Composers Concordance to Present Paul Cortese and Gene Pritsker in March

On March 11th at 7pm, Composers Concordance will present violist Paul Cortese and composer/guitarist/Di.J. Gene Pritsker in a concert of chamber and electro-acoustic music. They will be joined by guest performers violinist Machiko Ozawa and percussionist Roxan Jurkevich.

Paul Cortese, coming to New York City from Barcelona, will premiere Pritsker's solo viola concerto with Samplestra (pre recorded electronics) 'The Only'. The concert will also feature a new Pritsker composition, written especially for this event, titled 'Suspire' for violin, viola, e. guitar and hand drum. Other works on the program include Machiko Ozawa's 'Havana Murder Mystery' and the solo viola composition 'Folk-Like Melodies' by Pritsker.

Performance Details: 

Composers Concordance presents

Paul Cortese - viola & Gene Pritsker - guitar / DiJ.

with Special Guests Roxan Jurkevich - percussion, Machiko Ozawa - violin

Monday, March 11th, 2024

7pm

Silvana Harlem

300 West 116th Street

FREE EVENT

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Composers:

Gene Pritsker, Machiko Ozawa,J.S. Bach

Performers:

Paul Cortese - viola

Gene Pritsker - guitar / Di.J.

Roxan Jurkevich - percussion

Machiko Ozawa - violin

Paul Cortese

an active protagonist of his instrument, graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with the famed violist Joseph dePasquale.

Previously, under the tutelage of Stanley Nosal, Guillermo Perich, John Garvey, and Burton Fine, he pursued his studies at the University of Illinois and the New England Conservatory in Boston.

While completing his studies, Cortese performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Boston Symphony, and was offered the Principal Viola position in the Teatro alla Scala. In 1986 he became the leader of the viola section of the Gothenburg Symphony orchestra under their music director Neeme Järvi. He made his debut with orchestra in Alice Tully Hall in New York in 1991. Although he has been guest principal viola in over a dozen European orchestras, Cortese dedicates an increasing amount of time to solo and chamber music playing.

Cortese has performed extensively in the US, Canada, and the European Union, collaborating with numerous chamber music groups such as the Kandinsky Trio, the Trio Arbós, and various string quartets, participating in international music festivals such as Tanglewood, Evian, Banff, Musicades of Lyon, Granada, Grand Teton, and many others. He has performed on numerous occasions with Context, a flexible chamber group of historically informed interpretation in the US. In Spain, he has been a member of the Beethoven Klavierquartett for over fifteen years, and has recently been performing with the Jacques Thibaud String Trio.

Born in Wisconsin to Italian parents, Paul currently lives in Barcelona, Spain, where he is professor of viola and chamber music at the conservatory of the Liceo , along with a regular masterclass in the Arcos Academy in Madrid. He has been collaborating with the Baltic Youth Philharmonic, Kristjan Järvi, music director, and has taught masterclasses in Spain, Italy, France, Vietnam, the US, Poland, Latvia, Germany, and Estonia. He currently plays a viola constructed for him by the fine Spanish maker Agustín Clemente of Madrid in the year 2006, along with an Iginio Sderci viola of Florence, 1972

Staying in rotation for 40 years in NYC is a rare feat. In the case of a new music presenting organization, it requires not only diligence and cognizance of achievements of the past but also an ethic of keeping one's ear to the ground for emerging stylistic and technological developments, as well as talented new composers on the scene. Composers Concordance, founded in 1984 by Joseph Pehrson and Patrick Hardish, advised by Otto Luening, strives to present contemporary music in innovative ways, with an emphasis on thematic programming. Directors Gene Pritsker and Dan Cooper co-curate the programs and lead the CompCord Ensemble, Chamber Orchestra, String Orchestra, and Big Band. Associate Directors are Milica Paranosic, Peter Jarvis, Debra Kaye, and Seth Boustead. Composers Concordance has also created a Naxos-distributed record label: Composers Concordance Records, co-directed by Gene Pritsker and Shanan Estreicher. Composers Concordance's overriding vision is to promote contemporary music, composers, and new works as a rightful and respected part of society. Good music performed and recorded well, pushing the boundaries of sound and composition.