The award-winning Knox-Galesburg Symphony will feature acclaimed pianist Lisa Leonard at its April 17 subscription concert finale. The concert, sponsored in part by NAEIR, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Orpheum Theatre, in Galesburg, IL.
Under the direction of KGS artistic director/conductor Bruce Polay, the Knox-Galesburg Symphony will perform Ginastera's "Danzas Estancia," Assad's "Brazilian Fanfare," and Higdon's "blue cathedral." The Assad and Higdon were submitted for the KGS International Call for Scores. Leonard will perform Saint-Saens Piano Concerto Nr. 4 in C minor, Opus 44 on the West Music concert Steinway.
Hailed as a pianist who "communicates deep artistic understanding through a powerful and virtuosic technique," Lisa Leonard enjoys a diverse career as a soloist, chamber musician and educator.
At age 17, Leonard made her debut with the National Symphony Orchestra in six concerts at the Kennedy Center. She has appeared throughout Europe, Japan, Russia, and North America with many orchestras, including recent performances with the Redlands Symphony Orchestra, the Oregon Mozart Players, and the Simon Bolivar Orchestra of Venezuela. An active chamber musician, she has performed with members of the Berlin, Vienna, New York, Cleveland and Cincinnati Symphonies in addition to members of the American and Mendelssohn String Quartets and the Empire Brass Quintet in performances featured on National Public Radio programs "Performance Today" and "Command Performance."
A native of Washington, D.C., Leonard received her B.M. and M.M. from the Manhattan School of Music, where she was the premiere recipient of both the Rubinstein and Balsam Awards, two of the highest honors given. Leonard has served on the faculties of the North Carolina School of the Arts, the Meadowmount School of Music, and the Las Vegas Music Festival. Additionally, she has performed at the Pacific Music Festival, Gilmore International, Caramoor, the East/West International Festival and is a member of the Palm Beach Chamber Players. Leonard can be heard on the Klavier, Centaur, and Summit labels and has been featured on Japan's NHK television network. She currently serves on the piano faculty of the Lynn University Conservatory of music where she founded the Lynn University Collegiate Chapter of the Music Teachers National Association to which she serves as a faculty advisor.
Of "Brazilian Fanfare," Clarice Assad wrote "composing...would be extremely difficult to describe the many different styles and genres that make up the music of Brazil. Still...I wanted 'Brazilian Fanfare' to comprise as many of these elements as possible, portraying a portion of every region as a caricature; while focusing on the joyful, light, humorous and warm aspect of this country..." Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921) was a prolific conservative French composer, organist, conductor, and pianist whose Piano Concerto Nr. 4 is his most structurally innovative piano concerto and continues to be one of Saint-Saens' most popular concertos today. Jennifer Higdon (b. 1962) is one of America’s most frequently performed composers. Her "blue cathedral," premiered in 2000, being one of the most performed orchestral works by a living composer. Recipient of many prestigious awards, including a Pew Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and two awards from the American Academy of Arts & Letters, Higdon won a Grammy for the Telarc release of "Higdon: Concerto for Orchestra/City Scape" in 2005. Higdon is on the faculty at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she holds the Milton L. Rock Chair in Compositional Studies. Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) is widely regarded as one of the most important original South American composers of the 20th century. He studied at the Buenos Aires conservatory. After a visit to the U.S. in 1945-47 where he studied with Aaron Copland, he returned to Buenos Aires and co-founded the League of Composers. His “Estancia” piece is set over the passage of a single day: dawn, morning, afternoon, night, and dawn. Ginastera has not only captured the rhythms of life on an estancia or ranch, but also provided an insight into the gaucho's now diminished way of life. The story tells of a city boy who watches, and falls in love with, a country maiden. Despite initial contempt for him, her feelings turn to admiration as he demonstrates he can perform the rough and difficult work and proves his skill in taming wild horses.
Single concert tickets range from $8.00 to $18.00 with children and students admitted half-price. Tickets are available at the Orpheum Theatre Ticket Office (309-342-2299), 250 East Main St., Galesburg or at the door. Tickets are still available for the May 8 "Celebrate Mom at the Pops" concert with Broadway classics and the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber featuring vocalists Matt Bean and Kitty Karn.
At 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 17, at the Orpheum Theatre, Lisa Leonard, Maestro Polay, and Dr. Lori Sundberg, Carl Sandburg College, will host the 10:00 a.m. Music Mornings program for children ages preschool through fifth grade which will feature winners of the 17th Annual KGS Young Pianists Competition who will perform on the concert Steinway, underwritten by Carl Sandburg College. Music Mornings, a FREE concert preview, is co-sponsored by the Knox-Galesburg Symphony and the Galesburg Public Library in cooperation with Galesburg School District 205. Music Mornings Incentive Awards will also be presented.
(Lisa Leonard. Story and Photo Submitted by Knox-Galesburg Symphony.) |
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