Chamber Music Society Of Lincoln Center Announces April Events

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will greet spring with a special 90th Birthday Salute to George Crumb featuring two programs of nine different works on April 14 and 16. American Icon: George Crumb at 90 will include theworld premiere of the iconic composer's KRONOS-KRYPTOS for Percussion Quintet (a CMS co-commission), the first commission he accepted in more than 15 years. Crumb was proclaimed "the savior of music" in the early 1970s era of atonal music. The performances will feature pianist Gilbert Kalish-whose definitive interpretations helped fuel the composer's meteoric rise-along with soprano Tony Arnold and baritone Randall Scarlata, flutist Tara Helen O'Connor, and many more artists. Performers for the Crumb premiere will be percussionists Victor Caccese, Daniel Druckman, Ayano Kataoka, Eduardo Leandro, andIan David Rosenbaum.

April concerts will also include Three Centuries, highlighted by the world premiere and CMS co-commission of Australian composer Brett Dean's Clarinet Quartet, alongside works from the Classical and Romantic eras featuring pianist Wu Qian, violinist Arnaud Sussmann, violistYura Lee, cellist Nicholas Canellakis, and clarinetist Tommaso Lonquich (Apr. 5). A springMeet the Music! program for families titled Magical Mystical Moonlight will present music written about the moon by Debussy, Beethoven, Schoenberg, Bruce Adolphe, Schumann, and George Crumb (Apr. 7). At the end of the month, From Mendelssohn juxtaposes two of the composer's works from 1845 with those by three masters he influenced: Schumann, Brahms, and Tchaikovsky. The concert will showcase pianist Inon Barnatan, violinist Cho-Liang Lin, violist Paul Neubauer, cellist Jakob Koranyi, and clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois (Apr 28).

In the Rose Studio, pianist Lise de la Salle, violinist Ani Kavafian and Angelo Xiang Yu, violistHsin-Yun Huang, cellist Timothy Eddy, and flutist Sooyun Kim will perform a program of Mozart, Rota, and Dohnányi (Apr. 25). In addition, flutist Tara Helen O'Connor will give a master class demonstrating the art of interpretation and details of technique for the next generation of chamber musicians (Apr. 17).

The CMS 2018 Stoeger Prize is Announced

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's 2018 Elise L. Stoeger Prize has been awarded to French composer Marc-André Dalbavie, a recipient of the Chevalier des Arts et Lettres from the French Ministry of Culture. The Prize, awarded in recognition of significant contributions to the field of chamber music composition rather than for a specific work, offers a $25,000 cash award-the largest of its kind in the world-and is given every two years.

"I am very honored and touched to receive this prize," said Dalbavie. "My deepest thanks to all the people who put their trust in my work. Chamber music demands the most rigorous discipline from a composer. As a composer working alone, feeling a little isolated, it is always reassuring to know that somewhere in the world, some people have received the sound waves coming out of my imagination."

Added CMS Co-Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han, "we are thrilled to recognize the eminent composers of today who have made a significant contribution to the chamber music repertoire with the Stoeger Prize, acknowledging the creative voices that have enriched this art form. It is a privilege to add Marc André Dalbavie to this group of esteemed composers."

For more information on the Prize, Marc-André Dalbavie, and a list of past winners, click here.