Park ICM Presents 5 World Class Concerts This Spring

Stanislav Ioudenitch, Artistic Director of Park International Center for Music (Park ICM), announced today that their spring season kicks off in March with a world-class European performer never before heard in Kansas City and in one of Kansas City's acoustical gems, the 1900 Building in Mission Woods, Kansas. "We adore performing in the wonderful spaces of the 1900 Building," said Ioudenitch. "Between their 300-seat Parkway Room and their more intimate Rose Hall (75-150), they can accommodate our different needs as both of their halls can be "tuned" according to our performance requirements. It is truly a hidden jewel that is just being discovered in the Kansas City arts public."

Park ICM has five different offerings this spring for classical music lovers, all of which have incredible musicians coming to Kansas City from the world stage:

1. Park ICM 1900 Series Featuring Plamena Mangova, Piano, Sunday, March 11, 4:00 p.m., 1900 Building, Mission Woods, Kansas

Called the "Brilliant Bulgarian," Pianist Plamena Mangova, will create a rare opportunity for classical music lovers in Kansas City on Sunday, March 11th, at the 1900 Building in Westwood. Mangova, whose "flying fingers and unpretentious display of power (have) thrilled and astounded her audiences with virtuosic extremes time and again," will be offering a fabulous first act of Beethoven, Liszt, Rachmaninov, Chopin, and Ginastera.

The second half of the evening will feature a rarely performed transcription of the Fifteenth Symphony of Dimitri Shostakovich. This Kansas City Premiere will feature Mangova accompanied by Noah Geller (Kansas City Symphony Concertmaster), Timotheos Petrin (a Curtis-Graduate award winning cellist), spectacular arx duo, and percussionist virtuoso Jonny Allen.

The arranger, the well-known Russian pianist Victor Derevianko, recalls the creation of this arrangement: "I first became acquainted with the Fifteenth Symphony a couple of months before its premiere. In Soviet Russia, all composers, including the world-famous Shostakovich and Prokofiev, were obliged to present their new compositions to the Union of Composers, where their colleagues and the musical ideologues had to approve and authorize public performance. My colleague, the pianist Mikhail Muntian, and I were invited to perform the symphony in a transcription by the composer for two pianos before this exalted gathering. The symphony was approved and in January 1972 it was given its premiere. After getting to know the music so spontaneously, and then hearing it in concert, a strange idea came to me - to transcribe the symphony for a chamber ensemble consisting of a trio with piano, percussion and celesta. To my surprise and happiness, Shostakovich approved wholeheartedly to the transcription."

The full program includes:

Ludwig van Beethoven - 10 Variations on a Theme
Franz Liszt - Sonetto di Petrarca N. 104 S.270
Sergei Rachmaninov - Etude-Tableaux op.33 N. 9 in C-sharp minor
Frederic Chopin - Nocturne in C-Sharp Minor Op. Post
Alberto Ginastera - Three Argentinian Dances Op. 2
Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony No. 15 in A-major

Mangova won the second prize in the Queen Elisabeth Competition in 2007 and embarked on an international career. She made her studies with Marina Kapatsinskaya at the Pancho Vladigerov Sofia State Music Academy in Bulgaria, and then at the Queen Sofia Higher Music School, Madrid, with the eminent teacher Dmitri Bashkirov and Claudio Martinez Mehner. She also worked with Abdel-Rahman El Bacha at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium and received the advice of renowned musicians such as Leon Fleisher, Rosalyn Tureck, Krystian Zimerman, and Andras Schiff. She is a Laureate of various prestigious international piano and chamber music competitions, including "Paloma O'Shea" in Santander and "Vittorio Gui" in Florence, as well as the Juventus Festival in France. Mangova regularly performs around the world with leading orchestras.

Tickets $20, Students $10 at 1900bldg.com/performances/

2. Park ICM Masters in Concert Featuring Daniel Veis, Cello, and Helena Veisova, Piano, Sat., April 7th, 7:30 p.m., Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel, Park University Campus

The "Park ICM Masters in Concert Series" continues with Professor Daniel Veis and Helene Veisova in concert on Saturday, April 7, 7:30 p.m.

Daniel Veis has been widely recognized as "the finest Czech cellist" since winning the Silver Medal at the prestigious 1978 Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow. Prior to winning the Tchaikovsky, he won the First Prize at the 1976 Prague Spring International Competition. He started his musical studies in his native Prague, after which he proceeded to the Moscow Conservatory furthering his studies with the famous Natalia Shakhovskaya, graduating with full distinction. Since 1979 he has performed regularly as a soloist with many major orchestras in such respected venues as Avery Fisher Hall NY, Royal Albert Hall London, Orchard Hall Tokyo, Auditori de Barcelona, Auditorio de Madrid, and numerous others. He has worked with world famous conductors, namely, Sir Charles Mackerras, S. Baudo, Y.P. Tortelier, G. Delogu, J.P. Saraste and V. Gergiev. In addition to his solo career he is also a member of the Rosamunde Trio, an ensemble of international repute, together with British pianist Martino Tirimo and violinist Ben Sayevich. He plays a Joseph Cavaleri instrument, Genoa, 1740.

Helena Veisova started her musical studies at age six and at twelve she performed with her father, the violin virtuoso Vaclav Snitil. Her professional career had its natural origin in the musical environment of her family. She graduated from the Academy of Performing Arts, Prague, where at 14 she studied with the famous Jan Panenka. She subsequently started her permanent co-operation with her former Trio partner and future husband, Daniel Veis. They appeared together in numerous concerts in France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, and Russia among others. Helena has performed on live Radio and TV broadcasts, and has made numerous Radio and CD recordings. According to the prestigious journal The Strad, "Helena is a pianist who has an excellent command, endowed with a supreme musicality and perfect coordination when playing with other musicians."

Daniel and Helena's program includes the following and will be held in the Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel on the campus of Park University, Parkville, Missouri:

Ludwig van Beethoven - Sonata in C-major, op. 102 no. 1
Richard Strauss - Sonata in F-major, op. 6

No admission charge. Open to the Public.

3. Park ICM Distinguished Alumni Series Presents David Radzynski, Violin & Lolita Lisovskaya-Sayevich, Piano, Sunday, April 15, 2018, 4:00 p.m., 1900 Building, Mission Woods, Kansas

One of the youngest violinists to lead a major orchestra today, Radzynski is the Concertmaster of the Israel Philharmonic. David will be in concert with Lolita Lisovskaya-Sayevich, Park University Collaborative Artist, at the 1900 Building.

David, 31, joined the Israel Philharmonic in January 2015. The young violinist hails from Ohio and grew up among a musical family. His father, Jan Radzynski, is a composer as well as Professor of Composition in the music department at Ohio State University while his mother is a pianist. David will perform one of his father's compositions in the upcoming concert. He began receiving instruction on piano at the age of three and took up violin at six. David studied intensely with Roland and Almita Vamos as well as Paul Kantor, who are widely regarded as among the leading violin instructors in the world. He went on to receive a bachelor's degree in music from Indiana University where he worked closely with Mauricio Fuks and Kevork Mardirossian and a master's degree from the Yale School of Music under the direction of Syoko Aki. He finished his studies Park International Center for Music with Ben Sayevich, who was instrumental in preparing David for the concertmaster audition. In Israel, David works extensively with the orchestra's artistic director Zubin Mehta, not only in Tel Aviv, but also around the world. David has led the orchestra on tours throughout Europe, China, Singapore, and the United States and most recently in Mehta's hometown Mumbai, India to celebrate the Maestro's 80th birthday. David has also performed as guest concertmaster with the Houston Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and has most recently been invited to guest-lead the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.

David is joined in concert by Lolita Lisovskaya-Sayevich, Ben Saveyich's wife, but a reputed concert pianist in her own right. Originally from Uzbekistan, Lisovskaya-Sayevich is part of the impressive faculty at Park International Center for Music. Serving as Director of Collaborative Piano, she works with students during the rehearsal process and accompanies them on piano during performances. Lolita was hired by Park ICM, her husband Ben said, because, "she had a special talent for musical collaboration . . . when you make music together with other people, you have to have a very similar imagination." Lolita was born into a Tashkent musical family and began studying piano at the age of four. She won the first prize at the Chopin International Piano Competition. She entered the Tchaikovsky Special Music School and two years later was accepted to the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory under the tutelage of Vera Cornosteaeva, with whom she continued postgraduate study. She also studied with Stanislav Ioudenitch at Park International Center for Music. Lolita has played as a soloist with orchestras all over the world.

Of particular meaning to David for this concert is the occasion to play one of his father's, Jan Radzynski's, compositions. Originally from Warsaw, Radzynski eventually settled in Israel. In 1977, he came to the U.S. to study composition at Yale University, completing two masters degrees and his doctorate. "Personal Verses" was written for pianist Golda Vainberg and Lithuanian violinist Raimundas Katillus in 1999. "It is comprised of three contrasting movements including a dance-like Vivo e risoluto, a slow Andante, and a relentless, frenzied Con moto," said Jan Radzynski. Radzynski's music is characterized by the utilization of contemporary techniques in contexts rich of stylistic elements from the past. By embedding East European-Jewish (cantorial) and Middle-Eastern (heterophonic) musical elements in compositions committed to the past masters, Radzynski aims at a musical language timeless and contemporary alike, culturally unique and universal.

Describes Radzynski, "'Personal Verses' concludes with a forward-driving, perpetual motion Con moto. The first two movements look back at the yellowed photographs in the family album, but the obsessive Con moto belongs to the present, here and now. Certainly, this movement does not attempt to reconcile with the past. A dialogue with the past becomes impossible, given its horrific history. But the lessons of history seem to have never really been learned. What remains is obsession, madness, and a cry of despair."

The concert program includes:
Johannes Brahms - Sonata no. 2 for Violin & Piano in A major, op. 100
Jan Radzynski - Personal Verses
Ernest Chausson - Poeme op. 25 for Violin & Piano
Claude Debussy - Sonata for Violin and Piano in G major

Tickets $20, Students $10 at 1900bldg.com/performances/

4. Award-Winning Park ICM Soloists in Concert With the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra, Saturday, April 27, 2018, Helzberg Hall, Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

A magnificent evening of classical music with the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra featuring some of Park ICM's most acclaimed students including Kenny Broberg, piano, Mansur Kadirov, cello, and Igor Khukhua, Violin.

A native of Minneapolis, 24-year-old pianist, Kenny Broberg, won the silver medal at the Fifteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition for performances that showed "an imaginative shaping of themes, revelation of inner voices, and an unfailing sense of momentum" (Texas Classical Review). His 2017-2018 debut season as Cliburn medalist includes a recital tour in Hawaii, a return to his alma mater, the University of Houston, for its annual Texas Music Festival, and orchestra and recital engagements in Denver, New Orleans, West Palm Beach, and other cities across the United States. In Europe, Mr. Broberg appears with the Rye Arts Festival and Hastings Philharmonic in the United Kingdom, and in recital in Italy. His debut solo album was released by Decca Gold in August 2017, as part of his Competition prizes.

Mansur Kadirov was born in 1989 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan into a musical family. He began cello studies at the age of eight under Novikova Margarita Konstanstinovna at the Reingold M. Glier Music School and by the age of ten, he was regularly featured on radio and television in Tashkent and was invited to perform at government functions. In 2003, Kadirov won his first cello competition, at a competition for young performers in Tashkent. In 2010, Kadirov was accepted into Park International Center for Music on full scholarship. He has since performed at both the Folly Theater and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. In 2012, he performed in Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center. In 2013, he was featured on Kansas City Public Radio, performing Paganini's Moses Variations. In the same year, he won the Sigma Alpha Iota scholarship auditions in Kansas City. Kadirov was also invited by David Ramael to perform in recitals throughout New York City, where he performed in Queens College and Southampton. In 2014, he joined renowned violinist Shmuel Ashkenasi in performing the Schubert String Trio in Bb Major. Later that year, Mansur Kadirov was the grand prizewinner of the Naftzger Young Artist Auditions.

Igor Khukhua was born in Novosibirsk (Russia), studied at the Moscow State Conservatory and was an artist with the Moscovia Orchestra. In 2016 he successfully won the competition that would place him with a full-time position with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra but refused the offer, opting instead to come to the US to study with Park ICM and Professor Ben Sayevich. Since arriving in the US, Igor has won second prize at the Hudson Valley Philharmonic String Competition in New York and won first prize at the Naftzger Artists Competition. He amazed audiences with his US debut on the Muriel Kauffman Theatre Stage in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts shortly after his arrival in 2016.

The program will include:

Beethoven - Overture "The Creatures of Prometheus," Op. 43

Tchaikovsky - Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33

Mendelssohn - Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64

Beethoven - Piano Concerto in E-flat Major, Op. 73, "Emperor"

Tickets: $20-$40, Students Tickets ½ price, kcchamberorchestra.org/tickets/

5. Park ICM Distinguished Alumni Series Presents Truls Mørk, Cello, and Behzod Abduraimov, Piano, Tuesday, May 1, 2018, 1900 Building, Mission Woods, Kansas

When the Nordic Cellist, Truls Mørk, meets the impressive Uzbek pianist and Park ICM Alum, Behzod Abduraimov, there is electricity in the air! As a top cello soloist for 30 years, Mørk captivates the public with his class, elegance and radiant interpretations. Combine him with the fast-rising pianist and there's certain to be an extraordinary evening of music.

Truly one of the pre-eminent cellists of our time, Truls Mørk has performed with the most distinguished orchestras around the world. With an impressive recording output, Mørk has recorded many of the great cello concertos for labels such as Virgin Classics, EMI, Deutsche Grommophon, and many others. Initially taught by his father, Mørk continued his studies with Frans Helmerson, Heinrich Schiff and Natalia Schakowskaya. In his early career, he won a number of international cello competitions including the Moscow Tchaikovsky Competition (1982), Cassado Cello Competition in Florence (1983), the Unesco Prize at the European Radio-Union competition in Bratislava (1983) and the Naumberg Competition in New York (1986).

Described by The Times as the "master of all he surveys" and with The Washington Post noting to "keep your ear on this one", Abduraimov's captivating performances continue to receive international praise. Following his debut success at Carnegie Hall in 2015, recent seasons have seen Abduraimov work with leading orchestras worldwide. An award-winning recording artist, he released his first concerto disc in 2014 on Decca Classics which features Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No.3 and Tchaikovsky's Concerto No.1 with the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai under Juraj Val?uha. His debut recital CD won both the Choc de Classica and the Diapason Découverte. Born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in 1990, Abduraimov began to play the piano at the age of five as a pupil of Tamara Popovich at Uspensky State Central Lyceum in Tashkent. He is an alumnus of Park University's International Center for Music where he studied with Stanislav Ioudenitch, and now serves as the ICM's artist-in-residence.

Mørk and Abduraimov's program will include:
Sergei Rachmaninov - Two Pieces for Cello and Piano, Op. 2

Edvard Grieg - Cello Sonata in A minor, Op. 36
Edvard Grieg - Entermezzo in A minor for Cello and Piano, EG 115
Sergie Rachmaninov - Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 19
Tickets $20 or Students $10 at 1900bldg.com/performances/

Park ICM was established (www.park.edu) at Park University in 2003. This All-Steinway School trains and educates the next generation of accomplished musicians in a focused and creative atmosphere with an international faculty of renowned excellence. Park ICM offers degree, certificate and diploma programs at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Our courses of study are focused in the areas of performance in violin, viola, cello and piano. At the core of all ICM programs is one-on-one studio instruction providing vital interactions between the student and master faculty, now in its 14th season. This extremely exclusive music academy selects just 27 students each year to study in the historic European apprenticeship tradition. Each student receives individual studio instruction twice weekly. Park's amazing campus provides focused and uninterrupted practice time 24-hours daily in a serene and extremely supportive environment. The international faculty's incredible network of acquaintances throughout the world provide for master classes with renowned guest artists in each performance degree. The European tradition demands public concerts as part of student training that creates performances alongside faculty in sublime intimate concerts throughout Kansas City. Ultimately, the Park ICM master faculty mentors inspiring apprentice musicians and trains them in music and performance. The master faculty also coaches musicianship and career development so that the students will become award-winning musicians, traveling the world and entertaining the most discerning music lovers across all continents.

Visit www.icm.Park.edu/events/ for more information about Park ICM's 2018 spring performance season. High-resolution photos of the performers can be obtained by contacting the Park ICM Director, Roger Kugler, at Roger.Kugler@park.edu or 816-584-6484 office.

Parking at the 1900 Building is free and readily available. Information for Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts parking can be found online at www.kauffmancenter.org. The parking garage, immediately south of the Kauffman Center, is the primary parking garage for all patrons. Event parking is $10 per car and may be purchased upon arrival. Parking at the Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel is also free on campus.

At the 1900 Building, Student tickets are available for $10 (with valid ID, one ticket per ID). General admission tickets are $20. All tickets may be purchased in advance at 1900bldg.com or at the door prior to the performances based on availability. The Box Office opens 30-minutes prior to all performances. Student's are offered a ½-price discount for KC Chamber Orchestra concerts and are available at KCChamberOrchestra.org. Concerts are free at the Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel for adults and students.

Receive updates by joining Park ICM Facebook at www.facebook.com/ICMPark and following @ICM_Park on Twitter.