New Concert Dates Announced for Artist Series Concerts

In the wake of the corona virus outbreak, Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota has postponed some of its remaining concerts originally scheduled from mid-March through April. The updated concert listing is below. The organization will continue to closely monitor official guidance from health and government authorities and will advise of any further postponements or changes. For more information visit www.ArtistSeriesConcerts.org or call 941-306-1202, Mon. - Fri., 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

"So far, we've been extremely fortunate in being able to postpone rather than cancel some of the concerts remaining in our season," says Joseph Holt, director of artist programs for Artist Series Concerts. The 2019-20 season, which was to have concluded with a single June concert on the 14th, now stretches well into summer and also includes a new performance in late July as part of Florida Studio Theatre's Suffragist Project. Holt adds, "Like so many other area arts organizations, we're all sheltering, waiting, monitoring and hoping to be able to safely share the joy of exceptional live music with our community again soon!"

Monday, May 18, 2020

11:00 a.m. performance

12:15 p.m. luncheon

Michael's On East, 1212 S. East Avenue, Sarasota

PALM COURT TREASURES with Chung-Yon Hong, violin; Natalie Helm, cello; and Joseph Holt, piano: Evocative of afternoon tea at the Ritz and of tea dances held amidst an enchanting court of potted palms, the term "Palm Court" remains synonymous with the light music repertoire that became popular in the resorts, spas, bandstands, floral halls - and palm courts - of the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Violinist Daniel Jordan and cellist Natalie Helm, both principal musicians with the Sarasota Orchestra, join pianist Joseph Holt for a musical trip back in time, to the era that inspired a genre of music that has enchanted audiences for decades.

Saturday, May 23, 2020 - 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, May 24, 2020 - 3:00 p.m.

Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota

CUARTETO TANGUERO: Cuarteto Tanguero (Ben Bogart, bandoneon; Daniel Stein, violin, Winnie Cheung, piano and Matt McConahay, bass), is a world 4chamber music group and Billboard World Music Top Ten award winner that transcends cultural boundaries with its fresh, innovative spin on classic tango artists and recordings. From golden age pieces to contemporary tango, the quartet strikes an elegant balance between modern and traditional. Their program will include a mix of traditional Argentine tango works in the classic styles of Carlos Di Sarli, Anibal Troilo, Osvaldo Pugliese, and Juan D'Arienzo with pieces well known to tango aficionados. And what tango program would be complete without a little Piazzolla? The quartet will also feature their inspired interpretations of such iconic Astor Piazzolla works as Milonga del Angel, Adios Nonino and Verano Porteño.

Sunday, June 7, 2020 - 3:00 p.m.

Historic Asolo Theater, 5401 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota

SOO BEEN LEE, violin / YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS INTERNATIONAL with Dina Vainshtein, piano: Beethoven's 250th birthday festivities continue with a performance by the sensational eighteen-year-old artist known as "Korea's hottest violin prodigy." A first prize winner at the 2014 Young Concert Artist International Auditions, SooBean Lee has been building an international reputation for years; one that now includes over 6,900 YouTube subscribers and over 560,000 views by fans all over the world. And it's no wonder as this is the young artist the Washington Post has praised for her "poised presence and luxurious sound," as well as sensitivities that "would credit a musician twice her age." Ludwig would be proud! In addition to Beethoven's Violin Sonata No. 4, Lee will perform works by Ysaÿe, Clara Schumann and Grieg.

Boston-based pianist Dina Vainshtein is known for her sensitive and virtuosic collaborations with some of the most promising musicians of recent years. She has performed at the Alice Tully and Weill Recital Halls and was the recipient of a special prize for the best collaborative pianist at the Tchaikovsky International Competition.

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

6:00 p.m. - dinner

7:30 p.m. - performance

Plantation Golf & Country Club, 500 Rockley Blvd., Venice

BOYGIRLBOYGIRL featuring vocalists Laura Monagle, Michaela Ristaino, Don Lobacz and Tommy Lueck, with Joseph Holt, piano: Hailed as "Milwaukee's Manhattan Transfer," BoyGirlBoyGirl takes the A-Train through some of the best four-part vocal jazz in the history of the charts. Wisconsin natives Don Lobacz, Tommy Lueck, Laura Monagle and Michaela Ristaino perform a variety of tunes, covering everything from greatest hits of the Rat Pack days to the tender and tight harmonies of that bygone era of old-time radio. Lobacz and Lueck are well-known to Midwest audiences thanks to their many appearances with Four Guyz in Dinner Jackets and other local theatre companies. Monagle appears regularly with Boulevard Theatre, the Fireside Theatre, Off the Wall, and Children's Theatre of Madison. Ristaino has appeared in Milwaukee with Skylight Music Theatre and now makes her home in Sarasota where she performs with Choral Artists of Sarasota.

Sunday, June 14, 2020 - 4:00 p.m.

Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Avenue, Sarasota

"THE Glenn Miller SOUND: Celebrating the music of the 1940s and the Greatest Generation" with the Glenn Miller Big Band featuring vocalist Walt Andrus: Music during World War II had an unprecedented impact on America, both on the home front and on troops serving overseas. Unlike World War I, which occurred in the pre-radio era, by December 1941, virtually every American household owned radios. Americans were tuning in by the millions and the name Glenn Miller became synonymous with the 1940s Swing era tunes that stormed the air waves and permeated clubs and dance halls across the country, where people mingled, "cut a rug" and took a break from the bleak woes of war. It was estimated in 1940 that one of every three nickels that entered a jukebox played a Miller tune.

Take a trip back in time and get "In the Mood" with an afternoon of the best of Glenn Miller and the entire Swing era. A big band ensemble of top jazz musicians from around the state, including Tommy Dorsey Orchestra vocalist Walt Andrus, pays musical tribute to the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII and the glorious swinging sounds of the 40s. Musicians to be announced

Saturday, June 20, 2020 - 5:00 p.m.

Sunday, June 21, 2020 - 5:00 p.m.

Fischer-Weisenborne Residence

SIREN SONG: Sounds of Spring with Johanna Fincher, soprano; Robyn Rocklein, mezzo soprano and Michael Stewart, piano: This popular area vocal duo offers up a sparkling program of light, popular tunes in a musical celebration of the arrival of spring.

Soprano Johanna Fincher grew up singing in the Sarasota Youth Opera and Venice Little Theater. Since then, she has performed as a soloist in Scotland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria. Locally, she has sung with Opera Tampa, St. Petersburg Opera, Venice Symphony, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Sarasota Pops, North Port Orchestra and Choral Artists of Sarasota.

Mezzo soprano Robyn Rocklein has appeared in major roles in England, Austria, Germany, and throughout the US. She's performed with Arizona Opera, St. Petersburg Opera, Choral Artists of Sarasota, the Kronos Quartet, Barry Manilow and as the mezzo-soprano soloist in Columbia Artists' Lord of the Rings Symphony.

Pianist Michael Stewart is on the faculty of Manatee School for the Arts and the pianist for Choral Artists of Sarasota.

July 28, 2020

11:00 a.m. performance

12:15 p.m. luncheon

Michael's On East, 1212 S. East Avenue, Sarasota

THE SUFFRAGIST PROJECT: WORKS BY FEMALE COMPOSERS with Jenny Kim-Godfrey, soprano; Robyn Rocklein, mezzo soprano, Lee Dougherty Ross and Gail Berenson, piano: As part of Florida Studio Theatre's Suffragist Project, an artistic celebration of the upcoming 100th Anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment (August 20, 2020), the woman's right to vote, this all-girl quartet, which includes Artist Series Concerts co-founder Lee Dougherty Ross, performs pieces by Fanny Mendelssohn, Clara Schumann, Alma Mahler and Amy Beach and others.

Sunday, September 13, 2020

Temple Sinai, 4631 S. Lockwood Ridge Road, Sarasota

Dick Hyman AND THE FLORIDA JAZZ MASTERS featuring Dick Hyman, piano; Peter BarenBregge, saxophones; Mark Neuenschwander, bass; Randy Sandke, trumpet; Mike Treni, trombone: This six-piece ensemble, comprised of the legendary pianist Dick Hyman and some of south Florida's top jazz musicians, swings the Sarasota Opera House with top-notch classic and original jazz. The stellar sextet performs music by Irving Berlin, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Benny Goodman, Thelonius Monk, Cole Porter, Dick Hyman, Randy Sandke, Harry Warren, Mike Treni and others. Percussionist to be announced.

Other Special Events

• The Suncoast Music Scholarships, an annual collaborative competition conducted and funded by Artist Series Concerts and the Sarasota Music Club, it awards $20,000 to young musicians from high schools in Sarasota and Manatee counties. The 2020 SMS auditions, originally scheduled for April 18, will now be held at a later date.

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