Bloomingdale School Of Music Presents Bernstein's Chamber Music As Part Of LEONARD BERNSTEIN AT 100

Bloomingdale School of Music (BSM) is pleased to continue its participation in Leonard Bernstein at 100, the global centennial celebration of the legendary composer, conductor, educator and humanitarian Leonard Bernstein with a concert highlighting the maestro's chamber music on Friday, March 23rd at 7:00 pm. This free concert will be held at the school's home site located at 108th street between Broadway and Riverside Drive. Seating is limited.

Join BSM faculty members Naho Parrini, Eric Phinney and Marc Peloquin as well as BSM Executive Director Erika Floreska and Marketing Manager Noelle Barbera in a special concert celebrating the genius of Leonard Bernstein's chamber music. The program includes ten Anniversaries for Piano, Halil (Hebrew for flute), two love songs rarely performed, Extinguish My Eyes and When My Soul Touches Yours, with poetry by Rainer Maria Rilke, and the exciting final movement of the Serenade for violin.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Marc Peloquin, Piano

A New York Times critic recently declared that pianist Marc Peloquin's "energetic approach yielded a performance that was refreshing and alive. Individual lines rang out with remarkable definition and clarity." The pianist, called an "innovative ivory tickler' by Time Out New York, has appeared in a wide range of venues. In New City he has performed at such venues as The Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, Look & Listen Festival, Town Hall, Miller Theater at Columbia University, Merkin Concert Hall, Weill Recital Hall and Bargemusic in New York City. He has also performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C, The Chicago Cultural Center, The Round Top Festival in Texas, The Gardner Museum in Boston and at the San Francisco Conservatory. In Europe he has performed at the American Academy in Rome, the Darmstadt International Festival in Germany and the Cultural Center of Roubaix, France.

In addition to his longstanding piano partnership with Roberto Hidalgo as the Split Second Piano Ensemble, Marc Peloquin also collaborates with the Pulitzer Prize winning American composer/pianist David Del Tredici, performing and recording his music. July 2012 saw the release of Gotham Glory, the first in a series of four recordings Marc is completing on the Naxos label of the complete piano works of the legendary composer. Gramophone's review of the disc stated: "A longtime Del Tredici champion and associate, Peloquin imbues these composer-supervised performances with idiomatic aplomb and a powerful yet flexible technique."

Peloquin's other recordings include the solo piano works of Otto Luening (CRI), works by Chester Biscardi (Naxos), works for two pianos with pianist Roberto Hidalgo (Urtext), and the songs of Samuel Barber with soprano Melissa Fogarty (Aureole label) and the piano works of Lionel Nowak (AN). His recordings have been presented on such radio stations as Beethoven Satellite Network, Performance Today, American Public Media, Radio France, Sirius XM Radio, WFMT (Chicago), WGBH (Boston) Classical Performances, WGTS (Washington) and WQXR (New York).

Naho Parrini, Violin

Violinist Naho Parrini, a native of Japan is a member of South Country Concerts, the Contemporary Chamber Players and the Booklyn Chamber Players and has collaborated in performances with distinguished artists such as Colin Carr and members of the Emerson and Mendelssohn String Quartets. Ms. Parrini has given recitals throughout the United States and Japan and soloed with the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra. She received her Bachelor of Music degree from the North Carolina School of the Arts and Master of Music Doctorate of Musical Arts at SUNY at Stony Brook. Her principal teachers include Kevin Lawrence, Mitchell Stern and Philip Setzer. She is a professor of violin at the Bloomingdale School of Music and the Kinhaven Music School in Vermont.

Eric Phinney, Percussion

Born and raised in Albany Eric moved to New York City to attend Manhattan School of Music and has remained in the city since. Eric has also spent considerable time studying Indian tabla drumming, West African ensemble drumming, and the West African xylophone. "The most important series of events in my musical life and otherwise was to explore music from other parts of the world. I found master players who spent some time in NYC, and that led me to go to Calcutta, India and Accra, Ghana to study. I started to feel like a citizen of the world and it was totally inspiring to be in contact with master musicians of the highest level from other cultures." Eric is also an active member of Ethos Percussion Group, a quartet dedicated to advancing percussion chamber music.

Erika S. Floreska, Flute

Erika S. Floreska received her BA and BM in flute performance from the College at Wooster, Wooster, OH and later her MMus in flute performance from the University of Michigan studying under Leone Buyse. An accomplished arts administrator she has over twenty-five years of experience in senior executive leadership in the performing arts. She served for fourteen years as the director of education at Jazz at Lincoln Center followed by a tenure as executive director of the Tectonic Theater Project and is currently Executive Director of the Bloomingdale School of Music. She comes from a long line of musicians, and is dedicated to cultivating respect and understanding that fosters thriving communities, especially when music is the vehicle.

Noelle Barbera, Soprano

Vocalist Noelle Barbera holds Bachelors and Masters degrees from the Manhattan School of Music where she studied under Joan Caplan and Maitland Peters. She has been a finalist in Indiana Opera's McAllister Awards competition and was a resident artist with Caramoor Opera. A versatile and accomplished performer in opera, concert and theater, Ms. Barbera has been favorably reviewed in New York for her work with the Bronx Opera where she performed the roles of Annchen in Der Freischutz and Fiammetta in the rare operetta Boccaccio. Critics praised her "shining upper register and musicality"(Opera News). The soprano with a "face made for the stage"(Opera News) has also sung the roles of Mimi in La Boheme, Violetta in La Traviata, Gilda in Rigoletto, Euridice in Orfeo ed Euridice, Adele in Die Fledermaus, and Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro. Ms. Barbera's concert credits include Handel's Messiah, Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Brahms' Ein Deutches Requiem, Haydn's Stabat Mater, Mozart's Requiem and Mozart's Exultate Jubilate with such orchestras as One World Symphony, The Berlinnerkammerorchester, The Orchestra at William Patterson, The Orchestra of the Bronx and the Barnard-Columbia Symphony.

ABOUT BERNSTEIN AT 100 is the world-wide celebration of the 100th birthday of Leonard Bernstein, the composer, conductor, educator, musician, cultural ambassador, and humanitarian, officially beginning on August 25, 2017, Bernstein's 99th birthday, and continuing through his 100th year until August 25, 2019. On this page you will find resources to help you discover and program Bernstein's works, in addition to news of Centennial events around the world. https://leonardbernstein.com/at100

ABOUT BLOOMINGDALE SCHOOL OF MUSIC
Now in its 53rd year, BSM has served more than 80,000 children and adults through group classes, private instruction, and performance opportunities in classical, jazz, and rock music. Each week, over 650 students of all ages participate in a wide range of music making including early childhood classes, a comprehensive pre-college program, free community concerts, and internet-based music programs. With accessibility central to its mission, more than 20% of Bloomingdale's student body receives financial aid and scholarship assistance annually. For more information on Bloomingdale School of Music's programs and concerts, visit www.bsmny.org, call the office at 212-663-6021, or email info@bsmny.org. BSM is located in a charming historic landmark brownstone at 323 West 108th Street.

Bloomingdale School of Music is grateful to the following donors: Foundations: Associated Chamber Music Players, Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, Edwin Caplin Foundation, Columbia Community Service, D'Addario Foundation, Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation, The Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, Exploring the Metropolis Con-Edison Composers' Residency Program, The Hearst Foundation, Libby Holman Foundation, The Hyde and Watson Foundation, The New York Community Trust, The Pinkerton Foundation, Morris and Alma Schapiro Fund, Corporations: Colgate-Palmolive Inner-City Education Fund, ConEdison, Public: New York State Council on the Arts with Support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, New York State Assembly Member Daniel J. O'Donnell, and New York City Council Member Helen Rosenthal, Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, and many other generous individuals.