oboe Concerto. Needleman has performed as a soloist with leading orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and has appeared at prestigious venues like Carnegie Hall and the Marlboro Music Festival. A Baltimore native, she serves on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music and is an accomplished composer and improviser.

Hanzhi Wang, praised for her “staggering virtuosity” and captivating stage presence, is the first accordionist to join the roster of Young Concert Artists in its 60-year history. A trailblazer for her instrument, she has premiered works, recorded Naxos’s first solo accordion CD, and performed in prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. A winner of top international competitions, including Castelfidardo, Hanzhi inspires the next generation through masterclasses worldwide. She holds degrees from the China Central Conservatory and the Royal Danish Academy, where she studied with Geir Draugsvoll, solidifying her place as a global ambassador for the accordion.

Solomiya Ivakhiv, Professor of Violin and Viola and Head of Strings at University of Connecticut, and Professor of Violin at Longy School of Music of Bard College. Named Honored (Merited) Artist of Ukraine, her native country’s highest cultural honor (2021). Artistic Director of Music at the Institute (MATI) concert series in NYC, Artistic Director of Caspian Monday Music Festival in Greensboro, VT. Recordings for NAXOS, Brilliant Classics, and Centaur Records, featuring works of Ukrainian composers as well as Haydn, Hummel, and Mendelssohn. Champion of new music, with world premieres of works by David Ludwig, John B. Hedges, David Dzubay, Bohdan Kryvopust, Leonid Hrabovsky, Yevhen Stankovych, and Oleksandr Shchetynsky.

Violist Jessica Thompson is a passionate chamber musician, performing at renowned festivals like Marlboro, Portland, and Verbier. A member of the Daedalus Quartet, she has toured with Musicians from Marlboro and frequently collaborates with the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players. Formerly of the Chester String Quartet, she is now a viola professor at Princeton and Columbia Universities. Ms. Thompson has soloed with the Minnesota Orchestra and performed recitals in major cities like Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. A Curtis Institute alumna, she studied with Karen Tuttle, Korey Konkol, and Alice Preves, and performed at the International Viola Congress in 2004.

Cellist Marcy Rosen is recognized as one of today’s most respected artists, praised by Los Angeles Times as “one of the intimate art’s abiding treasures.” A celebrated soloist and chamber musician, she has performed globally with renowned musicians such as Leon Fleisher and Jessye Norman. A founding member of the Mendelssohn String Quartet, she toured for 31 years and served as Blodgett-Artist-in-Residence at Harvard University. Marcy is also the Artistic Director of the Chesapeake Chamber Music Festival and a long-time participant in the Marlboro Music Festival. She teaches at Queens College and Mannes College of Music, among other institutions.

In its 37th season, Music at the Institute presents world-class musicians from Ukraine, Europe and the US, performing in the unique setting of the concert hall in the Ukrainian Institute of America’s historic, landmark building. Currently under the leadership of Artistic Director, Solomiya Ivakhiv, the MATI series presents audiences with a selection of familiar chamber music repertoire and introduces lesser-known as well as established works by Ukrainian composers. Over its history, MATI has commissioned compositions by emerging and recognized Ukrainian composers, in celebration or commemoration of milestones in Ukrainian and the Institute’s history.

Enjoy recordings of our prior MATI concerts on our YouTube Channel.

 

Music at the Institute: Elegies and Memories

Details

Date:
February 9, 2025
Time:
5:00 pm - 7:30 pm
Event Category: