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New Century Saxophone Quartet Saturday, May 4 at 7:30 PM The Prallsville Mills, Stockton
The festival opens with this pioneering and versatile group—acclaimed for its five CDs; command performance for President Clinton at the White House; dozens of commissioning projects; and concerts at major venues in NY, Boston, LA, Washington, Chicago, Amsterdam, and Panama, featuring music from classical works to contemporary pieces with funk and jazz influences. Three NJ Premieres of works by Ben Johnston, Bob Mintzer, and Stephen Pollock highlight this almost-all-American program, which also features selections from Bach’s "Art of the Fugue" and Bernstein’s "West Side Story." www.newcenturysax.com • www.bobmintzer.com
"A virtuoso display of dexterity and keen ensemble work." The New York Post
"Highly recommended music; listeners will delight in the revelatory airspace created when four horns collide." Amazon.com Editorial Review
"The four players amazed with their absolute control, their pinpoint precision. The joy of the playing communicated electrically to the audience." The News & Observer (Raleigh)
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J.S.
BACH |
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REBEL Vivaldi, Venice & Vienna Saturday, May 11 at 7:30 PM Old Greenwich Presbyterian Church, Bloomsbury, NJ
Celebrate spring with the glorious music of Antonio Vivaldi and his Venetian and Viennese contemporaries, performed on period Baroque instruments (violins, viola, cello, double bass, harpsichord, organ, theorbo) by the award-winning REBEL Baroque ensemble in the idyllic setting of Old Greenwich Church. National Public Radio’s Ensemble-in-Residence and resident ensemble at historic Trinity Church in downtown New York City, REBEL (pronounced "re-BEL") has been hailed by the New York Times as "sophisticated and beguiling," praised by the Los Angeles Times for their "astonishingly vital music-making," and earned an impressive international reputation for its unique style and virtuosic, highly expressive and provocative approach to the Baroque repertoire. Formed in the Netherlands in 1991, REBEL’s tours take them to the major festivals of France, Austria, Germany, Holland. CDs for Dorian and Deutsche Harmonia Mundi.
"INTOXICATING." Neuss-Grevenbroicher Zeitung (Germany)
"Vitality and enthusiasm…virtuosity and joy." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
"The playing is stylish, rhythmic and technically assured, and there is remarkable precision of the ensemble throughout." The Strad (London)
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Jean-Fery Rebel Sonata Six in G minor (L'Immortelle)
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Michael Newman, guitar Thirty Years & Counting Saturday, May 18 at 7:30 PM Stanton Reformed Church, Stanton, NJ
The festival continues with a rare solo performance by Michael Newman, celebrating the 30th anniversary of his first public recital—right here at Stanton Church! Newman has appeared as guest soloist with the Atlanta, Seattle, and Honolulu Symphonies, and has toured five continents over twenty years as a partner in The Newman & Oltman Guitar Duo. His solo and chamber music recordings for Sheffield Lab Audiophile and MusicMasters have received unanimous critical acclaim.
"Everything Mr. Newman touched demonstrated an extraordinary talent, both in his command of the instrument and his instinctively natural musical perceptions." The New York Times
"Keep the name in mind: Michael Newman." The New York Times
"Doubtless the greatest guitar record yet made." The New York Daily News |
Isaac Albeniz Torre Bermeja
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The Newman & Oltman Guitar Duo and The Meridian String Quartet An American Celebration: Memorial Day Tribute Saturday, May 25 at 7:30 PM Clinton Presbyterian Church, Clinton
This year’s festival closes with a special tribute for the Memorial Day weekend, featuring music by American masters George Gershwin, Aaron Copland and Samuel Barber, along with Antonin Dvorak’s "American Quartet" and Arnold Black’s "Laments & Dances"—first performed at the Raritan River Music Festival in 1991. The award-winning Meridian String Quartet—with performances at festivals throughout the United States—joins The Newman & Oltman Guitar Duo—Ensemble-in-Residence at New York’s Mannes College of Music with concert tours throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, and ten acclaimed CDs—for this unique event.
The Newman & Oltman Guitar Duo: "A finely blended sound and true unity of timbre and style." The New York Times
"Guitar Duo Shows Rare Prowess." The Los Angeles Times
"A revelation to hear." The Washington Post
Meridian String Quartet: "Spirited…They took the listener to the heart of the score. They play with intelligence, an admirable collegiality and an obvious love for the music." The New York Times
"The audience virtually danced away from this delightful outing." The Strad (London )
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Arnold Black Carolan's Concerto (From Laments & Dances)
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