Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association Presents ORCHESTRA FINALE

Celebrating their 45th anniversaries in residence in Ocean Grove, tenor Ronald Naldi and organist Gordon Turk will each perform with the MidAtlantic Orchestra, Jason Tramm, and conductor. Mr. Naldi will sing favorite operatic arias by Puccini, Leoncavallo, and Ponchielli. Dr Turk will open the program with the Concerto in A Minor by Marco Enrico Bossi and later plat the grand Symphony No. 1 by Alexander Guilmant for organ and orchestra, both accompanied by the MidAtlantic Opera Orchestra conducted by Jason Tramm.

Organist Gordon Turk writes:

"The Bossi Concerto in A Minor is not often performed but is very rewarding for the audience and the performers. It is scored for an orchestra of stringed instruments, four horns, and organ, and has three movements. The first movement is in constant motion, full of rhythmic and harmonic contrasts and a brilliant interplay between organ and orchestra. This movement begins quietly builds to a dramatic climax and ends quietly. The second movement is very expressive and colorful in its use of the organ and the orchestral instruments. Its lush harmonies are reminiscent of Brahms and Verdi. The last movement is immediately dramatic and intense with cascades of rapid-fire passages between the organ and the orchestra."

"Written in 1874, the Guilmant Symphony No. 1 is a big 19th Century French Romantic musical experience. It has three movements that that are dramatic, energetic and rhythmic, and sonic resonances from gentle whispers to thunderous waves of sound. It opens with the dotted rhythms that refer to classical French music of the 17th and 18th centuries, which were associated with the King, and then moves into fast paced, virtuoso pedal and keyboard passages on the organ in dramatic dialogue with the orchestra. The second movement - Pastorale, has sweeping melodies which provide a colorful interplay between the orchestral instruments and the organ, and ethereal harmonic passages, that are haunting and gentle. The last movement of the Guilmant symphony is a brilliant romp of breathless energy and surges of sound with contrasting dynamics and rhythms, and a massive sonic ending.

Two soloists are on the program. Three arias will be performed by tenor Ronald Naldi: "Cielo e mar" from the opera La Gioconda by Ponchielli, "Vesti la giubba" from the opera I Pagliacci, and "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's Turando. Violinist Byung Kook Kwak will perform two works by Fritz Kreisler, "Schone Rosmarin," and "Liebes Freude."

Performers Bios:

RONALD NALDI is an internationally acclaimed lyric tenor who has performed with the metropolitan opera, verona Opera, Opera da Camera of Rome, L'Opera Francais, New Jersey State Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the Salzburger Landestheater. With St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble he has sung over 200 performances of Haydn, Mozart, Offenbach, Rieti, Bakst, Fioravanti, and Rossini. He has performed with over 25 symphony orchestras and has an extensive repertoire of more than 30 oratorios. Mr. Naldi has worked under the baton of the world's most famous maestri and has been a colleague with such artists as Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. He studied with Charles Kullman, Margaret Harshaw, Licino Francardi, Luigi Ricci, Carol Bayard and William Riley; has a BM and MM in voice from Indiana University; and was a Fulbright scholar in Rome. He is the tenor soloist and artist-in-residence at OGCMA, where he is completing his 45th consecutive season.

Organist-In-Residence GORDON TURK has performed throughout the U.S., Europe, Russia, Ukraine, and Japan in concert halls, cathedrals, and universities in both solo performances and with orchestras. His collaborations with other musicians in chamber music concerts include principal instrumentalists from the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and other distinguished musicians. He has won awards for performances of J.S. Bach and in the national AGO Improvisation Competition. Dr. Turk is Organist-in Residence at the historic Ocean Grove Great Auditorium and Artistic Director of Ocean Grove's Chamber Music Series, "Summer Stars." Turk is a devoted champion of the pipe organ; a consultant for the building of new pipe organs and the restoration of historic ones; and is a frequent adjudicator of organ competitions. He is also the Organist and Choirmaster at St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Wayne, Pennsylvania. Dr. Turk studied with two legendary teachers, Alexander McCurdy at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and Mc Neil Robinson at the Manhatan School of Music in NYC.

Dr. Jason C. Tramm is in his 12th season as Director of Music Ministries at OGCMA and regarded as one of the most dynamic young conductors on the podium today. He serves as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the NJ-based MidAtlantic Opera, with which he made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2015 and at NJPAC in 2017. He also serves as Music Director of Teatro Lirico D'Europa; Guest Conductor of the Palmetto Opera (SC) and Opera New Hampshire; and Music Director of the Morris Choral Society. An accomplished educator, he serves as Director of Choral Activities at Seton Hall University, where he leads the University Chorus, Chamber Choir, Orchestra, and teaches voice and conducting. In 2017, Seton Hall named him University Faculty Teacher of the Year. From 2008-2012, he served as Artistic Director of the New Jersey State Opera , where collaborated with some of the finest voices in opera, including Samuel Ramey, Vladimir Galouzine, Angela Brown, Gregg Baker, and Paul Plishka. His 2009 HDTV broadcast with PBS affiliate NJN of "Verdi Requiem: Live from Ocean Grove," garnered an Emmy Award nomination.

Byung-Kook Kwak enjoys a versatile career as a soloist, chamber musician, and educator. He has received critical acclaim for his performances with orchestras such as Baltimore Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, American Symphony, and the Los Angeles Chamber Symphony. In Europe, he has appeared as a soloist with Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, Cologne Radio Orchestra, Bamberger Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic, and French National Orchestra. An active chamber musician, Mr. Kwak is a member of the Sea Cliff Chamber Players. He is also very active as a concertmaster and appears in that capacity with virtually every major symphony orchestra around the Metropolitan New York area. He has been the conductor of the Summit Music Festival Orchestra for the past five years, has conducted the Queens Symphony Orchestra, and the Manhattan School of Music Summer Festival Orchestra in the summer of 1999. He has also been active as a choral conductor for over twenty years. He has been an assistant to Aaron Rosand at Mannes College of Music for ten years, and he is currently a faculty member at Manhattan School of Music Pre-College, Lehman College, Queens College, Westchester Conservatory of Music, and chairman of strings at Jewish Academy of Fine Arts.

Concluding the "Summer Stars" Classical Concert Series, OGCMA will present "GRAND FINALE" on Thursday, August 2 (7:30 pm) in the Great Auditorium in Ocean Grove. Tickets are $17.00 (General Admission) and can be ordered online at www.oceangrove.org or by phone at 800-590-4064. The Great Auditorium is located at 54 Pilgrim Pathway in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. All facilities are handicapped accessible.

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