Riverside Opera Company and Richmond County Orchestra Present STATEN ISLAND HAS TALENT

The Riverside Opera Company(ROC) and Richmond County Orchestra(RCO), under the direction of Maestro Alan Aurelia presents Staten Island Has Talent @NYPL. The performers are winners of open public auditions held by the RCO and ROC . They will sing and play selections of their choosing. The performance is free and open to the public as part Music @NYPL on Saturday, March 10th at 3 p.m. at the RichmondTown branch of the New York Public Library located at 200 Clarke Avenue, Staten Island.

The Riverside Opera Company is based on Staten Island in New York City. It performs fully and semi-staged productions with full orchestra conducted by Maestro Alan Aurelia, who has conducted in Italy as well as in the U.S. Its singers are winners of open public auditions, held in New York City.

Founded in 1998, under the direction of Maestro Alan Aurelia, The Richmond County Orchestra continues its effort to enhance the musical and cultural life of Staten Island and strives to inspire a love of music through a presentation of the classical repertoire and programming that encourages interaction with audience members. The orchestra offers live performances in the three council districts of Staten Island, presenting works of living composers as well as music from the past, providing its listeners with an opportunity to explore a new artistic language. In addition, the RCO offers educational innovations designed to capture the interest of young students who want to pursue a career in music. Musicians from the RCO have gone into high schools and coached students in after-school programs which have culminated in Side-By-Side concerts with the students and the Orchestra.

Performers:

Ganling Chu, violinist, playing Bach Sonata IV, Movement Allemande

Ganling Chu, born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, 17 year old Ganling started playing violin at the age of 6. Through El Sistema, a group of Venezuelan orchestras, Ganling developed her interest in music and joined intermediate and pre professional ensembles such as the Metropolitan Orchestra and the Regional Evencio Castellanos Orchestra. At 10 years old, she joined the Juan Olivares Conservatory where she received music theory and violin individual classes. In 2016, she moved from her hometown, Caracas, to the United States specifically to New York City where she continued her music development. She has participated in the CSI high school orchestra and is currently a member of the top orchestra of the Interschool Orchestras of NY program. She has also continued her musical formation through the Staten Island Conservatory. In 2017, she won the first annual CSI Performance Competition for Strings in Staten Island.

Brian Moses, pianist, playing Beethoven Pathetique, Movement 3

Brian Moses is an advanced classical piano student currently attending Stuyvesant High School. Brian has played at school, church, and RCO events many times and is a second place winner in RCO's Talent Search competition in 2016. He has studied with Maestro Aurelia since he was five years old.

Rich Piedra, guitar/vocalist performing Love Fantasy

Lenny Koza, pianist playing Carousel, Armistead-Jones Mozart, Allegro in G Major Malaguena, Spanish Dance

Lenny Koza is 6 years old. Born into the family of former Soviet Union immigrants. He started to play piano about a year and a half ago, at the age of 5. He is a student in the first grade Staten Island Hebrew Academy and is practicing recreational gymnastics and currently earned green/white belt in karate.

Max Slonim, pianist playing Schumann, Fantasy Dance and Gubaidulina, Music Toys, The Drummer

Max Slonim is a 10-year-old native Staten Islander, one of four Slonim brothers. Max started playing piano at the age of six, and he got really lucky with his teacher, Ms. Betman, who has been nurturing his talent for the past three years. Max already played at Carnegie Hall after winning Rondo Young Artist Competition in 2016, and at Lincoln Center after winning New York Concert Festival Competition in 2017. In addition to piano Max plays saxophone and sings.

Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, vocalist, performing Rise Up and I Have Nothing

Kristian Marino, trumpeter playing Carnival in Venice

Kristian Marino began playing the trumpet in third grade learning under mentor Maestro Alan Aurelia. As a student of the city's Borowide Band Program, he was chosen to perform a solo at Carnegie Hall.

At his high school, Kristian plays in the chamber brass ensemble, jazz ensemble, wind ensemble and marching band. He was invited to play with the Richmond County Orchestra and Riverside Opera Company. He is a member of the Staten Island Community Band and plays with the Wagner College Band. He has attended the Summer Arts Institute at the Frank Sinatra School with a culminating performance attended by Tony Bennett. He was selected to join the Columbia University First Annual Honors Band.

Jeffrey Sun, Violinist

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