It's Out of This World

Guest Artists 2007-2008

Alessio Bax, from Bari, Italy, is a poetic and sensitive pianist with a brilliant technique. First Prize winner of the Leeds and Hamamatsu piano competitions, Alessio plays with “control and eloquence, innate understanding of the work’s logic and impetus and those additional magical ingredients—weight of sound, clarity of detail and absolute conviction in his conception of the music” The Independent. “He successfully combined authority and poetry” The Daily Telegraph ~ www.alessiobax.com

Steven Beck has been called “One of the city’s most admired young pianists” by the New Yorker and a pianist of “impeccable talents” by the Association Beethoven France. He made his debut with the National Symphony Orchestra, and now plays regularly with BargeMusic and the Mark Morris Dance Group.

Stephen Beus, winner of the 2006 Gina Bachauer competition and Vendome Prize, has been described by the Fort Worth Star Telegram as a pianist of “artistic instinct and natural charisma.” The fourth of eight children, Stephen was born and raised in Othello, Washington and began his piano studies at age five. Four years later he made his orchestral debut playing the Mozart Concerto K. 488. His recordings are on the Endeavor Classics and Harmonia Mundi labels ~ www.stephenbeus.com

Alon Goldstein is “truly a jewel” Reutlinger Generalanzeiger. It hasn’t taken long for the Israeli pianist to achieve the kind of success predicted for him by Leon Fleisher, Zubin Mehta and Claudio Abbado. He made his orchestral debut at age18 with the Israeli Philharmonic; since then, his technical prowess and musical intelligence have earned him both critical acclaim and enthusiastic ovations. In recent seasons, Alon has performed with such orchestras as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and San Francisco Symphony.

Ilya Itin, a profound musician, is winner of the Leeds, Gina Bachauer, Robert Casadesus, William Kappel, Rachmaninoff, Rubinstein, and Bunkamura competitions. Critical acclaim has come from many parts of the world, including the Daily Telegraph, which noted his “rare and exciting artistry” and “superb technique”; Der Standard Wien, which called him “The perfect pianist”; Washington Post, which heard “A delicious and rare talent”; and Le Figaro, which stated, “He plays marvelously with all his body and his soul: a very great pianist and musician.” Ilya was born in Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg), Russia.

Inga Kapouler is our Jupiter pianist with the most beautiful sound. A native of Riga, Latvia, she is winner of the Rubinstein, Gina Bachauer, and Five Towns competitions. Inga teaches at the Lucy Moses School and Special Music School at the Kauffman Cultural Center.

Elizaveta Kopelman has been praised for “her great interpretive ability and formidable technique.” She has played critically acclaimed debut recitals at the Purcell Room and Wigmore Hall, and her concerti appearances have been with the London Philharmonic at the Barbican Centre and the Iceland Symphony, among others. Elizaveta is also an avid chamber musician and performs regularly with her father Mikhail Kopelman. Moscow is the city of her birth.

Seymour Lipkin won the Rachmaninoff Piano Competition at age 19 and has appeared with the top 5 American orchestras—New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago. “Technically his pianism far outshines Schnabel, while he is more consistent than Backhaus, more exciting than Arrau, plays with more tonal beauty than Brendel” American Record Guide. He has also collaborated and toured with many great artists, among them Jascha Heifetz and the Guarneri Quartet. Seymour Lipkin is artistic director of the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival ~ www.seymourlipkin.com

Adam Neiman, who is recognized as an artist of rare depth, sensitivity and virtuosity, is a Grammy nominee and winner of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, Young Concert Artists, Gilmore Young Artist Award, and Silver Medal at the Alessandro Casagrande competition. He is featured in the documentary, Playing for Real, in which Jens Nygaard and Jupiter also make a brief appearance. Adam is a member of Chamber Music Society II of Lincoln Center and the Corinthian Trio. He was born in Hayward, California ~ www.adamneiman.com

Roman Rabinovich made his Israel Philharmonic debut under the baton of Zubin Mehta before his 11^th birthday, and he performed with the orchestra and Mr. Mehta again in 1999 and 2003. The Palm Beach Daily News recently noted, “Rabinovich has full technical command of the piano and plays with a great deal of sensitivity.” Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Roman now lives in Israel. He is also an award-winning artist, and his work will be exhibited at our Jupiter concerts.

Pei-Yao Wang, born in Taiwan, began taking piano lessons at age 5 and made her orchestral debut with the Taipei Symphony when she was 8, then went on to the Curtis Institute as its youngest student, and Yale, where she majored in both music and architecture. The music critic Harris Goldsmith has stated that “Wang’s most frequent concerts have been as a superb collaborative artist…. Her playing has intuitive proportion, color, and finesse.”

William Wolfram, winner of the William Kapell, Naumburg, and Tchaikovsky competitions, is recognized as an artist who combines powerful Romantic instincts with a truly formidable command of the keyboard. Millions have seen him on public television, where he was prominently featured throughout the documentary of the 1986 Tchaikovsky Piano Competition. The noted piano authority Joseph Horowitz in his book, The Ivory Trade, characterizes him as a polished Romantic virtuoso, worthy of comparison to the young Van Cliburn and Vladimir Horowitz.

Einav Yarden from Israel, “plays with an authority and beauty of sound that one simply does not expect from anyone that young” (Chicago Tribune). She made her debut in 2000 with the Israel Philharmonic and has since played with such orchestras as the Minnesota and Calgary Symphonies. Einav has won prizes at the 2006 Piano-e-Competition and 2003 Honens Competition, among others. Her festival appearances include Ravina, Verbier and Aspen, and her performances have been broadcast on WQXR, WFMT and CBC.

Andrius Zlabys, from Lithuania, is “a virtuoso of fabulous technique and romantic temperament who performed like an authentic heir to the grand masters of 19th-century keyboard tradition” Cleveland Plain Dealer. A winner of the Cleveland and Astral competitions, Andrius has performed extensively with violinist Gidon Kremer and the Kremerata Baltica. His recording with Kremer of Enesco’s Piano Quintet for Nonesuch was nominated for a Grammy ~ www.andriuszlabys.com

Dmitri Berlinsky is head and shoulders above the average competition winner, a violinist with a beautiful tone, his own character, and tremendous musical finesse. “Berlinsky shone. He exuded the confidence and poise of a young Valentino. There was no shortage of brilliance, and his verve was a source of delight” The Washington Times. Dmitri is a native of St. Petersburg, Russia and a winner of the Paganini, Montreal, Tchaikovsky, Queen Elisabeth, and Young Concert Artists competitions.

Ilya Kaler is the only violinist ever to win Gold Medals at all three of the world’s most prestigious competitions—the Tchaikovsky, the Sibelius, and the Paganini competitions. He is already being compared to the likes of Heifetz and Perlman, and his recordings of the Paganini Caprices have been deemed by American Record Guide to be “in a class by themselves” combining “the perfection, passion, and phrase-sculpting of Michael Rabin with the energy, excitement, and immediacy of Jascha Heifetz.” The Washington Post unabashedly lauds him as “a consummate musician, Kaler is in total control at all times, with a peerless mastery of his violin.” Ilya was born into a family of musicians in Moscow.

Misha Keylin, winner of the Hannover, Paganini, Sarasate, and Vina del Mar competitions, comes from St. Petersburg, Russia. “His playing was consistently vital, his dynamics well articulated and his penchant for lyricism definitive” Strad. Allan Kozinn of the New York Times adds, “Keylin displays a gorgeous, rounded tone and a distinctively Russian phrasing style…. His nuanced readings fully convey the operatic impulse that drives the violin writing, and he has the technique to sail easily through the virtuosic flourishes.” ~ www.keylin.com

Mikhail Kopelman is renowned for his style of immense grace and beauty combined with a flawless technique. He has performed in a dizzying array of venues throughout the world as first violinist of the Borodin String Quartet for two decades and Tokyo String Quartet for six years. He now leads the Kopelman Quartet, a string quartet in the very best style and tradition of the old Russian School. For more than 15 years Mikhail Kopelman was closely associated with Sviatoslav Richter in numerous performances and recordings. Born in Uzhgorod in the former Soviet Union, he won Second Prize at the Jacques Thibaud International Competition, and in 1995 he received the Royal Philharmonic Society Award and the Concertgebouw Silver Medal of Honor.

Stefan Milenkovich is recognized internationally for both exceptional artistry and his life-long commitment to humanitarianism. Winner of the Indianapolis, Paganini, Tibor Varga, Queen Elisabeth, Yehudi Menuhin, and Young Concert Artists competitions, he has performed for President Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope John Paul II, and at the age of 16, played his 1000^th concert in Monterrey, Mexico. Stefan was appointed a “Child Ambassador” and received the 2003 “Most Humane Person” award in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, the city of his birth. He is member of the Corinthian Trio ~ www.milenkovich.com

Sergey Ostrovsky, a native of Gorky, Russia, is winner of several prizes, including the Israel National Competition. He was recently appointed Principal Concertmaster of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in Geneva. Sergey is also the founder and first violinist of the award-winning Aviv Quartet, and plays a 1716 Grancino violin owned by the late Henryk Szering, courtesy of J. Mayer and the Tzfonot Tarbut ~ www.sergeyostrovsky.com

Rachel Barton Pine is “A greatly gifted young violinist…her sound was rich and commanding” the New York Times; “Pine displays a power and confidence that puts her in the top echelon of recitalists” Washington Post; she is “No less than spectacular” The Strad. When not performing, Rachel sees herself as an artistic ambassador, introducing the pleasures of classical music to legions of new listeners. Her passion for guiding the future of music has led her to establish the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation to expand awareness of and appreciation for classical music. Rachel is a Chicagoan ~ www.rachelbarton.com

Philippe Quint “looked like a modern day Paganini—and he played like one, too” wrote the Cincinnati Enquirer. From the moment he takes the stage, Philippe captivates his audience with his charismatic presence and is often lauded for a “searingly poetic lyricism.” He plays a 1723 Stradivari “Ex-Keisewetter” violin on extended loan through the Stradivari Society in Chicago. His impressive discography includes the William Schuman Violin Concerto that was nominated for two Grammies and named “Editor’s Choice” by Gramophone and Strad, and the complete works of Miklos Rosza for violin and piano with pianist William Wolfram. The press has described his playing as “flawless,” “dazzling,” “extraordinary,” “astonishing.” ~ www.philippequint.com

Xiao-Dong Wang has been called the most talented violinist ever to emerge from China. He began his studies at age 3 with his father, concertmaster of the Shanghai Symphony; he then studied with the renowned teacher Zhao Ji-Yang at the Shanghai Conservatory. At ages 13 and 15, he won the Yehudi Menuhin Competition; he is also winner of the First Prize and special Szymanovski Prize in the Wieniawski-Lipinski International Competition. Xiao-Dong has soloed with such orchestras as the Royal Philharmonic in London and the Sydney Opera Orchestra, and is a founding member of the Concertante Chamber Players.

Cynthia Phelps enjoys a versatile career as an established chamber musician, solo artist, and Principal Violist of the New York Philharmonic. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer states that she has “one of the richest, deepest viola timbres in the world.” Cynthia is First Prize winner of both the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition and the Washington International String Competition, and is recipient of the Pro Musicis International Foundation Award. Under the auspices of this philanthropic organization, she has appeared as soloist in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Rome, and Paris, as well as in jails, hospitals and drug rehab centers worldwide. A native of Southern California, Cynthia is the fourth of five girls, all of whom are musicians.

Wendy Warner is one of the leading cellists in the world and has a reputation and collective critical adulation that precedes her almost everywhere she goes, from Carnegie Hall to Boston’s Symphony Hall, from the Salle Pleyel in Paris to Berlin’s Philharmonie. She is a First Prize winner of the 4^th International Rostropovich Competition and the 1991 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and a protégé of Mstislav Rostropovich.

Christine Goerke, soprano, clearly a huge talent, has established an outstanding reputation since her professional debut. She has appeared with the world’s leading orchestras and opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Royal Opera House, and Covent Garden. Winner of the 2001 Richard Tucker Award, the ARIA and George London awards, and the 1997 Birgit Nilsson Prize, her voice has been described as “big, with a mezzo-like richness at the lower end, wonderfully secure high notes…capable of a variety of attacks from laser-like stabs to delicate coloratura” Boston Herald. ~ www.christinegoerke.com

Charles Neidich ranks with the most versatile clarinet soloists performing in the world today, and is hailed as a master of the clarinet and beyond by both critics and audiences. He was winner of the first major clarinet competition—the Naumburg—which catapulted him into prominence as a soloist. He was also the first American to receive a Fulbright grant for study in the former Soviet Union. Charles Neidich is a native New Yorker of Russian and Greek descent; he is a graduate of Yale in Anthropology (cum laude); and a member of the New York Woodwind Quintet.

Frank Morelli is one of the most influential bassoonists in the United States today. The Miami Herald has hailed his breathtaking virtuosity, and Gramophone has proclaimed his playing “a joy to behold.” The Orpheus recording, Shadow Dances, which features his playing, won a 2001 Grammy Award. Frank, who has made 9 appearances in Carnegie Hall as soloist,  was the first bassoonist awarded a doctorate by Juilliard. He is member of the renowned quintet, Windscape ~ www.morellibassoon.com

Jason Vieaux “opened ears with his rhythmic clarity and remarkable left-hand facility…. He made the single guitar seem like a body of instruments at work” Philadelphia Inquirer; his playing was “close to perfection…with a maturity, confidence, emotion and virtuosity that belie his youth” Soundboard Magazine.  In 1992 Jason became the youngest First Prize winner in the history of the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America International Competition. He is also a Naumburg International Guitar Competition winner and a recipient of the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Alumni Achievement Award ~ www.jasonvieaux.com

Performer, producer and promoter Thomas Buckner has championed music of the avant-garde in America and throughout the world for more than three decades. He was trained in the classical tradition and has continued throughout his distinguished career to broaden the scope of his vocal styles, specializing in a wide range of experimental music. He also works as an energetic concert producer and has curated the Interpretations series with the World Music Institute in New York City, and created the Mutable Music record label to produce new recordings and reissue some important historic recordings, previously unavailable in CD format.

Tokyo-born choreographer-dancer Takehiro Ueyama, a member of the Paul Taylor Dance Company from 1995 to 2003, founded the TAKE Dance Company in 2004. With traces of his Japanese heritage, his work is inspired by the beauty of nature and the nature of humanity, and it equally uses powerful athleticism and delicate gesture to ensure a place on stage for the heart. He has created a vast repertoire featuring sensitive and exciting choreography in his mission to present a feast for the eyes, the mind and the soul. In a rave review, Jennifer Dunning of the New York Times wrote, “All will be right with the world when Mr. Ueyama is on stage..... Dancing today can look like an exhausting dash to the finish line. Mr. Ueyama brings a soft and silky calm and sunny sweetness to everything he does.” www.takedanceny.com

Dancer Jill Echo, a founding member of Taylor 2 and formerly with the Paul Taylor Dance Company, has worked with TAKE Dance Company since September 2003. She has also performed with the Pearl Lang Dance Company, Janis Brenner & Dancers, Sue Bernhard Dance Works, and several freelance choreographers. Her television credits include appearances on PBS Alive From Off-Center, Dance in America, and American Masters. Jill has also choreographed for Purchase College Repertory Theater.

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