March 28th ZALON Program

Xiaohui Yang

Chinese pianist XIAOHUI YANG, a winner of the 2017 Naumburg International Piano Competition has been hailed by Isreali newspaper, Haaretz, as a "tastefully polished musician.” She has 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, Acadiana Symphony, Curtis Symphony, Galveston 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). A dedicated chamber musician, Ms. Yang has taken part in renowned North American festivals such as Marlboro, Tanglewood, Ravinia, Banff and Taos, and has performed with luminaries such as Peter Wiley, Charles Neidich and Roberto Diaz. She has 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, and is also the founding member of the Steans Piano Trio, alongside Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra violinist Eunice Kim and Boston Symphony Orchestra cellist Oliver Aldort. Ms. Yang is a graduate of Curtis Institute of Music, where she studied with Ignat Solzhenitsyn and was a recipient of the Festorazzi Prize for the best graduating piano student. She earned her master’s degree at The Juilliard School as a student of Robert McDonald, and currently is a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at the Peabody Conservatory, under the tutelage of Boris Slutsky. Before moving to the United States, Ms. Yang studied at the Attached Music School of Shenyang Conservatory of Music with Danwen Wei, Xianwei Cheng and Rosemary Platt.

Her website is xiaohui-yang.com and her paypal email for donations is yxhshp@gmail.com

Shinjoo Cho

Pianist, bandoneonist, and accordionist Shinjoo Cho is a solo and chamber musician embodying many musical traditions. She has collaborated with international musicians and choreographers and has performed in prestigious concert halls and theaters throughout the U.S., Canada, Korea, and South America. In 2012 and 2016, she participated in the Marlboro Music Festival under the baton of Leon Fleisher and appeared as a guest soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra. During her 2014-2016 residency in Argentina, Shinjoo’s notable appearances include solo piano performance for the President of Argentina, Teatro Colón debut with Branford Marsalis Quartet during the Buenos Aires Jazz Festival, and Música Maestra ensemble by Diego Schissi at Centro Cultural Kirchner Symphonic Hall. Shinjoo is currently director of the contemporary & tango music ensemble Oscuro Quintet and a member of Aces of Rhythm in NY.

www.shinjoocho.com

Jessica Meyer & Caroline Fermin

With playing that is “fierce and lyrical” and works that are “other-worldly” (The Strad) and “evocative” (New York Times), Jessica Meyer is a GRAMMY® - nominated violist and composer whose passionate musicianship radiates accessibility and emotional clarity. Her first composer/performer portrait album recently debuted at #1 on the Billboard traditional classical chart, where “knife-edge anticipation opens on to unexpected, often ecstatic musical realms, always with a personal touch and imaginatively written for the instruments” (Gramophone Magazine).  This season includes being Composer-in-Residence at Spoleto USA; a premiere at the National Gallery of Art; and a work for the St. Lawrence String Quartet.  Upcoming orchestral engagements include a concerto for herself with the League of Composers Orchestra for premiere at Miller Theatre, and interactive performances in Carnegie Hall and around the country as part of their nationwide Link Up Program.

Caroline Fermin is a New York based performer, educator, and choreographer. She received her MFA in choreography from Wilson College and her BFA from The Juilliard School. Caroline is a founding member of Gallim Dance where she toured and performed nationally and internationally, while also serving as Education Director. She currently teaches classical modern and improvisation at Barnard College/Columbia University and choreographs and collaborates regularly with musicians, actors, and directors. She is an advocate for arts in communities and facilitates cross-cultural dialogues while consulting with organizations on the intersection of education, dance, community development. 

www.jessicameyermusic.com

www.carolinefermin.com

Program notes for “Invisible Labor”

The first evening-length show that was crafted together as Meyer & Fermin was supposed to premiere in April 2020 at the Tribeca New Music Festival. So much has changed since because of the pandemic, and the toll has been deeply felt in the art world.

Behind the scenes however, are also a legion of women who have been silently (or not so silently) suffering an even more acute burden of balancing their work, the larger percentage of household chores, and homeschooling their children. Many women have lost their jobs or been forced to quit in order to compensate for this added work. Experts have repeatedly noted how women's progress since the 1970's has regressed due to this brutal redesign of our daily lives. So much so, that on February 4th the NY Times published a feature about what mothers have been experiencing throughout the pandemic. The feature is titled "Primal Scream," and what the authors discovered is really hard to read.

Meyer is a mother of a teenage son and knows this plight all too well, and Fermin is just beginning her journey as a mother -- she is due to give birth any time now. As much as our responsibility as mothers permeates every facet of our daily lives, there is also a creative power and a joy that needs to be celebrated and made time for. Past experiences, advice, and the act of preparing for what is to come fuel this work titled "Invisible Labor." Created just for this Zalon, it incorporates dance, music, and both text extracted from various parts of the NY Times feature and words written by Meyer and Fermin themselves.

PART ONE - the report

Invisible labor 

the myth of balance 

unnoticed yet necessary 

She is shaking with nerves, 

sometimes it’s hard to breathe, 

it’s as if she’s drowning

decision fatigue,  

and a feeling of powerlessness 

rage, rage, rage, rage…

This isn’t burnout — this is societal choice

PART TWO - the advice
The sky 

during any sunrise or sunset

is missing its magic colors

when there is an absence of clouds.

Motherhood, 

like labor, 

like your art, 

doesn't have to be perfect.

Just give it your best.

Just give them your love.

But be sure to also love yourself.

Take great strides to make time for that,

because without this, there is no you.

PART THREE - the induction

We are descended from a line of ancestors...

grandma, mother,

their bodies, ours, 

their hearts, ours,

their hearts, our hearts.

The ground shifts under our feet. 

This is a different kind of power.

Embracing mystery and our own strength.

We are ready.

Jay Fluellen

Jay Fluellen is a Philadelphia born composer, college professor, educator, accompanist, pianist, singer, and organist/choir director. He is highly sought after as both a composer and a pianist. He has a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Temple University in Music Composition. Dr. Fluellen also has his K-12 Music Pennsylvania State certification from Eastern University. Fluellen is currently the co- choir teacher and the music technology specialist at Northeast High School in the School District of Philadelphia. Since 1997, he has been a co-minister of music at the historic African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, where he directs the Chancel Choir and plays pipe organ, piano and keyboard. Fluellen has been commissioned by various performers and institutions, including the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, LiveConnections, Teya Sepinuck and Theater of Witness, the Bucks County Choral Society, the Philadelphia Jazz Project, Orchestra 2001, Opera Philadelphia, Network for New Music, Relâche and Singing City Choir.

Program notes for “Rekindled” and “Web” for solo jazz piano

1) "Rekindled" was written on Thanksgiving Day 2020. Though I had managed to keep myself and my family healthy amidst the world wide COVID-19 pandemic, I had become very sick on October 30th with a sepsis-like infection that hospitalized me for 4 days. It was the longest I had ever been in the hospital during my life and recovery took almost a month. All creative thought left my daily activities. I was focused solely on getting healthy again and maintaining my online teaching schedule at Northeast High School. "Rekindled" was the first piece of music that I wrote after my convalescence, giving me confidence that my creative faculties would be fully restored.

2) "Web" was written in the late 1990's in honor of the expanding use of the World Wide Web. I was a teacher of piano and music theory at the Settlement School of Music's Mary Louise Curtis Branch. My time at Settlement School of Music in the 1990's was an incredibly rich creative time as a composer and pianist. I was one of 88 pianists who performed at the school's 88th Gala celebration and I wrote works for the galas. My colleague and friend Reggie Pindell and I collaborated on numerous recitals at the school. I premiered "Web" on one of the teacher recitals that Reggie and I had put together.

Treya Lam

Treya Lam is a multi-instrumentalist songwriter and transdisciplinary artist whose cinematic work are built on dynamic classically trained piano, ethereal vocals, meditative guitar and lush chamber-folk arrangements. Their debut album Good News was created by an all womxn and genderqueer team headed by Kaki King who produced and released the record on her label June 2018. 

Lam was one of the five artists selected for the 2019 Joe’s Pub Working Group residency and is currently developing an audiovisual work in response to Ledelle Moe’s exhibit When at MASS MoCA. Treya is a Core Member of the eco-theatre group Superhero Clubhouse - and was part of the development team for the musical Mammelaphant which was selected to participate in Theatre Row’s inaugural Kitchen Sink Residency. 

Treya is an active member of the Resistance Revival Chorus with performances ranging from at Carnegie Hall, the Late Show (with Fleet Foxes) and the Delacorte Theatre to direct action events throughout New York and DC. Treya’s song Dawn is featured in the RRC’s debut album This Joy which was released on Ani Difranco’s label Righteous Babe Records. 

Follow us: @treyalam 

Bandcamp: https://treyalam.bandcamp.com/

Mailing List: http://www.treyamakesmusic.com/contact-1

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/treyalam

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4qEgXVMkQQ0r9Y--ZLNn4Q

Donations appreciated 

Venmo: @treyalam 

Paypal: paypal.me/treyalam

Leandro Ragusa

Argentine composer, arranger, and bandoneon player Leandro Ragusa writes and arranges

music for ensembles in Buenos Aires, New York, and Montreal. In his latest album with

Quinteto de Academia (woodwind quartet plus bandoneon), he combines the popular spirit of

tango and Argentine folklore with the resources of chamber music composition. He was

recently commissioned by Montreal’s Choros, quintette à vent for their upcoming concert season. He also works as a guest soloist and arranger with the Polyphonic Choir of the University of Morón based in Buenos Aires. Tonight’s concert will be the premiere of a new project with masters Claudio Riva (guitar/composer) and Gonzalo Braz (bass clarinet).

For further information, please visit https://www.leandroragusa.com/

Quinteto de Academia https://quintetodeacademia.wixsite.com/quintetodeacademia

Choros, quintette a vent trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfFZEd06xl0&feature=youtu.be

You can support Leandro’s artistry through Paypal at paypal.me/leandroragusa

Katie Johnson-Webb & Kirstin Ihde

Katie Johnson-Webb is the Associate Professor of Horn at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She excels as a flexible, thoughtful, and active performer of solo repertoire, chamber music, and orchestral literature.  In past years, Katie was selected to perform with the Aspen Summer Music Festival in Aspen, Colorado, the Kent/Blossom Music Festival in Kent, Ohio, and the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado. She frequently joins the horn section of the Knoxville Symphony. As a soloist, Katie has been heard in recitals at several international horn symposiums. Additionally, Katie has given recitals and masterclasses at universities across the United States and Canada. Katie can be heard with pianist Kirstin Ihde on her CD, La Loba, which was released on the Summit Brass label. As an active chamber musician, Katie is a member of the Tennessee Brass Quintet and a founding member of the Cobalt Horn Quartet, winners of the 2018 International Horn Society Horn Quartet Competition – Professional Division. Katie completed the Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she was awarded a Bolz Fellowship. In 2018, she was awarded a grant from the American Scandinavian Foundation to collaborate with Norwegian hornist and pedagogue, Frøydis Ree Wekre in Oslo, Norway.

Kirstin Ihde is currently Associate Professor of Piano at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, where she teaches class piano and collaborates frequently with both faculty and students. She is featured on two recordings that were released in 2020. The first, La Loba, a Summit Records release, is the culmination of a research project done in collaboration with Katie Johnson-Webb, horn. It features four duos commissioned by and/or dedicated to the famous Norwegian hornist Frøydis Ree Wekre. The second, Day and Night: Modern Flute and Piano Duos by Women Composers, released by Albany Records, is her second collaboration with Erin K. Murphy, flute. The recording includes duos by women composers from the 20th century to the present. Kirstin’s research includes the unpublished songs of the American composer John Duke in collaboration with the late soprano Karen Bishop, heard on their recording Songmaking: A Collection of Unpublished Songs by John Duke. Kirstin is presently finishing an edition of these 25 songs for eventual publication. Kirstin has served as the pianist for the Interlochen Trumpet Institute and as a member of the piano faculty at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. In addition, Kirstin maintains a private studio and performs frequently as a freelance collaborative pianist.

The audience could best support us through the purchase of our CD, La Loba, which can be purchased through the Summit Records website: www.summitrecords.com. If an audience member felt compelled to give a financial donation, those donations can be routed through the Zalon fiscal sponser. Kirstin and I will use any funding that is gifted through this Zalon performance to help fund our next recording project.

Quire of Cheahs (featuring Phillip Cheah)

Phillip Cheah is a conductor, singer, pianist, and teacher based in New York City. He is the Music Director of Central City Chorus and Amuse Singers, a member of the professional choir at the Church of St. Luke in the Fields, and Co-Artistic Director of Cheah Chan Duo, a versatile piano-voice team, with Trudy Chan. He has performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space, Madison Square Garden, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art with major ensembles like the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic and a variety of artists ranging from Barbara Bonney to Olympia Dukakis to Madonna. He has taught at Barnard College, Manhattan School of Music, and The Putney School, and has served as the personal assistant to Peter Schickele.

Ways that the audience can support me:

Venmo: @MaestroCheah

PayPal: phillip.cheah@gmail.com

www.youtube.com/quireofcheahs

www.cheahchanduo.com

Erin Hill

Harpist & singer Erin Hill has played & sung with Cyndi Lauper, Kanye West, Enya, moby, Sinead O’Connor, a-ha, Jewel, Josh Groban, for celebrities, for two First Ladies, and for royalty. Her Celtic album hit #1 on the Billboard world chart.  She was in the original Broadway casts of Titanic, Cabaret and Urinetown, and was featured by HBO playing the Game of Thrones theme on her harp. She has played solo at The Royal Albert Hall, and is also known as Dave Chappelle’s “Pretty White Girl” from Comedy Central’s Chappelle’s Show. Cleopatra Records has released Erin’s albums Harp Town, Christmas Harp, and Girl Inventor. Her show Harp Oddity: The Music of David Bowie debuted in NYC in 2019.

https://www.instagram.com/erinhillharp/

https://www.youtube.com/erinhillharp

http://www.erinhill.com