Composer Debra Kaye's IKARUS to be Performed at Mezzrow 8/20

Composer Debra Kaye's work, Ikarus (Duo for Binya) for violin and viola will be performed at the intimate Mezzrow Classical Salon on Sunday, Aug. 20 at 5 p.m. Pianist David Oei, musical curator of the monthly classical series, has programmed the work with violinist Eriko Sato and violist Lois Martin. The Salon is located at 163 West 10th Street, New York, NY. Tickets are $20, $10 for students and available online at www.mezzrow.com and at the door.

Ikarus (Duo for Binya) for violin and viola, commissioned by the Community Music Center of Portland celebrated its premiere in Oregon. Sato and Martin performed the work in its New York premiere at the National Association of Composers, USA's Spring Serenade concert last year.

Kaye has been hailed as "a unique voice in American music" for her "transcendent, witty, colorful and profound" works blending her deep classical roots with a wide range of influences including jazz, world music, folk, experimental improvisation, world events and sounds of daily life. With a catalogue of close to 50 works, chamber and orchestral music, art songs, choral and theatrical compositions, her work has been honored with multiple ASCAP Plus Awards for her "creative contributions to American music." In May, Ikarus Among the Stars for orchestra celebrated its world premiere also in Portland and was hailed as "sensitive" work with an "elegiac orchestration which balanced the aspirations and fate of the mythological Ikarus's attempt to escape Earth's clutches." Her debut CD And So It Begins, produced by Grammy winning Judith Sherman, was recognized as "an album that will surely stand the test of time," and included on Ted Gioia's list of top 100 CDs.

The Mezzrow concert also will include Fantasie for 2 Flutes and Piano by Faure, Three Madrigals for Violin and Viola by Martinu, Suite in the Old Style for Violin and Piano by Schnittke, Much Ado About Nothing for Violin and Piano by Korngold, Three American Pieces for Violin and Piano by Foss and Andante and Rondo for 2 Flutes and Piano by Doppler. Other artists on the program include flutists Jessica Han and Donna Elaine and Oei on piano.

Sato is a leading chamber music violinist and a co-concertmaster of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestra of St. Luke's. Martin is a founding member of the Atlantic String Quartet which is dedicated to the performance of new compositions. Currently she is principal violist for the Stamford Symphony and the OK Mozart Festival. Oei, founder of the Salon Chamber Soloists, has performed with major orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, and the Pittsburgh and Baltimore Symphonies and at prestigious festivals throughout the United States. He received the 2017 Citation of Honor for his work with the Mezzrow Series.

For more information, visit www.debrakayecomposer.com.