CURRENT SEASON

MICHAEL BROWN, PIANO & GILLES VONSATTEL, PIANO

PROGRAM

• Samuel Barber Souvenirs for Piano, Four Hands, Op. 28 (1951)

• Michael Brown: Prelude and Dance for Cello and Piano (2014, rev. 2017)

• Felix Mendelssohn: Sextet in D major for Piano, Violin, Two Violas, Cello, and Double Bass, Op. 110 (1824)

ARTIST BIOS

• Michael Brown

  Pianist Michael Brown, violinist Elena Urioste, and cellist Nicholas Canellakis have established themselves as three of the most sought-after young virtuosos on the classical music scene today. Winners, individually, of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, BBC New Generation Artist Scheme, Sphinx and Concert Artists Guild competitions, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center auditions, they have performed in prestigious venues across the United States and Europe, including Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, and London’s Wigmore and Royal Festival Halls.

  Engagements for the Brown-Urioste-Canellakis (BUC) Trio last season included a performance of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the Albany Symphony Orchestra, and recitals at Lincoln Center’s Merkin Hall in New York City; ArtPower! in San Diego; the Norton Building Concert Series in Chicago; Corning Civic Music, NY; Danbury Concerts, CT; and Los Alamos Concerts, NM. Michael Brown, also a noted composer, has been commissioned by the Norton Building Concert Series to write a new work for the trio, which premiered on the same series in November 2016.

  Recent season highlights have included a Vancouver Recital Society debut, as well as a Midwestern tour with performances at the Ravinia Festival, Illinois State University, Eureka College, and Chicago’s classical music radio station WFMT, in addition to a solo appearance with the Heartland Festival Orchestra.

  In addition to being extremely like-minded about their approaches to music, repertoire preferences, and rehearsal dynamics, the three friends also enjoy cooking together, eliciting guttural laughs from each other, and going in search for the perfect pour-over cup of coffee during their travels.

• Gilles Vonsattel

  John Arida is a pianist and coach based in New York City and specializing in both opera and art song. During the 2016-17 season he appeared in recital with soprano Julia Bullock at the Rochester Lyric Opera and mezzo-soprano Megan Marino at Opera Delaware’s Sunday Artist Spotlight series. Mr. Arida also serves on the music staff at the Juilliard School, Virginia Opera, and Central City Opera, as well as the Prototype Festival, where he will prepare the New York premiere of “anatomy theater” by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang. Past notable performances include Carnegie Hall and Mexico recital debuts with mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard; John’s Canadian debut with soprano Simone Osborne; and the live-streamed memorial tribute to Maestro Lorin Maazel, where his partners included Sir James Galway. Mr. Arida has been on the music staff at the Juilliard School, Central City Opera, the Castleton Festival, Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and has held a season-long engagement as Emerging Artist Pianist with Virginia Opera. He holds a master’s degree in collaborative piano from Juilliard as well as a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from SUNY Purchase.

• Nicholas Canellakis

  John Arida is a pianist and coach based in New York City and specializing in both opera and art song. During the 2016-17 season he appeared in recital with soprano Julia Bullock at the Rochester Lyric Opera and mezzo-soprano Megan Marino at Opera Delaware’s Sunday Artist Spotlight series. Mr. Arida also serves on the music staff at the Juilliard School, Virginia Opera, and Central City Opera, as well as the Prototype Festival, where he will prepare the New York premiere of “anatomy theater” by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang. Past notable performances include Carnegie Hall and Mexico recital debuts with mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard; John’s Canadian debut with soprano Simone Osborne; and the live-streamed memorial tribute to Maestro Lorin Maazel, where his partners included Sir James Galway. Mr. Arida has been on the music staff at the Juilliard School, Central City Opera, the Castleton Festival, Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and has held a season-long engagement as Emerging Artist Pianist with Virginia Opera. He holds a master’s degree in collaborative piano from Juilliard as well as a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance from SUNY Purchase.