|
THE ORCHESTRA AT WILLIAM PATERSON UNIVERSITY TO FEATURE VIOLINIST BRIAN LEWIS AND CONDUCTOR GIDEON GRAU Gideon Grau will lead The Orchestra at William Paterson University in a concert featuring violinist Brian Lewis on Saturday, February 19. The concert begins at 8 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts at William Paterson University in Wayne, where the Orchestra is in residence. The program will include Mozart's "Divertimento No. 3," Leonard Bernstein's "Serenade," and Ernest Bloch's "Concerto Grosso" for string orchestra and piano obbligato. Lewis was recently named National Artist of the Year (1998) by Young Audiences, and has established himself as one of America's most gifted and dedicated young violinists. Acclaimed performances include concerto debuts in New York's Carnegie Hall and Avery Fisher Hall, as well as performances with the Berlin (Germany), Syracuse, American, Wichita, Topeka, Amarillo, and Hartford symphony orchestras. An avid recitalist, he has concertized throughout America and abroad, and has performed at the festivals of Cabrillo, Aspen, Sunflower and St. Barth's. Lewis has won numerous awards and competitions, including grand prize in the Mid-America Violin Competition, the Waldo Mayo Talent Award and Sony ES Award, as well as Juilliard's Peter Mennen Prize and William Schuman Prize for outstanding achievement and leadership in music. He holds both bachelor's and master's of music degrees from The Julliard School, where he was a scholarship student of Dorothy DeLay, Masao Kawasaki and Yo Kanog. Lewis made his Lincoln Center recital debut in 1999. Grau, born in Berlin, Germany and educated in Israel and the United States, has garnered wide acclaim as an orchestral and opera conductor, violinist, concertmaster, and chamber music performer. He has conducted the Palo Alto Symphony for the past three seasons, commuting from the New York area where he was also performing as concertmaster, violin soloist, and guest conductor of the Garden State Orchestra, New Jersey and as leader of several chamber music ensembles. For 14 years, Grau was musical director of
the Saginaw Michigan Symphony Orchestra, which grew to attain
the status of Metropolitan Orchestra nationally, and the Saginaw
Choral Society. As director of the Delta College Summer Festival
of Arts, he was also music director of the Delta Festival Orchestra
and Conservatory of Music. Tickets for the concert are $20 and $25, depending on the location. Students may purchase two tickets for the rear loge at $5 each; a valid I.D. card is required. The Orchestra, formerly known as the Wayne Chamber Orchestra, is supported in part by grants from the Passaic County Cultural and Heritage Council through a grant from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State. In addition, the orchestra is underwritten in part by William Paterson University and supported by gifts from private individuals, area businesses and corporations. The ensemble has gained national recognition both for its excellence of performance and imaginative programming. For tickets or additional information, please
call the Shea Center Box Office at 973-720-2371. ###
|