2017-2018 Music Series Archive
LIYA String Quartet

Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc, (AGAR) and the Bower Center for the Arts will presented the LIYA STRING QUARTET at the Bower Center, 305 North Bridge Street, Bedford, VA 24523 on April 21, 2018 at 7:30 pm. The concert is an exciting mix of 20th Century works. Dmitri Shostakovich's String Quartet No. 10 in A-flat major, op. 118, was composed in 1964. It was premiered by the Beethoven Quartet. Mishima String Quartet #3 was composed by Philip Glass as the soundtrack to a 1985 film, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. Finally, Bernard Herrmann’s Psycho Suite is a string quartet arrangement of music from the classic horror film, "Psycho.”
The recently formed LIYA String Quartet consists of Christi Salisbury and Yevgeniy Dovgalyuk, violins; Domenico Luca Trombetta, viola; and David Feldman, cello. Three of the members of the group, Christi Salisbury, Domenico Luca Trombetta and David Feldman, previously played together in the James String Quartet. The four musicians playing on the current concert first played together for AGAR in January, 2018 at Emanuel United Methodist Church.
Mr. Dovgalyuk is the recently appointed concertmaster of the Lynchburg Symphony and is an assistant Professor of Violin at Liberty University. He also serves as a substitute violinist with the National Symphony Orchestra. LIYA String Quartet is named for his late sister, Liya.
BIOGRAPHIES OF THE MUSICIANS
Yevgeniy Dovgalyuk (Violin) a native of Riga, Latvia, began studying violin at the age of six. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Violin Performance from the University of Maryland as well as Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from George Mason University. His teachers have included UMD professor Dr. James Stern and NSO violinists Peter Haase and Pavel Pekarsky. Winner of numerous performance awards, Dr. Dovgalyuk, has served as Concertmaster with many orchestras throughout his career. Most recently he has accepted the Concertmaster position with the Lynchburg Symphony. Yevgeniy is a regular substitute with the National Symphony Orchestra and joined the NSO on their Russia Tour in March of 2017. He also performs with the Fairfax Symphony, National Philharmonic, and Alexandria Symphony, among others.
He is actively involved with Liya Music Camp International in the USA and Ukraine where he serves as the Music Director, as well as Liya Christian Ministry, in memory of his sister. He has performed throughout the USA and Europe, including Sweden, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Latvia, and Russia. He is an assistant violin professor at Liberty University.
David Feldman (cello) performs frequently as a soloist, orchestral and chamber musician. He holds multiple cello performance degrees, studying under Alan Weinstein of the Kandinsky Trio at Roanoke College, and Brian Hodges at Boise State University, for whom he was a teaching assistant. He is an alumnus of the Castleman Quartet Program, Bowdoin International Music Festival and the Chautauqua Institution, completing additional studies under Peter Rejto, David Ying, and Steven Doane. Mr. Feldman has been a member of the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra since 2008 and has performed as a concerto soloist with the Boise State University Orchestra, theNew River Valley Symphony, and the Shenandoah Conservatory Orchestra. His popular music ventures include appearances with Charles Billingsly, D.J. Spooky, Liza Minnelli, Art Garfunkel, and the Trans Siberian Orchestra, where he was a featured soloist in 2011.
Mr. Feldman also remains active as a recording studio musician, having worked with artists both nationally and internationally. In addition to performing and recording, Mr. Feldman has served on the faculty at Ferrum College (VA) and as a resident artist with the James String Quartet at Lynchburg College (VA). Additionally, he has been a guest lecturer at the Virginia
Tech School of Performing Arts.
Mr. Feldman is a winner of both the Virginia Music Teachers Association and the Boise State University Concerto Competitions. As a chamber musician, he has won the Virginia MTNA chamber music competition and the Boise Chamber Music Society’s String Quartet Competition. In 2013, Mr. Feldman became one of the first resident artists at Carilion Clinic (Roanoke, VA) through the Dr. Robert L. A.Keeley Healing Arts Program. Mr. Feldman currently serves as Assistant Professor of Cello at Liberty University in January of 2015. He performs on a cello by J.B. Vuillaume generously on loan from Elizabeth Krebbs.
Christi Salisbury (violin) holds a Bachelor of Music in violin (2006) from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University; pursued violin studies at the Eastman School of Music (1997-2000) with Mitchell Stern and Ilya Kaler; and studied privately with Manhattan School of Music violin teacher Burton Kaplan (2002-2003.) She was a violin teacher on faculty at the Monmouth Conservatory of Music in Red Bank, New Jersey (2001-2007) while working with mentor and noted teacher Irina Kowalsky.
Now in Lynchburg since 2007, Christ is active as a teacher and performer. She is an adjunct teacher at Lynchburg College and has private studios in Lynchburg and Charlottesville, Virginia. She is concertmaster of the James Chamber Players and 1st violin in the James String Quartet and performs regularly with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, the Charlottesville Symphony Orchestra, was concertmaster of the Lynchburg Symphony in May of 2015 and continues to freelance with various ensembles and churches throughout central-southwest Virginia. In June 2017 Christi entered the world of historically informed music practice by studying Baroque performance at Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute and has since performed with the North Carolina Baroque Orchestra on Baroque violin.
Christi is thrilled to be a founding member of the James String Quartet Summer Music Academy and is looking forward to their 2018 14-day festival to be held this June at Lynchburg College. From 2007-2013 Christi was co-owner of the stringed instrument rental and sales business Salisbury & Heer Stringed Instruments
and additionally was founder of Flying Carpet Music, an organization devoted to promoting classical , jazz and world music, and was artistic and executive director for their annual festival
Feast or Flower (2008) and Saudade (2009.)
Domenico Luca Trombetta (viola) is a native of Catania, Italy. He was admitted into the Istituto Musicale V. Bellini of Catania after a few years of private music instruction. He transferred his studies to the Conservatory of St. Cecilia, Rome,
to complete his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Viola Performance with highest honors under the instruction of Margot Burton. During this time, he was also a student at the Perosi Academy of Biella (Italy) studying with Simonide Braconi, the principal viola of La Scala Theater of Milan. Before completing his Master’s Degree he studied with Bruno Giuranna, at the Lugano Conservatory (Switzerland). Luca has appeared as the featured soloist in solo concerts and recitals and has performed around the world with numerous chamber ensembles, orchestras, and world renowned conductors such as Riccardo Muti, Yuri Temirkanov, Marc Soustrot, Ennio Morricone, Nicola Piovani (Music of Life is Beautiful), Lu Ja, and Steven White. He has appeared in concerts with Uto Ughi, Boris Belk in, Robert Cohen, Luisa Castellani, Andrea Bocelli, and Yo-yo Ma. Luca holds a D.M.A. from James Madison University and is currently Assistant Professor of Music and Coordinator of the String Programs at Liberty University. In addition to his performances with James String Players and Liya String Quartet, Luca is also a frequent performer with Opera on the James and in concert with his wife, American soprano Adelaide Muir Trombetta.
The recently formed LIYA String Quartet consists of Christi Salisbury and Yevgeniy Dovgalyuk, violins; Domenico Luca Trombetta, viola; and David Feldman, cello. Three of the members of the group, Christi Salisbury, Domenico Luca Trombetta and David Feldman, previously played together in the James String Quartet. The four musicians playing on the current concert first played together for AGAR in January, 2018 at Emanuel United Methodist Church.
Mr. Dovgalyuk is the recently appointed concertmaster of the Lynchburg Symphony and is an assistant Professor of Violin at Liberty University. He also serves as a substitute violinist with the National Symphony Orchestra. LIYA String Quartet is named for his late sister, Liya.
BIOGRAPHIES OF THE MUSICIANS
Yevgeniy Dovgalyuk (Violin) a native of Riga, Latvia, began studying violin at the age of six. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Violin Performance from the University of Maryland as well as Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from George Mason University. His teachers have included UMD professor Dr. James Stern and NSO violinists Peter Haase and Pavel Pekarsky. Winner of numerous performance awards, Dr. Dovgalyuk, has served as Concertmaster with many orchestras throughout his career. Most recently he has accepted the Concertmaster position with the Lynchburg Symphony. Yevgeniy is a regular substitute with the National Symphony Orchestra and joined the NSO on their Russia Tour in March of 2017. He also performs with the Fairfax Symphony, National Philharmonic, and Alexandria Symphony, among others.
He is actively involved with Liya Music Camp International in the USA and Ukraine where he serves as the Music Director, as well as Liya Christian Ministry, in memory of his sister. He has performed throughout the USA and Europe, including Sweden, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Latvia, and Russia. He is an assistant violin professor at Liberty University.
David Feldman (cello) performs frequently as a soloist, orchestral and chamber musician. He holds multiple cello performance degrees, studying under Alan Weinstein of the Kandinsky Trio at Roanoke College, and Brian Hodges at Boise State University, for whom he was a teaching assistant. He is an alumnus of the Castleman Quartet Program, Bowdoin International Music Festival and the Chautauqua Institution, completing additional studies under Peter Rejto, David Ying, and Steven Doane. Mr. Feldman has been a member of the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra since 2008 and has performed as a concerto soloist with the Boise State University Orchestra, theNew River Valley Symphony, and the Shenandoah Conservatory Orchestra. His popular music ventures include appearances with Charles Billingsly, D.J. Spooky, Liza Minnelli, Art Garfunkel, and the Trans Siberian Orchestra, where he was a featured soloist in 2011.
Mr. Feldman also remains active as a recording studio musician, having worked with artists both nationally and internationally. In addition to performing and recording, Mr. Feldman has served on the faculty at Ferrum College (VA) and as a resident artist with the James String Quartet at Lynchburg College (VA). Additionally, he has been a guest lecturer at the Virginia
Tech School of Performing Arts.
Mr. Feldman is a winner of both the Virginia Music Teachers Association and the Boise State University Concerto Competitions. As a chamber musician, he has won the Virginia MTNA chamber music competition and the Boise Chamber Music Society’s String Quartet Competition. In 2013, Mr. Feldman became one of the first resident artists at Carilion Clinic (Roanoke, VA) through the Dr. Robert L. A.Keeley Healing Arts Program. Mr. Feldman currently serves as Assistant Professor of Cello at Liberty University in January of 2015. He performs on a cello by J.B. Vuillaume generously on loan from Elizabeth Krebbs.
Christi Salisbury (violin) holds a Bachelor of Music in violin (2006) from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University; pursued violin studies at the Eastman School of Music (1997-2000) with Mitchell Stern and Ilya Kaler; and studied privately with Manhattan School of Music violin teacher Burton Kaplan (2002-2003.) She was a violin teacher on faculty at the Monmouth Conservatory of Music in Red Bank, New Jersey (2001-2007) while working with mentor and noted teacher Irina Kowalsky.
Now in Lynchburg since 2007, Christ is active as a teacher and performer. She is an adjunct teacher at Lynchburg College and has private studios in Lynchburg and Charlottesville, Virginia. She is concertmaster of the James Chamber Players and 1st violin in the James String Quartet and performs regularly with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, the Charlottesville Symphony Orchestra, was concertmaster of the Lynchburg Symphony in May of 2015 and continues to freelance with various ensembles and churches throughout central-southwest Virginia. In June 2017 Christi entered the world of historically informed music practice by studying Baroque performance at Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute and has since performed with the North Carolina Baroque Orchestra on Baroque violin.
Christi is thrilled to be a founding member of the James String Quartet Summer Music Academy and is looking forward to their 2018 14-day festival to be held this June at Lynchburg College. From 2007-2013 Christi was co-owner of the stringed instrument rental and sales business Salisbury & Heer Stringed Instruments
and additionally was founder of Flying Carpet Music, an organization devoted to promoting classical , jazz and world music, and was artistic and executive director for their annual festival
Feast or Flower (2008) and Saudade (2009.)
Domenico Luca Trombetta (viola) is a native of Catania, Italy. He was admitted into the Istituto Musicale V. Bellini of Catania after a few years of private music instruction. He transferred his studies to the Conservatory of St. Cecilia, Rome,
to complete his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Viola Performance with highest honors under the instruction of Margot Burton. During this time, he was also a student at the Perosi Academy of Biella (Italy) studying with Simonide Braconi, the principal viola of La Scala Theater of Milan. Before completing his Master’s Degree he studied with Bruno Giuranna, at the Lugano Conservatory (Switzerland). Luca has appeared as the featured soloist in solo concerts and recitals and has performed around the world with numerous chamber ensembles, orchestras, and world renowned conductors such as Riccardo Muti, Yuri Temirkanov, Marc Soustrot, Ennio Morricone, Nicola Piovani (Music of Life is Beautiful), Lu Ja, and Steven White. He has appeared in concerts with Uto Ughi, Boris Belk in, Robert Cohen, Luisa Castellani, Andrea Bocelli, and Yo-yo Ma. Luca holds a D.M.A. from James Madison University and is currently Assistant Professor of Music and Coordinator of the String Programs at Liberty University. In addition to his performances with James String Players and Liya String Quartet, Luca is also a frequent performer with Opera on the James and in concert with his wife, American soprano Adelaide Muir Trombetta.
Pianist Anna Billias and cellist Julia Goudimova Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. (AGAR) announces that pianist Anna Billias assisted by cellist Julia Goudimova will perform a concert of romantic music on Sunday, April 15, 2018 at 4 pm at Bethany United Methodist Church, 732 High Peak Road, Monroe. Dr. Billias, who was born and raised in the Ukraine, is currently an Assistant Professor and the Director of Piano Studies and Collaborative Performance at Sweet Briar College. Ms. Goudimova is principal cellist of the University-Shenandoah Symphony Orchestra, a founding member of Marlbrook string quartet, member of Saturn piano Quartet, participant of Ardo consort, and a cello instructor at Washington and Lee University and Southern Virginia University.
The AGAR/Bethany concert had previously been planned as a recital by pianist Jeanne Backofen Craig, a semi-finalist in the 2016 Cliburn International competition from Bedford, who has sustained a hand injury that will not permit her to play on Sunday. Mrs. Craig plans to be in the audience on Sunday, and AGAR and Craig hope to work with each other in the future. Tickets are available through LynchburgTickets.com or can be purchased at the venue door on Sunday starting at 3:15 pm. For more information call AGAR at 434-989-3215 or www.amherstglebeartsresponse.org BIOGRAPHIES OF THE PERFORMERS Dr. Anna Billias was trained as a concert pianist at the Prokofiev State Academy of Music in Donetsk, Ukraine (originally the Prokofiev Conservatory of Music) and graduated with advanced degrees in both performance and instruction for piano. During her school tenure, Anna performed with the school’s symphony orchestra, where she was a featured soloist and frequent accompanist throughout the Donetsk Oblast. Anna was invited to perform in Paris, France, for the International Music Forum in the fall of 1997, and was a prizewinner in the Prokofiev International Piano Competition in 1995, where she competed against pianists from across Europe. |
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Anna received her D.M.A. in piano performance from Shenandoah Conservatory, Winchester, Virginia.
She has performed in numerous concerts at Sweet Briar College, Hampden Sydney College, Lynchburg College, Liberty University, Randolph College, Shenandoah Conservatory, and James Madison University, and in London, England, Crimea, Russia, and Donetsk, Ukraine. She has performed in Lynchburg for fundraising events for the Forte Chamber Music Festival, Opera on the James and for the Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra. Anna has been invited to judge CVMTA competitions, and is a frequent jurist for musical events in Amherst, Lynchburg and Charlottesville. In 2010, she premiered a performance of Joelle Wallach’s “Daughters of Silence.” Anna is currently an Assistant Professor and the Director of Piano Studies and Collaborative Performance at Sweet Briar College. In her spare time, she is the music director at a local church and runs a growing private piano studio. She is also the proud mother of three musically gifted children and her husband, Chris, is the Commonwealth's Attorney for Rockbridge County and the City of Lexington, VA. Julia Goudimova was born in Moscow. She began studying piano at the age of five and cello at the age of seven. She studied in Tiraspol College of Music with Prof. G. A. Balykbaev and Belarus Academy of Music under the instruction of O.I.Studnitsky and E. L. Ksaveriev. She has performed in recitals and chamber music concerts in Belarus, Moldova, Germany, South Korea, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Since moving to the United States, Julia has been actively participating in the music life of South-Western Virginia and West Virginia, and is involved in symphony orchestra and chamber music performances in Washington D.C., Roanoke, Lynchburg, Lexington, Harrisonburg, as well as Bath and Rockbridge Counties. Currently Julia is principal cellist of the University-Shenandoah Symphony Orchestra, founding member of Marlbrook string quartet, member of Saturn piano Quartet, participant of Ardo consort, and a cello instructor at Washington and Lee University and Southern Virginia University. |
Chekhov Comedies

Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. (AGAR) presented two one act comedies "The Proposal" and "The Festivities" at the Amherst Glebe, 156 Patrick Henry Highway, Amherst, VA 24521. The Glebe has limited seating, call and make a reservation or purchase tickets through LynchburgTickets.com.
The plays are directed by Maxim Tumenev, who has based his work on versions of the plays presented by Ilkhom Theatre in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 2004, directed by the late Mark Weil. "The Proposal" concerns two farm families in search of a wedding, while "The Festivities" relates to a party in a small town bank. Mr. Tumenev says the Russian countryside and small town portrayed are not so different from Amherst, Virginia.
Mark Weil started the Ilkhom Theatre as first independent theatre in the Soviet Union, the first not to receive financial support from the Communist Government. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Mr. Weil continued his work in Tashkent, the Republic of Uzbekistan, which became increasingly politically conservative. Mr. Weil's imaginative work toured the world, including the USA, until he was murdered in 2007, after the end of a dress rehearsal for the Greek Tragedy "Agamemnon."
Lynn Kable, producer for the Glebe, led tours of USA presenters (for 7 Loaves Inc./GOH Productions) to Tashkent, where presenters were able to view Mr. Weil's extraordinary work in 2000 and 2002. At that time she met Mr. Tumenev, Mark Weil's assistant at Ilkhom. After Mark's death, Maxim moved to the United States. Since moving to the United States, Mr. Tumenev has worked for CEC-ArtsLink in New York City, an international arts exchange organization. The two Chekhov plays being presented by AGAR are Mr. Tumenev's tribute to Mr. Weil's work.
Featured in the plays are local Amherst and Lynchburg actors Tanya C. Anderson, John Gunnoe, John Langston, Royal Shiree and Emma Thom. Ellen Pettyjohn is Production Manager.
The plays are directed by Maxim Tumenev, who has based his work on versions of the plays presented by Ilkhom Theatre in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in 2004, directed by the late Mark Weil. "The Proposal" concerns two farm families in search of a wedding, while "The Festivities" relates to a party in a small town bank. Mr. Tumenev says the Russian countryside and small town portrayed are not so different from Amherst, Virginia.
Mark Weil started the Ilkhom Theatre as first independent theatre in the Soviet Union, the first not to receive financial support from the Communist Government. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Mr. Weil continued his work in Tashkent, the Republic of Uzbekistan, which became increasingly politically conservative. Mr. Weil's imaginative work toured the world, including the USA, until he was murdered in 2007, after the end of a dress rehearsal for the Greek Tragedy "Agamemnon."
Lynn Kable, producer for the Glebe, led tours of USA presenters (for 7 Loaves Inc./GOH Productions) to Tashkent, where presenters were able to view Mr. Weil's extraordinary work in 2000 and 2002. At that time she met Mr. Tumenev, Mark Weil's assistant at Ilkhom. After Mark's death, Maxim moved to the United States. Since moving to the United States, Mr. Tumenev has worked for CEC-ArtsLink in New York City, an international arts exchange organization. The two Chekhov plays being presented by AGAR are Mr. Tumenev's tribute to Mr. Weil's work.
Featured in the plays are local Amherst and Lynchburg actors Tanya C. Anderson, John Gunnoe, John Langston, Royal Shiree and Emma Thom. Ellen Pettyjohn is Production Manager.
ALKEMIE
“Cyprus in the early 15th Century was a complicated melting pot,” says Niccolo Seligmann, whose research inspired the musical choices for early music ensemble ALKEMIE’S program Cyprus 1400. Presented by Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. (AGAR) on Sunday February 11th at Amherst Presbyterian Church, 163 Second Street, Amherst VA at 4:00 pm.
Mr. Seligman explains: “Armies on their way to the Crusades would stop in Cyprus, since it was an island directly Northwest of Jerusalem. There were Greek inhabitants, French occupiers, Armenians escaping an army called the Mamluk. Also, in 1400, there were merchants from North Africa and Middle East, Jews and Muslims. Cyprus became very wealthy, a culturally and musically diverse hub.” ALKEMIE musicians are Tracy Cowart, mezzo-soprano & harp, David McCormick, vielle, Elena Mullins, soprano & percussion, Sian Ricketts, soprano & recorders, and Niccolo Seligmann, vielle & percussion. |
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“We are so pleased to have ALKEMIE return to AGAR’S Amherst Music Series this year,” says AGAR producer Lynn Kable. “Last year their ‘Nowell’ program was magical! These wonderful, intrepid young musicians made their way from California, New York, New Jersey, Ohio and Charlottesville to perform just after the blizzard. The three singers, two vielle (medieval violin) and harp, percussion and recorder players brought a sense of joy, beauty and piece to the audience, playing tuneful, pleasing, yet unfamiliar Western European songs from the Middle Ages and Renaissance. We are excited to be able to present this year their program of Greek, Cypriot, Armenian folk music and religious works from the Codex Turino that only ALKEMIE brings to this area.
”Cyprus is a Mediterranean island nation, now a tourist destination and a part of the European Union. The island was governed from 1359 to 1432, when it was at the height of its power, by a French family, the de Lusignans. Pierre I de Lusignan took Cypriot musicians on a three-year tour of France, returning to Cyprus with ars Subtilior, a musical style that took root in the City of Nicosia. James I de Luisignan encouraged the development of Cypriot music, and his daughter Anne de Lusignan brought “The Codex Turin,” over two hundred religious and secular Cypriot musical pieces, to Europe after her marriage to Louis, Count of Geneva. The Turino, as it is known, is kept in the National Library of Turin, Italy. ALKEMIE has used Cypriot and Armenian works from The Codex Turin in the program to be performed in Amherst. Some of the simple-and-elegant-sounding but extremely complicated and difficult music notation from “The Turino,” is only found in this manuscript. ALKEMIE will round out the program with traditional Greek and Cypriot folk pieces of the period. Mr. Seligmann explained that he discovered traditional folk music of the Famagusta Municipality folk dance group, one of several traditional groups on the island. A supper and a “meet the musicians” reception followed the concert, hosted by Amherst Presbyterian Church’s (APC) Mission Committee, for a donation to benefit APC Pre-School. |
James String Quartet
Guest soloist Noemi Szigeti Lee was born in Romania, where she attended college before moving to the United States in 1997 to pursue her Master of Music degree in piano performance at the University of Alabama. Mrs. Lee has won prizes in numerous piano competitions and has performed as a soloist with the symphony orchestras of Cluj, Romania, the University of Alabama and Lynchburg, Virginia. Mrs. Lee is an adjunct instructor of piano at Lynchburg College and has a private studio.
Members of the James String Quartet for this concert are Christi Salisbury, Concertmistress and violin I, Yevgeniy Dovgalyuk, Violin II guest artist, Domenico Luca Trombetta, viola, and David Feldman, cello. Artistic Director Joseph Nigro is not able to play in this concert. The first work on the program will be the Piano Quintet in G Minor, opus 57, by Dmitri Shostakovich. It is one of his best-known chamber works. Shostakovich wrote the piece during the summer of 1940, during the early years of World War II in Europe, and premiered on November 23, 1940 at the Moscow Conservatory with Shostakovich at the piano. |
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“It’s a heavily Russian piece, reflecting the beginning of World War II, and yet there is fun and humor in it in surprising places,” says pianist Noemi Szigeti Lee. “The piano and the strings are totally equal, and very much play together, much more so than in most piano works with strings or orchestra.”
César Franck’s Piano Quintet in F minor is considered one of his major achievements. It was composed in 1880 and premiered with Camille Saint-Saëns playing the piano part. Noemi Szigeti Lee says, “The piano writing in this work is very organ-like, but also has passionate meaning behind it. Franck was in love with one of his students, but at the same time he was very religious, and faithful to his wife. You can feel the struggle in this piece. I feel close to Franck as a religious person, he put this in his music. His moral character stands out to me – and his piano writing is amazing!“ |
CIRCA 1700: European Treasures for Two Violas da Gamba:
On October 22, 2017, AGAR presented. Circa 1700: European Treasures for two Violas da Gamba. Musicians were Amy Domingues and Donna Fournier, violas da gamba, and Anthony Harvey, theorbo. This program featured works of French masters Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe, Marin Marais, and Robert de Visée; Dutch-born Johannes Schenck, and German native August Kühnel. The performance took place at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Clifford, 670 Patrick Henry Highway, Amherst, VA 24521. The women of St. Mark’s hosted a “Meet the Artist” supper after the concert to benefit Amherst Cares, a program serving food-insecure children.
The viola da gamba was an exceptionally popular instrument in Germany and France at the cusp of the 1700s. Virtuoso players wrote droves of high-quality, exceptional music in such forms as sonatas, suites, and character pieces for themselves and their proteges to perform at court. These pieces were played with continuo accompaniment of keyboard, theorbo, and/or another gamba, but many of these composers also wrote for two equal instruments. This program presents works of French masters Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe, Marin Marais, and Robert de Visée, Dutch-born Johannes Schenck, and German native August Kühnel.
Amy Domingues of Washington, DC, has a passion for performing music new and old on the cello and viola da gamba. Her journey started with an undergraduate degree in cello performance from James Madison University, leading to a freelance performance career in the DC area. Amy honed her ensemble skills as a session cellist, recording and touring with rock and experimental bands in the United States, Europe, and Japan. After more than a decade of singing and playing cello in her “chamber rock” band, Garland of Hours, Domingues turned to the viola da gamba, an instrument with which she had long been fascinated. Following years of study, including master classes with Wieland Kuijken, Paolo Pandolfo, and Philippe Pierlot, she earned a master’s degree in Early Music from Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore.
Since then, Amy has enjoyed an ambitious career as an early musician, performing on baroque cello and viola da gamba with groups as varied as The Folger Consort, Hesperus, The Washington Bach Consort, and co-founded Corda Nova, a baroque string trio with Edmond Chan, violin, and Anthony Harvey, theorbo. Amy also currently performs with the early music ensemble Sonnambula and with Dennis Kane in the experimental/neo-classical duo Domingues & Kane.Amy has received the Peabody Career Development Grant and is a multiple recipient of the Artist’s Grant in Aid from the Viola da Gamba Society of America. She is an avid educator and maintains a private studio of both cello and gamba students of all levels and ages. As a recording artist, Amy appears on over 70 albums, spanning genres as varied as indie rock and classical, folk and experimental.
Donna Fournier, a Philadelphia-based gambist and baroque cellist is a member of La Bernardinia Baroque Ensemble, Mélomanie, and Triomphe de l'Amour and has been a guest artist with such groups as Opera Lafayette, Tempesta di Mare, Brandywine Baroque, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and The Philadelphia Classical Symphony. The Philadelphia Inquirer acclaimed her solo work as "poised, soulful ... [and] played with particular depth." She specializes in repertoire from the French Baroque period as well as works featuring solo viola da gamba by J.S. Bach. Donna has recorded Buxtehude cantatas for PGM, Telemann trio sonatas for Lyrichord, Boismortier trio sonatas for A Casa Discos, Jaquet de La Guerre and Bousset cantatas for Plectra Music, and new music for baroque ensemble for Meyers Music and Furious Artisans.
Anthony Harvey (Theorbo) has been Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. Music Program Development Director and Artistic Director of Middleburg Music for the past five years. He performs regularly as soloist and as a continuo player on theorbo, baroque guitar and baroque lute. He recently has performed with North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Ensemble Vermillian, The Washington Bach Consort, Chatham Baroque. He has co-directed James Madison University's The Valley Collegium and served on faculty at Washington College. Mr. Harvey holds multiple degrees from the Peabody Conservatory, where he studied theorbo and baroque lute with Richard Stone.
Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. (AGAR) brings its 2017-2018 chamber music season with partial general operating support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Virginia Commission for the Arts.
On October 22, 2017, AGAR presented. Circa 1700: European Treasures for two Violas da Gamba. Musicians were Amy Domingues and Donna Fournier, violas da gamba, and Anthony Harvey, theorbo. This program featured works of French masters Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe, Marin Marais, and Robert de Visée; Dutch-born Johannes Schenck, and German native August Kühnel. The performance took place at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Clifford, 670 Patrick Henry Highway, Amherst, VA 24521. The women of St. Mark’s hosted a “Meet the Artist” supper after the concert to benefit Amherst Cares, a program serving food-insecure children.
The viola da gamba was an exceptionally popular instrument in Germany and France at the cusp of the 1700s. Virtuoso players wrote droves of high-quality, exceptional music in such forms as sonatas, suites, and character pieces for themselves and their proteges to perform at court. These pieces were played with continuo accompaniment of keyboard, theorbo, and/or another gamba, but many of these composers also wrote for two equal instruments. This program presents works of French masters Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe, Marin Marais, and Robert de Visée, Dutch-born Johannes Schenck, and German native August Kühnel.
Amy Domingues of Washington, DC, has a passion for performing music new and old on the cello and viola da gamba. Her journey started with an undergraduate degree in cello performance from James Madison University, leading to a freelance performance career in the DC area. Amy honed her ensemble skills as a session cellist, recording and touring with rock and experimental bands in the United States, Europe, and Japan. After more than a decade of singing and playing cello in her “chamber rock” band, Garland of Hours, Domingues turned to the viola da gamba, an instrument with which she had long been fascinated. Following years of study, including master classes with Wieland Kuijken, Paolo Pandolfo, and Philippe Pierlot, she earned a master’s degree in Early Music from Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore.
Since then, Amy has enjoyed an ambitious career as an early musician, performing on baroque cello and viola da gamba with groups as varied as The Folger Consort, Hesperus, The Washington Bach Consort, and co-founded Corda Nova, a baroque string trio with Edmond Chan, violin, and Anthony Harvey, theorbo. Amy also currently performs with the early music ensemble Sonnambula and with Dennis Kane in the experimental/neo-classical duo Domingues & Kane.Amy has received the Peabody Career Development Grant and is a multiple recipient of the Artist’s Grant in Aid from the Viola da Gamba Society of America. She is an avid educator and maintains a private studio of both cello and gamba students of all levels and ages. As a recording artist, Amy appears on over 70 albums, spanning genres as varied as indie rock and classical, folk and experimental.
Donna Fournier, a Philadelphia-based gambist and baroque cellist is a member of La Bernardinia Baroque Ensemble, Mélomanie, and Triomphe de l'Amour and has been a guest artist with such groups as Opera Lafayette, Tempesta di Mare, Brandywine Baroque, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and The Philadelphia Classical Symphony. The Philadelphia Inquirer acclaimed her solo work as "poised, soulful ... [and] played with particular depth." She specializes in repertoire from the French Baroque period as well as works featuring solo viola da gamba by J.S. Bach. Donna has recorded Buxtehude cantatas for PGM, Telemann trio sonatas for Lyrichord, Boismortier trio sonatas for A Casa Discos, Jaquet de La Guerre and Bousset cantatas for Plectra Music, and new music for baroque ensemble for Meyers Music and Furious Artisans.
Anthony Harvey (Theorbo) has been Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. Music Program Development Director and Artistic Director of Middleburg Music for the past five years. He performs regularly as soloist and as a continuo player on theorbo, baroque guitar and baroque lute. He recently has performed with North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Ensemble Vermillian, The Washington Bach Consort, Chatham Baroque. He has co-directed James Madison University's The Valley Collegium and served on faculty at Washington College. Mr. Harvey holds multiple degrees from the Peabody Conservatory, where he studied theorbo and baroque lute with Richard Stone.
Amherst Glebe Arts Response, Inc. (AGAR) brings its 2017-2018 chamber music season with partial general operating support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Virginia Commission for the Arts.
We Will Sustain the World
Toot Suite
![]() Amherst Glebe Arts Response in collaboration with Second Stage Amherst and the Bower Center for the Arts in Bedford will present the jazz quartet of Chris Magee - trumpet, Dana Ballard - piano, Ed Mikenas - bass, and Larry Scott - drums playing the French jazz classic "Toot Suite" at Second Stage Amherst on September 22, 2017 at 7:30 pm, and on September 30, 2017 at 8 pm at the Bower Center in Bedford. Season tickets for AGAR will be honored at both performances. Individual tickets can be purchased through LynchburgTickets.com or at the venue doors one hour before each concert. Chris Magee is a well-known trumpeter who has played lead trumpet for such artists as Wayne Newton, the Temptations, The Four Tops and the O'Jays. He was staff trumpeter and arranger at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Chris is a native of Harrisonburg, Virginia and resides in Bedford. He received the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from James Madison University and the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the University of Iowa in brass methods. He teaches music at Lynchburg College where he directs the Jazz Ensemble and teaches trumpet, Music Appreciation and courses in world music, music appreciation, conducting and brass methods. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Music at Northeast Lakeview College in Universal City, Texas, and directed the jazz ensemble at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Last season for AGAR he premiered the string quartet version of Larry Allan Williams' "Passages." |
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Chris Magee will lead the group in the virtuoso trumpet work, a full evening piece in six parts. Chris Magee points out that "Toot Suite" is so demanding for the trumpet player that he must have at least a day in between performances to recover. Dana Ballard is a wonderful pianist and an accompanist at Lynchburg College. Ed Mikenas and Larry Scott are well-known jazz players in the Greater Lynchburg areas. The group performed "Toot Suite" last year at Lynchburg College and Chris Magee says, "We were very happy to have AGAR give us two more opportunities to play the piece. This is such a fun work, and audiences love it!" "Toot Suite" is a famous full-evening work in six parts, originally composed and performed in 1981 by Claude Bolling a French jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and occasional actor working in collaboration with virtuoso trumpeter Maurice André. Bolling played jazz with Lionel Hampton, Roy Eldridge and Kenny Clarke. He has written music for over 100 films, Bolling was born in Cannes, studied at the Nice Conservatory, and then in Paris. A child prodigy, by age 14 he was playing jazz piano professionally, with Lionel Hampton, Roy Eldridge, and Kenny Clarke. Bolling's books on jazz technique show that he did not delve far beyond bebop into much avant garde jazz. He was a major part of the traditional jazz revival in the late 1960s, and he became friends with Oscar Peterson. Bolling is also noted for a series of "crossover" collaborations with classical musicians. His Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio with Jean-Pierre Rampal proved extremely popular. Bolling went on to work with many other musicians, from different genres, including guitarist Alexandre Lagoya, violinist Pinchas Zukerman, trumpeter Maurice André, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. He has also worked with, and performed tributes to many others, including Lionel Hampton, Duke Ellington, Stéphane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt, and Oscar Peterson.
Maurice André (1933-2012) was a French trumpeter, active in the classical music field. He was professor of trumpet at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris. André inspired many innovations on his instrument, and his technical mastery and profound artistry has contributed over fifty years to popularize the trumpet worldwide. He was known worldwide as a classical trumpeter. His jazz collaboration on "Toot Suite" with Claude Bolling was a departure for him and became a very popular work in the jazz repertoire. |