All over the country, symphony orchestra organizations are looking for new ideas to keep old audiences excited -- and to attract new audiences and keep them excited as well. Among these ideas are new music... and new and different venues.
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra is now venturing into this territory with a new series next season that will be programmed by, and feature, its new concertmaster, Gabriel Lefkowitz. The Concertmaster Series will consist of three pairs (Wednesdays/Thursdays) of performances in October 2012, and January and March of 2013, at the Remedy Coffee House at 125 W. Jackson Avenue in the Old City. The performance times are 7:00 p.m. Needless to say, the performances will be for solo performers and small ensembles and will have a somewhat limited audience capacity. The original Thursday dates (Oct 4, Jan 17, March 14) were snapped up by subscribers, so the KSO has added Wednesday night performances to the mix. If the programs mentioned below sound interesting, I'd suggest calling the KSO at 865-291-3310 at once to reserve a spot. The three-performance series is $45. Complimentary coffee and dessert will be served after each concert.
October 3 and 4, 2012 (4th is sold out)
Ravel Tzigane
Prokofiev Sonata No. 2 in D Major
Brahms Piano Trio No. 1 in B Major
Performers: Gabriel Lefkowitz, violin; Kevin Class, piano; Andy Bryenton, cello
January 16 and 17, 2013 (17th is sold out)
Bach Solo Sonata No. 3 in E Major - Prelude
Ysaye Sonata No. 2, Obsession
Dvorak Piano Quintet
Performers: Gabriel Lefkowitz and Gordon Tsai, violin; Kathryn Gawne, viola; Andy Bryenton, cello; Kevin Class, piano
March 13 and 14, 2013 (14th is sold out)
Schubert, The Bee
Ponce Estrellita
Bazzini Round of the Goblins
Mendelssohn Octet
Performers: Gabriel Lefkowitz, Gordon Tsai, Edward Pulgar, violin; Kathryn Gawne and Eunsoon Lee-Corlis, viola; Andy Bryenton and Ihsan Kartal, cello.
Lefkowitz offered this:
"The format of the concert will allow us performers the precious (and so often missed in classical music) opportunity to speak directly and often to the audience, during the concert. I've programmed the series with some of my favorite pieces by some of my favorite composers of all time and I intend to discuss each piece before performing it with special emphasis not only on the circumstances of its composition, but also on the nature of the piece as seen through a performer's eyes - what it is about the work that I love, the physical and mental challenges it presents and other details. And I'll certainly be sticking around for the coffee and dessert reception after each concert of the series to meet and speak with as many concert goers as possible."
Comments » 0
Be the first to post a comment!
Share your thoughts
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.