Dear Rochester musicians,
Happy new year! Hope this post finds you well.
It’s not a problem per se, but I have to mention: you have been so prolific and creative and interesting this past year, that I’ve had a bit of trouble keeping up. Now don’t you go changing, I’m just going to keep listening, and we'll have a few of you share the CD spotlight all at once as we start the new year together!
Warmest wishes,
-Mona
‘Works for Piano Trio by Schubert & Rihm’ by Trio Brontë
Cellist Annie Jacobs-Perkins (who got her start in Rochester before making a name for herself everywhere from Austin to Berlin), has teamed up with German-Italian violinist Chiara Sannicandro and Bulgarian pianist Lili Bogdanova for a stellar debut album that pairs trios by the romantic Franz Schubert and the modernist Wolfgang Rihm.
The music on this album sounds as fresh, and as intimate, as a recital in a living room or a small music hall, even as it exists in two seemingly completely different worlds. Both are worth exploring. Read more in CITY Magazine
Bonus: you can hear Annie Jacobs-Perkins on Live from Hochstein, from when she visited Rochester this past spring.
'Serendipity: Music of Missy Mazzoli, Mark Mellits, JacobTV' by Laura Lentz, flute
This past fall brought the release of Laura Lentz’s album 'Serendipity,' which was teased out earlier in the year with the entrancing single “Discrete Structures” by Mark Mellits.
The full album delivers on that promise with two more new recordings - a new version of Missy Mazzoli’s “Magic with Everyday Objects,” with cellist Svetlana Garitselova and pianist Jacob Ertl, and Serendipity2 by JacobTV. That last piece is entrancing, and it lives up to its name by bringing us the joy of chance encounters with the Beo String Quartet and tabla playing by Tom Nanni. Check out the album here.
‘Between Strings’ by the Suen-Kam Duo
Behold ...an object of beauty.
While, as you and I know, it's what is on the inside that counts, can we first start with the utter joy of holding the physical instantiation of this debut album from guitarists Shiuen-Huang Suen and Kenneth Kam?
If physical media continues to make a come-back, I would love for it to continue to take such surprising and eminently suitable forms.
Now we can get on to the music inside: also full of beauty, both bright baroque arrangements, and dreamy music from movies and classical composers from Cuba and Spain. Read more in CITY Magazine.
Another bonus: Revisit the Suen-Kam Duo's performance on Live from Hochstein.
'Nollaig Na mBan: A Little Christmas' by the Hats and Heels Duo
As I write this little post, it is Epiphany, so the Christmas season is just about well and truly over. But did you know that today is known as “Little Christmas” or “Women's Christmas” in Ireland? It is a cherished Irish tradition celebrated on January 6th, marking the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas. In many parts of Ireland, this day was traditionally set aside to honor women for all the work they did throughout the festive season.
So now it is time to relax and enjoy this music by the fabulous Hats & Heels Duo: bassoonist Blaire Koerner and harpist Rosanna Moore, and be sure to save it for next year’s Christmas playlists too. For more of their music, without the holiday, spin: be sure to listen to their first album: “Women are…Celebrating Women Composers."
For more great local music - classical and otherwise - check out CITY Magazine for music reviews. Here's to more good music in the new year!
