WORLD PREMIERE RECORDINGS OF NEW WORKS FOR PIANO, CHAMBER INSTRUMENTS AND ELECTRONICS

FROM 4 NOTABLE MODERN COMPOSERS: TOM FLAHERTY, JAMES MATHESON, ADAM SCHOENBERG AND PETER YATES

Featuring Nadia Shpachenko-Gottesman: piano, percussion; with Genevieve Feiwen Lee: piano, toy piano, percussion, electronics

NADIA SHPACHENKO - WOMAN AT THE NEW PIANO 
 An innovative project of new compositions brings together piano repertoire representing the diversity of today’s American classical music. With sounds and textures both new and familiar, both tumultuous and contemplative, all the pieces touch on themes of transformation, of resonances across time, and of cycles of rebirth. These four composers present a snapshot of the many facets of piano music at the beginning of a new era of pianism.

 

VIDEO:Woman at the New Piano: American Music of 2013 Nadia Shpachenko, piano, percussion 

UNCOMMON GROUND Contemporary Works for Trumpet with horn, trombone, piano and organ

“Amy Schendel has assembled a group of immaculate performers for a compact disc release of world premiere recordings which should be required listening for brass players young and old, student and professional, worldwide. The disc will appeal further to anyone who relishes fine brass playing and to lovers of recent contemporary chamber music... Amy Schendal’s trumpet playing throughout this recording is characterized by impeccable legato and flawless intonation, which are rare these days in any instrumental brass context. She is a brilliant musician who is being exceptionally generous in lending her talents to music that is new and challenging though, at its best, highly rewarding.” Charles Pope Jr., ConcertoNet [December 2014]...provided by MSR CLASSICS

  AMY SCHENDEL, U IOWA

Ernest Bloch, Aaron Copland, Robert Dauber, Eric Zeisl ZINA SCHIFF, violin CAMERON GRANT

“[MUSICWEB CD OF THE MONTH] [This] is a disc that whilst it is melancholic at times, also celebrates Jewish dance rhythms, with the result being one of real enjoyment... [Zeisl's Brandeis Sonata] is a powerful and thought-provoking work, in which the Jewish character comes to the fore brilliantly. Both Zeisl works receive their premiere recordings here, and it’s about time. [Copland's Sonata] has received some fine recordings in the past, not least those by Isaac Stern and Gil Shaham [but] this new recording more than stands its ground with its illustrious counterparts... This is a well conceived and executed disc.
SCHIFF BIO MSR CLASSICS

The performances by Zina Schiff and Cameron Grant are first rate and they are captured in quite a natural and well balanced acoustic... this is a disc well worth exploring, not least for the Zeisl Sonata, which truly deserves to be better known, and for which we should be thankful to MSR Classics as well as Schiff and Grant for bringing it to our attention.”

 

GREGORY FULKERSON, violinist

Gregory Fulkerson rose to prominence as a major exponent of American contemporary music, taking the first prize in the International American Music Competition sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation and the Kennedy Center (now sponsored by Carnegie Hall). As a result of that victory, Fulkerson began a very active performing career that included debuts in New York, London, Paris, Rome, and Brussels. He has performed more than 30 concerti with orchestra, including the world premieres of the John Becker Concerto with the Chattanooga Symphony, the Roy Harris Concerto with the North Carolina Symphony, and the Richard Wernick Concerto with Riccardo Muti conductiong the Philadelphia Orchestra. He performed the title role in the 1992 revival of the Philip Glass opera, Einstein on the Beach, for a total of 48 performances on four continents, and later recorded the work for Nonesuch. OBERLIN

Philip West

Philip West, a longtime artist-faculty member at the Aspen Music Festival and School and renowned oboe and English horn soloist, died June 26, 2004.

West, of Newburgh, N.Y., had been an artist-faculty member at the festival and school since 1972, where he taught oboe. He also played oboe and English horn with the Aspen Festival Orchestra and Aspen Chamber Symphony.At a concert earlier this summer, festival trumpet player Lou Ranger remembered West as a man who embraced the beauty of life and his instrument with equal mastery."Phil was not only passionate about music-making but about education, politics, art, humor; in short, all the things that contribute to the best in the human experience," Ranger said. "It was a joy and an education to collaborate with Phil and a privilege to be his friend."West was professor emeritus of chamber music at the Eastman School of Music. He prepared many arrangements of solo and chamber music, including those for the final recordings of his late wife, Jan DeGaetani, featuring songs of Mahler and Berlioz. Earlier in his career he was a leading freelance performer in New York and a member of the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, the Boehm Quintet, the Festival Winds, and the New York Pro Musica under Noah Greenberg. He performed often with the New York Philharmonic, Symphony of the Air, the Mostly Mozart Festival, and orchestras of the New York City Ballet and Opera.

Jan DeGaetani 1933 - 1989

Jan (Janice) DeGaetani (July 10, 1933 – September 15, 1989) was an American mezzo-soprano known for her performances of contemporary classical vocal compositions.

DeGaetani was born in Massillon, Ohio. Educated at The Juilliard School with Sergius Kagen, she was best known for her wide range, precise pitch, clear tone, and command of extended techniques that made her voice perfectly suited to the demanding style of modern and avant-garde vocal composition. Her recording of Schoenberg's song cycle Pierrot lunaire is one of the classic recordings of the piece. (Due to its use of atonality, wide range, and virtuoso techniques such as sprechstimme, all while requiring a lyrical sensibility, it is exceptionally difficult to sing.) Her collaboration with George Crumb was also a fruitful one; she premiered his song cycle Ancient Voices of Children, and many of his other works were written for her. Uncommonly for a singer of her caliber (though her voice was not as powerful as most), DeGaetani rarely appeared in opera, instead concentrating on solo recital work in the art song literature.

WIKIPEDIA BIO

The Contemporary Chamber Ensemble

Arthur Weisberg created the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble in 1961. While he was the conductor and music director, the CCE toured throughout the United States and the rest of the world, giving over 100 world premieres. They completed recordings, and have several prize winning recordings to their credit. NONESUCH RECORDS

BERNARD ROBERTS 1933 - 2013

Bernard Roberts (23 July 1933 – 3 November 2013) was an English pianist. He was born in Manchester. His treatment of the cycle of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas has been highly acclaimed. He is also noted for his recordings of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Roberts' recording of the Well-Tempered Clavier, Books 1 and 2, performed on piano, was released in 1999 by Nimbus Records and was well received. Roberts also has recorded Bach's Six Partitas, BWV 825-30, and his French Suites, BWV 812-17. In collaboration with other performers, Roberts released discs of music for one and two pianos by Paul Hindemith and of trios by Frank Bridge. OBITUARY

Frequently heard on Contemporary Serious Music radio

Contemporary Serious Music radio host R Alan Campbell (r.) with Lang Lang, Chinese concert, pianist who has performed with leading orchestras in Europe, the United States and his native China.