Credit: SZALON logo by Mia Bosna
December 19th Holiday SZALON Program!
Brotherly Love (Select Ensemble of the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus, Joseph J. Buches, director) with pianist Baker Purdon will present holiday selections from Lutheran Church of the Holy Communion, Philadelphia
Val Gay will sing “Steal Away to Jesus” and her arrangement of “Angels Medley” – songs that bring hope and comfort during the Holiday Season from her home in Philadelphia
Mezzo-Soprano Iris Malkin and pianist Daniel Gledhill will perform a selection of Sephardic Songs from Iris's home in Los Angeles
Husband and wife folk duo Robert Oakes and Katherine Smith will perform gentle folk songs in close harmony from the Salon
Xiaohui Yang and Ronaldo Rolim, piano duo, will perform Boureé Fantasque written by French composer Emanuel Chabrier from the Salon.
John Viscardi and Xu Cheng will perform songs by Ralph Vaughan Williams chronicling life and love through nature from the Salon
Valentina Sounds will perform piano driven originals in Italian and English from the Salon
Singer/songwriter/pianist Avi Wisnia will perform an original contemporary pop composition and traditional Hanukkah song with a modern twist from the Salon
John Conahan will present a set of holiday-inspired songs and hilarity, sure to involve audience participation from Andrea’s Salon
Sam Lewis presents a multi-generational family history puppetry piece, featuring Sam and his sons, Noah and Parker Maxen-Lewis performing from Chicago
Performer Bios, Program Information, and Link for Donations
Below you will find links that some of the performers have included where you can buy music and other merchandise, find additional content, or make a donation. Please consider supporting these musicians for donating their time and artistry this evening!
During these trying times for performers, your contributions are greatly appreciated.
For donations please click here, where you could contribute to the most current performance. To donate to specific performers, please see the links under their bios for the SZALON in which they performed.
Donations for the current SZALON will be collected on behalf of all performers by our fiscal sponsor, Crossroads Music. For questions about donations, please contact Gerardo Razumney at Zalon.Donations@AOL.com.
The SZALON is a labor of love. All team members are volunteering their time, including Andrea, who is also covering expenses. You may contribute to cover part of the SZALON expenses, by indicating this on the PayPal donation form.
Brotherly Love
Brotherly Love, the Select Ensemble of the Philadelphia Gay Men's Chorus is made up of 16 PGMC members, led by Artistic Director and Conductor, Joseph J. Buches. Their size provides PGMC more opportunity to fulfill high volume booking requests and to maintain LGBTQ+ visibility in the community. They perform at various special events, other concerts and community outreach events throughout the year. Their repertoire includes a broad range of styles, including music from the 17th century to the present -- spirituals, sacred music, holiday tunes, love ballads, comic pieces, pop and rock songs, Broadway and Hollywood tunes, opera choruses, folk songs from around the world, the latest LGBT empowerment music.
Links:
Val Gay
Valery V. Gay is a recording/performing artist and thought leader. While a classically trained soprano, Val is an active performer, having performed in several small and large concert halls, including solo performances from churches across the country to Carnegie Hall. In 2021, Val began releasing singles from her first solo recording project “Re-Purposed + Re-Positioned” which is comprised of original music she’s written across a few musical genres. Val has been a serial entrepreneur since 2006, beginning with Fortress Arts Academy which provides arts and skill building lessons to children and adults, especially those in underserved communities. Other companies and organizations under Val’s leadership include Syncopate Advisors, Davis Gay + Associates, the EVER Ensemble, Soul-Full Affirmations and Fuse Vox, an apparel line which brings cultures together to create afresh take on traditional pieces. In 2019, Val received an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from St. Joseph’s University and has earned a Professional Studies Certificate and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance at Temple University’s Boyer College of Music and Dance, a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from the University of the Arts and completed degree course work at Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University.
Val’s YouTube Channel (please subscribe)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valgaysings/
You can Support Val at (thanks in advance!):
Cash App: $ValGay215
PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/valgay
Videos:
Iris Malkin
Israeli born Mezzo-Soprano Iris Malkin graduated from the Jerusalem Academy of Music with a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance and an Artist Diploma in Piano - with a Vocal Coaching emphasis. Iris has performed widely in concerts and festivals in Israel, Europe, and the United States, and her performances have been broadcast worldwide. In addition to the mainstream operatic repertoire, Iris has distinguished herself in the world of Hebrew and Jewish works as well as the highly nuanced Spanish song repertoire. Iris has performed under the baton of Pierre Boulez during the 2006 Lucerne Festival, including collaboration with Boulez’ celebrated Ensemble Intercontemporain, and in 2011 was a guest soloist with the Chamber Orchestra of the South Bay. In 2012 she released her CD Cadencia, with songs from England, Spain, and Puerto Rico with award-winning guitarist Edward Trybek. She is the featured soloist on Stig Jonas Pettersson’s 2015 Album The Dracula Letters. Iris is in demand as a vocalist for films, video games and movie trailers. She is a featured soloist on the soundtrack of the film Kill Zone, nominated for Best Original Score at the 2009 Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Iris is currently on the faculty of the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. Most recently, she was a featured soloist with the LA Jewish symphony, performing works by women composers, including Andrea Clearfield's Women of Valor.
Daniel Gledhill
Daniel Gledhill began studying the piano at the age of 5. Since then, he has become an accomplished pianist, winning 1st prizes on both national and international stages. Daniel began to supplement his regular piano lessons with chamber music instruction from accomplished teachers who helped him to develop a very deep love for collaboration. He formed and worked with a string trio consistently until he began his college education. As a boy, a large part of Daniel’s musical influence came from videogames. The way they were able to portray the complex moods and emotions of simple pixelated characters greatly inspired him and he began composing melodies himself. Since beginning that journey he has developed many styles, but his favorite music to write has always been the lush, sweeping themes found in modern games that introduce the player to new worlds with the promises of grand adventures to come. His education continued at the University of Southern California where he attended the Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television program. Currently he works as a collaborative pianist for the University of California, Los Angeles and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Hollywood. He also free-lances as a composer, writing for solo piano as well as small and large orchestral ensembles for film and concert settings.
Oakes and Smith
Oakes and Smith are a husband-and-wife folk duo from Western Massachusetts with an ethereal sound and sensibility not often heard in today’s popular music. With soulful songs with voices in close harmony, Robert and Katherine hope to inspire listeners and remind them that peace, sincerity, and beauty are still very much alive in the world.
Find us online at: www.oakesandsmith.net. Our music is available for purchase at oakesandsmith.bandcamp.com. Donations may be made via PayPal to roberteoakes@gmail.com.
Videos:
Xiaohui Yang
A winner of the 2016 New Orleans International Piano Competition and the 2017 Naumburg International Piano Competition, Chinese pianist Xiaohui Yang was hailed as a “magician of sound and virtuosity” (La Libre Belgique), having been featured in performances throughout four continents, including in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Ozawa Hall, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Tel Aviv Museum of Art and the Seoul Arts Center. Ms. Yang has been a soloist with ensembles such as the Louisiana Philharmonic, Milwaukee Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Curtis Symphony, and Poland’s Capella Bydgostiensis. Solo and collaborative performances include recitals for Portland Piano International, Shriver Hall Concert Series (Baltimore), Union College Concert Series (Schenectady, NY), Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts (Chicago) and Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts (Katonah, NY). Ms. Yang has been in residence at important music festivals, such as Marlboro, Tanglewood, Ravinia and Taos. She has also been invited to perform on tours with Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute and Curtis on Tour at concert halls in the United States, Korea, and Greece. Ms. Yang studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Ignat Solzhenitsyn and at the Juilliard School with Robert McDonald, and currently she is pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts degree under tutelage of Boris Slutsky at the Peabody Conservatory.
Ronaldo Rolim
With “a special ability to present touching interpretations” (El Norte), Brazilian pianist Ronaldo Rolim is a winner of the 2017 Astral Artists National Auditions and has performed extensively over four continents, in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Zurich’s Tonhalle, London’s Wigmore Hall, Budapest’s Liszt Academy, and Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts. He has also captured top prizes at numerous international competitions, including the James Mottram, Bösendorfer, San Marino, Lyon,and Teresa Carreño, as well as the prestigious Concours Géza Anda in Zurich. In 2019, Mr. Rolim released his latest album on Odradek Records, Szymanowski - The Wartime Triptychs , devoted to the programmatic works the Polish composer wrote during World War I. The subject was extensively discussed i n Mr. Rolim's doctoral thesis, completed in 2016 at Yale University. Mr. Rolim has performed with orchestras such as Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, Concerto Budapest, Phoenix Symphony, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as many of Brazil’s foremost ensembles. Ronaldo Rolim began musical studies with his mother, and gave his first public performance at the age of four. He was admitted to the Magda Tagliaferro School i n São Paulo as a student of Zilda Candida dos Santos and Armando Fava Filho. In 2005 he moved to the U.S., where he studied with Flavio Varani at Oakland University (Michigan), Benjamin Pasternack at the Peabody Conservatory, and Boris Berman at the Yale School of Music.
John Viscardi
John Viscardi has moved audiences around the world with his vocal beauty and dramatic intensity, having performed with Santa Fe Opera, Opera Philadelphia, New York City Opera, Michigan Opera Theatre, the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Opera Carolina. Winner of both the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition and Concorso Internazionale F.P. Tosti, Mr. Viscardi has appeared in both recital and concert at venues that include Carnegie Hall, Geffen Hall, Tokyo Opera City, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center and Avery Fisher Hall. During the Covid-19 lockdown, he embarked on an ambitious recording project of eight music videos set to Ralph Vaughan Williams’ The Songs of Travel. The series, which Mr. Viscardi has recorded, filmed, and edited himself, is inspired by his love of nature, and is designed to create a vocal and visual experience for the audience. He is featured in collaboration with Glenn Morton on Brilliant Classics’ complete recording of the works of F.P. Tosti – available on Spotify and Apple Music. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife Molly and two children, Jack and Noa. Mr. Viscardi is a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts and New York University.
Videos:
Xu Cheng
Pianist Xu Cheng, is an active soloist and chamber musician based in New York City. Xu is the winner of the Recognition Award in the 9th Chinese Golden Bell Music Awards and has won first prize at the “Sunflower” National Piano Competition. Highlights of the 2021-22 season include performances at New York Athletic Club and Rockwood Concert Hall. For the summer of 2022, Xu has been invited to participate in Classic Lyric Arts in France and Trentino Festival in Italy on full scholarship. The past 2020-21 season includes collaborations with Midori and Friends. Other ongoing work includes performances at health facilities, nursing homes and private homes through Concerts in Motion in which Xu has had the pleasure to collaborate with other musicians, primarily on Zoom since the covid-19 pandemic. Additionally, as a teacher, Xu has experience working at The Juilliard School. Currently, Xu works as a staff pianist at Barnard College, The Juilliard School and Mannes School of Music. A native of China, Xu attended Shanghai Conservatory of Music and holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from The Juilliard School, where he was enrolled in the accelerated BM/MM program and studied with Dr. Yoheved Kaplinsky.
Valentina Sounds
Valentina Sounds (Valentina Raffaelli) is an Italian born/Philadelphia based singer-songwriter, voice coach, music director. Valentina’s music is a fusion of catchy melodies and pop tunes perfectly blended with a background in jazz vocals and a love for composition. She delivers her lyric-driven songs with energy, humor and feeling; she will draw you in with her powerful vocals and a compelling stage presence.
Find Valentina Sounds on your favorite social media @ValentinaSounds on TikTok @ValentinaSoundsLessons . If you like what you see please consider supporting on Venmo @ValentinaSounds or Paypal paypal.me/valentinasounds
Sad Song: Original song and video art by Valentina Sounds
Avi Wisnia
Singer/songwriter Avi Wisnia has performed in prestigious venues around the world – from the Philadelphia Museum of Art to The Kennedy Center in Washington DC to concert tours in Japan, Poland, and Brazil. Avi Wisnia has given a TED talk and performed with The Moth storytellers and runs the Philadelphia Songwriters Circle, hosting the monthly Songwriters Night concert series in Ardmore. His most recent studio album of original songs, Catching Leaves, was just released in November and is available on all listening platforms.
Official website: aviwisnia.com
Listen to the Music: aviwisnia.com/music
Facebook: facebook.com/aviwisniamusic
Twitter/Instagram: @AviWisnia
Donations & Tips: Venmo: @AviWisnia PayPal: paypal.me/aviwisnia
Join The MailingList: https://tinyurl.com/AviWisniaMailingList
Videos:
John Conahan
John Conahan is a composer, conductor, performer, and educator. John spent this November at the piano for Philadelphia’s The Crossing choir, he has new art song commissions premiering for Lyric Fest this upcoming April, and he is releasing an album of new piano music in early 2022. As it is December, he is also infamous for his annual #CarolRagnarok battle with composer Kurt Knecht (see social media for the hilarity). His compositions have been premiered at the Kennedy Honors Ceremony, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Kimmel Center, where he is also a guest conductor annually.
www.johnconahan.com www.youtube.com/johnconahanmusic www.facebook.com/johnconahan www.instagram.com/johnconahan_ www.soundcloud.com/john-conahan www.twitter.com/johnconahan
Sam Lewis
Sam Lewis is an accidental puppeteer who now tries to create intentional work with a vintage Black Americana marionette, which he reimagined as Jus Hambone. Currently, Sam is building new puppets, with the generous help of Grace Needlman, for a long-form piece he is creating with his sons, based on newly discovered family history, tentatively titled, Everybody Knew Their Place.
Site: https://sites.google.com/view/samuellewis/home?authuser=0
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samiam313/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sam_u_el_le_w_is/
Venmo: @Samuel-LewisII
Video:
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