MANCHESTER — Taconic Music’s second annual Chamber Music Saturday will be held this Saturday at 7:30 pm at the Riley Center for the Arts at Burr and Burton College in Manchester.
Taconic Music’s eighth annual Summer Music Festival will kick off the holiday week with the first of two young artist concerts at the Riley Center on July 1 at 7 p.m.
This Saturday’s concert kicked off with Mozart’s Piano Quartet No. 2 in E flat major, performed by violinist Joana Genova and violist Ariel Rudiakov. , cellist Hannah Holman and pianist Davide Cabassi, both on the Taconic 2024 Festival faculty.
After the quartet, Rudyakov will conduct the Taconic String Orchestra and guest-star soprano Evangelia Leontis in Heitor Villa-Lobos’ “Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5” aria. Roughly translated as “Inspired by Bach,” audiences are in for a once-in-a-lifetime performance. The evening concluded with the jazzy “La Revue de Cuisine” (The Kitchen Review) by Bohuslav Martinů with Megan Shumate Beaumont (clarinet); Gili Sharett (bassoon) and Wayne du Maine (trumpet) joined Genova, Holman and Cabassi Great show to end the party.
In addition to concert performances, the second week of Taconic Music Festival featured a master class at the Riley Center with cellist Roberta Cooper. Audiences will experience firsthand how chamber music can be refined and elevated to a whole new level. Cooper will work with young artists in the Taconic Chamber Music Intensive, providing insights on interpretation and style as they prepare for upcoming concerts.
Saturday chamber music concerts are $30 for adults, free for students and children. Reservations recommended. All concert attendees are invited to an informal pre-concert reception, which will begin when the box office opens at 6:30 p.m. For those unable to make it to the concert hall, the concert will be live-streamed on Taconic’s YouTube channel. Masterclasses are free and open to everyone and are in-person only.
young artist
On July 1, young artists from the Taconic Chamber Music Intensive (violins Amina Knapp, Christopher Nelson, Arianna Pope, Rebecca Rosmanitz; violas Keigan Iwanicki and Sachin Shukla; cellos Wujin Kim and Tamara Shu; and piano Lucia Zavagna) will give a concert with Zavagna. Beethoven’s “Harp” String Quartet opened the show, followed by Jesse Montgomery’s Modern String Quartet Strum.
The second half of the evening will feature Shostakovich Piano Quintet (Op. 57) and Mendelssohn String Quartet in F minor. The Young Artists Concert is free to all, with a suggested donation of $15 at the door for adults and free for students and children. For those unable to make it to the concert hall, the Young Artists Concert will also be live-streamed on Taconic Music’s YouTube channel.
A highlight of the week is on July 6 at 7:30 p.m., Taconic Music co-artistic director Ariel Rudiakov conducts the Taconic Pops Orchestra in the Arkell Pavilion at the Southern Vermont Arts Center for “An Evening of Pops,” covering everything from toes to Percussion and other fields include the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Henry Mancini and John Williams, James Bond, Batman, Star Trek, Movie themes from Indiana Jones and more. Maxine Linehan of Manchester Center will be the featured vocalist.
Tickets for the reserved-seat pop concert range from $20 for children and students to $150 for a special VIP package that includes an exclusive after-party at the elegant Manchester Village residence. It is highly recommended that you book in advance to choose the best seats.
