Lincoln Trio to Perform 'Haydn to Higdon' Joy Faith Knapp Music Center, 5/3

Chicago's acclaimed Lincoln Trio - Marta Aznavoorian on piano, David Cunliffe on cello and Desirée Ruhstrat on violin - will present Haydn to Higdon on Sunday, May 3 at 3 p.m. at Merit School's Joy Faith Knapp Music Center, 38 S. Peoria St., in Chicago's West Loop.

The concert will be held in Merit's showcase performance space, Anne & Howard Gottlieb Hall. Tickets are only $10. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit meritmusic.org or click the direct online ticketing link, http://tinyurl.com/LincolnTrio0515.

Now in their second year as artists in residence at Merit, Lincoln Trio has immersed themselves into Merit's community and curriculum through an ongoing series of public concerts, private concerts and master classes exclusively for Merit students.

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) was a prominent and prolific composer of the Classical period. The Austrian composer was instrumental in the development of chamber music and his contributions to the form have earned him the epithets "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet."

Smetana (1824-1884), widely regarded in his homeland as the "Father of Czech Music," is best known for his opera The Bartered Bride; for the symphonic cycle Má vlast ("My Homeland"), which portrays the history, legends and landscape of his native land; and for his First String Quartet, From My Life.

Stacy Garrop is an award-winning younger generation composer known for her direct and dramatic narrative, and head of Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts' Composition Program. She has written and published multiple works for brass, chorus, orchestra, mixed chamber ensembles, piano, piano trios, saxophone, string quartet and voice. Her compositions are featured on 16 CDS, with seven released by Chicago-based Cedille Records, also Lincoln Trio's label.

Jennifer Higdon is a major figure in contemporary Classical music, recipient of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her Violin Concerto and a 2010 Grammy for her Percussion Concerto. Higdon's blue cathedral is one of America's most performed contemporary orchestral works, with more than 500 performances worldwide since its premiere in 2000.

"Merit School of Music provides such a nurturing environment that fosters so much creativity and achievement. It is an honor to work with Merit's talented students to fulfill their potential as artists and help instill a lifelong love of music," said Lincoln Trio's Desirée Ruhstrat. "Likewise, Merit's Gottleib Hall is a fantastic, intimate venue to experience live chamber music. We look forward to performing there on May 3 for our Merit family, our loyal Lincoln Trio fans, and new audiences interested in discovering how chamber music has evolved over the past 200+ years."

In addition to Haydn to Higdon on May 3, Lincoln Trio will celebrate the end of Merit's school year with South American Sojourn, a public concert featuring music of renowned Colombian composer Juan Antonio Cuellaron Sunday, June 28 atn 3 p.m. Tickets are $10. For tickets and more information, visit meritmusic.org.

In 2012 FANFARE Magazine hailed the celebrated Chicago-based Lincoln Trio as "one of the hottest young trios in the business." Formed in 2003, the trio takes its name from their home, the heartland of the United States, the land of Lincoln. The trio has been praised for its polished presentations of well-known chamber works and its ability to forge new paths with contemporary repertoire. The group's reputation as a first-rate ensemble draws an eclectic audience of sophisticated music lovers, young admirers of contemporary programs and students discovering chamber music for the first time.

Bringing together performing experience spanning the globe, each member is of international renown. Violinist Desirée Ruhstrat has performed throughout the US and Europe, appearing at the White House and performing on live radio broadcast heard around the world with the Berlin Radio Orchestra;cellist David Cunliffe has performed with the BBC and Royal Scottish orchestras as well as touring with the Balanescu Quartet; pianist Marta Aznavoorian has performed throughout the U.S. and abroad appearing at Chicago Symphony Center, the Kennedy Center in D.C. and the Sydney Opera House.

The trio has performed throughout the U.S., including at Carnegie's Weil Hall, Ravinia Festival, Poisson Rouge, the Indianapolis Symphony Beethoven Chamber Music Series, Lane Concert Series, University of Chicago, Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series, Music in the Loft, and in Springfield, Illinois, where the trio was chosen to celebrate the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial celebration with President Barack Obama. The trio's debut solo CDNotable Women received numerous accolades in the U.S. and abroad including NAXOS CD of the Month, Baker and Taylor CD Hotlist, Byzantion Recording of the Month, TPR Classical Spotlighted album, WQXR/Q2 Music Album of the week, UK Observer Hidden Gems of 2011 and was listed on Alex Ross of New Yorker Magazine "Nightafternight playlist for summer's end." For more information visit lincolntrio.com.

To post a comment, you must register and login.