Concert Artists Guild to Celebrate 65 Years with Alumni Concert at Carnegie Hall

Concert Artists Guild is celebrating 65 years in 2016-17. In honor of this birthday, CAG Presents a special Alumni Concert at Carnegie Hall's Weill Hall on Tuesday, November 29 at 7:30 pm.

Flutist Carol Wincenc, harpist Bridget Kibbey, pianist/composer Michael Brown, and the Parker Quartet come together in a collaborative program. These artists represent CAG's vibrant history of launching successful and varied careers; all lead rich musical lives and have received prestigious honors including Grammy Awards and Avery Fisher Career Grants.

The Nov. 29th program includes a world premiere by Michael Brown and works by Bartók, Caplet, Bernstein, and Brahms.

The full program is:

Béla Bartók: Suite Paysanne Hungroise (Arr. Paul Arma, Trans. Kibbey)

Chants Populaires Tristes (1-4)

Scherzo

Vieilles Danses (1-9)

Carol Wincenc , flute & Bridget Kibbey, harp

Michael Brown: Homage to Copland (2007)

Thoughts for Richard (2015) World Premiere

Leonard Bernstein/arr. Michael Brown: Lonely Town from On the Town

Michael Brown, piano

André Caplet: Conte Fantastique, after The Mask of the Red Death, by Edgar Allen Poe

Bridget Kibbey, harp & Parker Quartet

INTERMISSION

Johannes Brahms: Piano Quintet

Michael Brown, piano & Parker Quartet

Winner of a 2015 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Michael Brown (CAG First Prize 2010) has been described by The New York Times as a "young piano visionary" and "one of the leading figures in the current renaissance of performer-composers." Mr. Brown is equally committed as a pianist and composer; his unique artistry is reflected in a creative approach to programming that often interweaves the classics with contemporary works and his own compositions. Selected by Sir András Schiff for his "Building Bridges" series in 2016-17, Mr. Brown makes solo recital debuts in Berlin, Frankfurt, Florence, Milan, Antwerp, Zurich, and at New York's 92nd Street Y.

Lauded for her compelling artistry and virtuosity, harpist Bridget Kibbey (CAG Winner 2007) showcases the broad range of her instrument through multi-genre performances -- drawing diverse audiences through new collaborations and platforms. Bridget is a recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant and the only harpist to win a position with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Society II. She has been featured with tenor Placido Domingo, in a new album entitled Encanto del Mar, released on SONY Records and can be heard on Deutsche Grammaphon with soprano Dawn Upshaw, in Luciano Berio's Folk Songs and Osvaldo Golijov's Ayre.

Inspiring performances, luminous sound, and exceptional musicianship are the hallmarks of the Grammy Award-winning Parker Quartet (CAG Winner 2006). Currently the Blodgett Artists-in-Residence at Harvard University, the ensemble's latest recording was just released on Nimbus Records of Mendelssohn's Quartets Op. 44, Nos. 1 and 3. 2016-17 highlights include a January 2017 European tour featuring performances with violist Kim Kashkashian; and two concerts in Washington, DC: at the National Gallery of Art and with jazz pianist Billy Childs at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Hailed "Queen of the Flute" (New York Magazine), flutist Carol Wincenc (CAG Winner 1972) delights audiences with her signature charismatic, high virtuosity and deeply heartfelt musicality. Whether concerto soloist, Grammy winning recording artist, devoted chamber music performer, or professor/mentor to luminaries in the professional flute world, Ms. Wincenc is the muse of today's legendary composers, including Rouse, Foss, Gorecki, Tower, Heggie, Higdon, and Schoenfeld. Most recently she recorded an all Uebayashi album with the award winning Escher String quartet, Stephen Gosling, Emil Nauomoff, and Tanya Dusevic Witek.

For 65 years Concert Artists Guild has helped young musicians launch concert careers. Winners of CAG's annual competition receive comprehensive management support including a debut recital in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, concert bookings, opportunities through the CAG Commissioning Program and CAG Records label, marketing, publicity, and mentorship. Since 1951, CAG has helped more than 500 musicians start careers; notable alumni artists are violinists Ani Kavafian and Jennifer Koh, soprano Martina Arroyo, clarinetists David Krakauer and David Shifrin, flutists Carol Wincenc and Marina Piccinini, Imani Winds, Grammy-winning ensembles Pacifica and Parker String Quartets, and MacArthur Fellows Claire Chase and Eighth Blackbird.

IF YOU GO:
Tuesday, Nov 29, 2016 at 7:30 pm
CAG Alumni Concert
Featuring the Parker Quartet, pianist/composer Michael Brown, harpist Bridget Kibbey, flutist Carol Wincing
At Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall
With works by Brahms, Bartók, Caplet, Bernstein, and Michael Brown
Tickets: $25 / $15 Student
Info: www.concertartists.org/cag-presents/cag-alumni-concert