The Neighborhood Classics Series Continues 3/30 With Paul O’Dette

The Neighborhood Classics concert series at public schools in New York continues with a performance by master lutenist Paul O'Dette on Friday, March 30 at 7pm at PS 321's Auditorium (180 Seventh Ave., Brooklyn). His program will feature a selection of music from the 16^th and 17^th centuries by Elizabethan composers including John Dowland, Anthony Holborne, and Daniel Bacheler. Neighborhood Classics founder and Artistic Director Simone Dinnerstein will host the hour-long, family-friendly concert. All ticket sales will benefit PS 321.

In addition, on Thursday, March 29 throughout the school day, PS 321 will be filled with the sounds of Early Music from the Renaissance period as instrumentalists of all sorts descend on the school for a Renaissance Revolution! In October, a similar infiltration took over the school as nearly 20 cellists performed the music of Bach in every classroom. See SymphonyNOW's video report from PS 321's Bach Invasion: www.youtube.com/watch?v=prk_9lOFF80.

Lutenist, conductor, and music researcher Paul O'Dette began by playing classical guitar; while in high school he also played electric guitar in a rock band in Columbus, Ohio, where he grew up. He eventually adopted the lute as his primary instrument, specializing in the performance of Renaissance and Baroque music. A highly influential figure in his field, O'Dette has helped define the technical and stylistic standards to which 21st-century performers aspire. Best known for his recitals and recordings of solo lute music, he maintains an active international career as an ensemble musician and continuo player, performing with today's most respected conductors and ensembles. Paul O'Dette is Professor of Lute and Director of Early Music at the Eastman School of Music, and is Artistic Director of the Boston Early Music Festival.  He lives in Rochester, New York with his wife, son, and daughter.

Pianist Simone Dinnerstein founded the Neighborhood Classics series at PS 321, the school that her son attends and where her husband teaches, in 2009 and at Manhattan's PS 142 in 2010 in an effort to build relationships at a local level between neighborhoods and musicians. These one-hour, family-friendly performances, which are hosted by Dinnerstein and feature musicians she has admired and collaborated with during her career, are open to the public and raise funds for the schools. The musicians performing donate their time and talent to the program, and the concerts are organized and administered by PTA volunteers and faculty members. Neighborhood Classics has already raised enough funds to bring back the fourth grade band program at PS 142. At PS 321, proceeds benefit the school's PTA, which helps to fund art, chess, band, and chorus programs.

"This concert series is about bringing communities together around music," explains Ms. Dinnerstein. "It is a way for students, parents, teachers and neighbors to gather in a familiar and comfortable setting to listen to great music."

The Neighborhood Classics season continues on Thursday, April 26 at 7pm at PS 142, when the elegant San Francisco-based Cypress String Quartet performs music by Haydn, Glazunov, and Dvo?ák. To close the season, Face the Music returns for a performance at PS 321 on Sunday, June 3 at 2pm.