HCC Concert Series Presents Children's Book Reading And Cello Recital

Reminiscing about his journey from the basketball courts of rural Israel to the grand symphony halls of the world, cellist Amit Peled will read his children's book, "A Cello Named Pablo" with the accompaniment of cello as part of Howard Community College's (HCC) Guest Artist Series on February 8, 2019, at the college's Science, Engineering, and Technology Building (SET), Room 101. The following evening, Peled will return with pianist Noreen Cassidy-Polera for the recital of "To Brahms, With Love" in the Monteabaro Recital Hall, located within the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center (HVPA).

The book reading will take place at 10 a.m. and is free of charge. The recital will begin at 7:30 p.m. on February 9, 2019. Tickets are $27 for general admission, $23 for seniors, and $12 for HCC students. For more information or to purchase tickets, please call the Horowitz Center Box Office at 443-518-1500 or visit www.howardcc.edu/concerts. Be sure to ask about Early Bird Tickets and Group Rates.

Israeli cellist Amit Peled, a musician of profound artistry and charismatic stage presence, is acclaimed worldwide as one of the most exciting and virtuosic instrumentalists on the concert stage today. At 6 feet 5 inches tall, Peled started life as a basketball player and was called "larger than life" and "Jacqueline du Pré in a farmer's body" when he enveloped his cello. Peled strives to break down the barriers of the concert hall, about which The Baltimore Sun wrote, "His amiable and inviting personality is exactly the type everyone says we'll need more of if classical music is to survive."

Peled performs on the Pablo Casals 1733 Goffriller cello, which was loaned to him personally by Casals' widow, Marta Casals Istomin. In September 2017, Peled published a children's book, "A Cello Named Pablo," written by Marni Fogelson and illustrated by Avi Katz. Funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign, it follows Peled's journey from the basketball courts of rural Israel to playing one of the most famous instruments at the world's great concert halls. Peled has performed as a soloist with many of the world's top orchestras and major concert halls, including Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall in New York, and Salle Gaveau in Paris.

The pianist Noreen Cassidy-Plorea ranks among the most highly regarded chamber artists performing today, and maintains a career that has taken her to every major American music center and abroad to Europe, Russia, and performing arts centers in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul, and Tokyo. She has been a guest at the Caramoor, Bard, Grand Teton, Casals, and Cape Cod Chamber music festivals, as well as engagements at the Chamber Music Societies of Philadelphia and La Jolla. She has recorded for labels Sony, EMI, Centaur, and Audiophon.

In addition to being a regular recital partner with Amit Peled and Narek Hakhnazaryan, Cassidy-Polera has appeared with Matt Haimovitz, Carter Brey, Antonio Menesis, Yo-Yo Ma, and Leonard Rose. Winner of the Accompanying Prize at the eighth International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, she frequently collaborates with laureates of the Queen Elizabeth, Tchaikovsky, and Naumburg international competitions. Her mastery of the complete cello-piano repertory is widely known, as is her dedication of performing the works of living composers. In recent seasons she has performed Elliott Carter's venerable Sonata for Cello and Piano on tour in Paris, New York, and Philadelphia. Cassidy-Polera holds bachelor of music and a master of music degrees from the Juilliard School, where she studied with Martin Canin.

Now in its 12th season, the HCC Concert Series aims to serve the college and Howard County communities with engaging and uplifting music programs at affordable prices. Next highlight of the 2018-2019 Guest Artist Season will be a piano recital by the 2018 Young Concert Artist international auditions winner, Aristo Sham on Sunday, March 3, 2019, at 4 p.m. HCC Concert Series also presents audience's favorite Baltimore-Metropolitan area musicians on the Faculty Concert Series throughout the season. For more information, visit howardcc.edu/concerts.

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