Soprano Carol Menke and Pianist Marilyn Thompson
Sunday, October 9, 2011, 4pm

Carol Menke
Lyric soprano Carol Menke began her musical studies at the piano with her mother at age five, and at age eight started flute lessons. She entered college with aspirations of a career as a flautist.  However, participation in a voice class led to recognition of her superb vocal gifts. Following graduation from CSU, attendance at the Franz Schubert Institute in Baden bei Wien, Austria, confirmed her passion for the Art Song genre. The young singer was heard in performance many times at the Schuberthaus in Vienna during this period of study with Elly Ameling, Jörg Demus and Norman Shelter.  Miss Menke later completed her Master’s degree in Vocal Performance. Her performances have won the accolades of music critics and orchestral conductors who have commented on her “silvery bright…. illuminating voice” and “appealing sweetness of tone.”  Upon hearing her perform one of his newly composed chamber works, the renowned composer Alan Hovhaness acknowledged and praised her “perfect musicianship.” Carol maintains a full schedule as teacher and choral conductor in addition to fulfilling her illustrious solo engagements. At Santa Rosa Junior College she teaches voice and music theory classes. The Santa Rosa Children’s Chorus has thrived and achieved high praise during Miss Menke’s tenure as Artistic Director. She conducts the choir at the Church of the Incarnation in Santa Rosa and is Artistic Director of Cantiamo Sonoma, a 14-member chamber choral ensemble.

Marilyn Thompson
Pianist Marilyn Thompson received her Bachelor’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she was a student of Adolph Baller. The following year, she was awarded a Fulbright grant to the Vienna Academy of Music. During that year, she performed in Heiligenstadt and in the Beethovensaal in Vienna. She holds a Master’s degree from Stanford University. Miss Thompson has performed in chamber music concerts in New York City: Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, and the 92nd Street “Y”. Other venues include the Philip’s Gallery, Washington D.C.; Symphony Hall, Boston; Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco; and the Teatro Nacional, San Jose, Costa Rica. Marilyn has taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the College of Holy Names in Oakland, and the University of California at Santa Cruz. She is presently on the faculty at Sonoma State University, where she has taught since 1976. Miss Thompson is the pianist member of the Trio Navarro, along with violinist, Roy Malan; and cellist, Jill Brindel.

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Chiara Quartet
Friday, December 2, 2011, 8pm

Renowned for bringing fresh excitement to traditional string quartet repertoire as well as for creating thoroughly insightful interpretations of new music, the Chiara Quartet (Rebecca Fischer and Julie Hye-Yung Yoon, violins; Jonah Sirota, viola; Gregory Beaver, cello) captivates and enthralls its audiences throughout the country. Over its first decade, the Chiara Quartet has established itself as among America’s most respected ensembles, lauded for its "highly virtuosic, edge-of-the-seat playing" (The Boston Globe).

The Chiara String Quartet serves as Blodgett Artists-in-Residence at Harvard University, where it is currently performing the complete cycle of Beethoven's string quartets. This season, New Amsterdam Records will release the Chiara's recording of composer Jefferson Friedman's String Quartets Nos. 2 and 3. Both celebrated pieces, which "already deserve to be heard as classics of this decade" (The New York Times) were commissioned by the Chiara, and are the result of a more than ten-year friendship with the composer.

The Chiara discography includes the Mozart and Brahms clarinet quintets with Håkan Rosengren for SMS Classical, and the world premiere recordings of Robert Sirota's Triptych and Gabriela Lena Frank's Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout for the Quartet's own New Voice Singles label. Other recent collaborators of the quartet include The Juilliard String Quartet, Joel Krosnick, Todd Palmer, Simone Dinnerstein, Norman Fischer, and Paul Katz, as well as members of the Orion, Ying, Cavani, and Pacifica Quartets.

Visit the Chiara String Quartet Web site.

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Violinist Alexander Barantschik and Pianist Robin Sutherland
Sunday, January 15, 2012, 4pm
Doors open at 3:20pm
Reception to follow concert

Alexander Barantschik joined the San Francisco Symphony as concertmaster in September 2001, having served as concertmaster of the London Symphony Orchestra and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. Born in Saint Petersburg in 1953, he attended the Saint Petersburg Conservatory and performed with major Russian orchestras, including the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic, before immigrating in 1979. His awards include first prizes in the International Violin Competition in Sion, Switzerland, and the Russian National Violin Competition. Barantschik has performed as soloist with the San Francisco Symphony in the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, Bach’s Concerto No. 3 for Two Violins (with Gil Shaham), Schnittke’s Violin Concerto No. 4, Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3, Brahms’s Double Concerto for Violin and Cello, Britten’s Double Concerto, Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major, Op. 19 and all the Bach Brandenburg concertos. He has performed throughout Europe with such artists as André Previn, Mstislav Rostropovich, Maxim Vengerov and Yuri Bashmet.

The American pianist, Robin Sutherland, studied with Rosina Lhevinne at the Juilliard School and with Paul Hersh at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. While still an undergraduate, he was appointed principal pianist of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (SFS) by Seiji Ozawa. The recipient of numerous awards, Sutherland was selected at 17 to be sole participant from the USA at the International Bach Festival, held at Lincoln Center. He was a finalist in the International Bach Competition in Washington DC. Robin Sutherland is co-director of the Telluride Players and a regular performer at the Bay Chamber Concerts in Rockport, Maine. Many composers have dedicated works to him, and among the world premieres in which he has participated was that of John Adams’s Grand Pianola Music, with members of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.

Join us for this rare opportunity to hear them as a duo.

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The Ives Quartet
Friday, February 3, 2012, 8pm
Doors open at 7:15pm
Reception before concert at 7:15pm

The Ives Quartet (Bettina Mussumeli, violin; Susan Freier, violin; Jodi Levitz, viola; and Stephen Harrison, cello) has established a reputation for passion, precision, and provocative programming, winning accolades for playing that shows both super-refinement and visceral, rock-and-roll intensity.

Inspired by the passionate, artistic commitment and unique temperament of American composer Charles Ives (1874–1954), the quartet has attracted critical enthusiasm for its “practice of reveling in the unfamiliar,” championing an eclectic repertoire that combines established masterworks with underappreciated gems, neglected scores of early-twentieth-century America, and specially commissioned new pieces. In a departure from convention, the Quartet combines players with American and European experience and sensibilities, drawing on the talent and experience of the international, solo, orchestral, chamber, and recording careers of its artist members. The quartet members share a strong commitment to the special challenges of the string-quartet literature and its performance.  This value is expressed in the Quartet’s open-minded and critical engagement with the personal and private worlds of composers, exploration of the unique languages of string-quartet composers, and the introduction and immersion of audiences in these languages with carefully curated concert presentations. Drawing on their personal commitment to shaping the next generation of classical-music performers, the Quartet devotes a significant portion of its year-round work to string-ensemble coaching and music education.  Frequently, the Quartet visits Trinity College in Charles Ives’s Hartford for residency activities.

Visit the Ives Quartet Web site.

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Special Randolph Newman Concert featuring Pianist Joyce Yang
Friday, March 16, 2012, 8pm
Doors open at 7:15pm
Reception before concert at 7:15pm

Critically acclaimed as "the most gifted young pianist of her generation" with a "million-volt stage presence," pianist Joyce Yang captivates audiences around the globe with her stunning virtuosity combined with heartfelt lyricism and interpretive sensitivity. Just twenty-four years old, she has established herself as one of the leading artists of her generation through her innovative solo recitals and notable collaborations with the world’s top orchestras. In 2010 she was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant, one of the most prestigious prizes in classical music.

In the summer of 2010, Ms. Yang made her San Francisco Symphony debut with Alondra de la Parra, returned to the Chicago Symphony under James Conlon at Ravinia and the Aspen Festival Orchestra led by Leonard Slatkin at the Aspen Music Festival, and she performed a recital at the Crested Butte Music Festival and chamber music at La Jolla Summerfest. Other highlights of the 2010-2011 season included concerto performances with Edo de Waart in Milwaukee, Sydney, Melbourne, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as appearances as orchestral soloist in Tel Aviv, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Nebraska, North Carolina and Utah.  In addition, she performed recitals in Atlanta, Berkeley (Cal Performances) and Sydney, Australia, and made her first appearance at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival.  An avid chamber musician, she continues her longtime collaboration with the Takàcs Quartet, and tours with violinist Stefan Jackiw and the Miró Quartet.

Visit Joyce Yang's Web site.

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Alexander String Quartet
Friday, April 13, 2012, 8pm
Doors open at 7:15pm
Reception before concert at 7:15pm

A perennial audience favorite, the Alexander String Quartet (Zakarias Grafilo and Frederick Lifsitz, violins; Paul Yarbrough, viola; and Sandy Wilson, cello) has performed in the major music capitals of five continents, securing its standing among the world’s premier ensembles over nearly three decades.

Widely admired for its interpretations of Beethoven, Mozart, and Shostakovich, the Quartet has also established itself as an important advocate of new music through over 25 commissions and numerous premiere performances. The April 13, 2012 performance includes the world premier of Pantagón by Cindy Cox. The Alexander String Quartet is a major artistic presence in its home base of San Francisco, serving there as directors of the Morrison Chamber Music Center at the School of Music and Dance in the College of Creative Arts at San Francisco State University and Ensemble in Residence of San Francisco Performances.

The Alexander String Quartet's annual calendar of concerts includes engagements at major halls throughout North America and Europe. The quartet has appeared at Lincoln Center, the 92nd Street Y, and the Metropolitan Museum in New York City; Jordan Hall in Boston; the Library of Congress and Dumbarton Oaks in Washington; and chamber music societies and universities across the North American continent. Recent overseas tours have brought them to the U.K., the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, France, Greece, the Republic of Georgia, Argentina, and the Philippines.

Visit the Alexander String Quartet Web site.

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