Music Institute of Chicago Presents The Cantare Chamber Players 1/22/12

Celebrating the multiple talents of the accomplished musicians on its faculty, the Music Institute of Chicago presents a performance by the Cantare Chamber Players Sunday, January 22 at 3 p.m. at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Avenue, Evanston.

Music Institute members Sang Mee Lee, violin; Clark Carruth, viola; Sophie Webber, cello; John Tuck, bass; and Elaine Felder, piano perform Schubert’s Trout Quintet and Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 3 in C Minor Op. 60.

About the Music Institute of Chicago
The Music Institute of Chicago believes that music has the power to sustain and nourish the human spirit; therefore, our mission is to provide the foundation for lifelong engagement with music. As one of the three largest and most respected community music schools in the nation, the Music Institute offers musical excellence built on the strength of our distinguished faculty, commitment to quality, and breadth of programs and services. Founded in 1931 and one of the oldest community music schools in Illinois, the Music Institute is a member of the National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts and accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music. Each year, our world-class music teachers and arts therapists provide the highest quality arts education to more than 5,000 students of all ability levels, from birth to 101 years of age at campuses in Evanston, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Lincolnshire, Winnetka, and Downers Grove. The Music Institute also offers lessons and programs at the Steinway of Chicago store in Northbrook and early childhood and community engagement programs throughout the Chicago area and the North Shore. Nichols Concert Hall, our education and performance center located in downtown Evanston, reaches approximately 14,000 people each year. Our community engagement and partnership programs reach an additional 6,500 Chicago Public School students annually. The Music Institute offers lessons, classes, and programs through four distinct areas: Community School, The Academy, Creative Arts Therapy (Institute for Therapy through the Arts), and Nichols Concert Hall.

The Cantare Chamber Players perform Sunday, January 22 at 3 p.m. at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Avenue, Evanston. Tickets are $25 for adults, $15 for seniors and $10 for students, available at musicinst.org or 847.905.1500 ext. 108.

Clark Carruth, viola
A graduate of the University of Georgia (B.M.) and Northwestern University (M.M.), Clark Carruth is a member of Fifth House Ensemble and currently performs with the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra, the New Philharmonic, and the DuPage Opera Theatre. A former member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and South Bend Symphony, his previous performance credits include appearances on WFMT, the International Harp Festival in Viroqua, Wisc., and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. He also educates young musicians as a sectional coach for the Northwest Indiana Symphony Youth Orchestra and has been with the Music Institute since 2007.

Elaine Felder, piano
Elaine Felder received her B.M. from Oberlin Conservatory and was an M.M. candidate at University of Colorado. She has studied with Adele Marcus and Vitya Vronsky. She was a regional prize winner in the National Federation of Music Clubs and a scholarship recipient to Dartmouth Summer Music Festival. She is an annual participant in Pressler solo and chamber classes at Indiana University and a former faculty member at the Cleveland Institute of Music. She frequently gives solo and chamber performances in the Chicago area. She has taught for the Music Institute since 1976.

Sang Mee Lee, violin
At the age of five, Chicago native Sang Mee Lee debuted as soloist with the Chicago Businessman’s Orchestra and has appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Erich Leinsdorf, the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra under Emmanuel Krivine, and the Korean Broadcasting Orchestra under Eun-Sung Park. Her solo performances and recitals have been heard in the United States, Europe, and the Far East. In Chicago, she is the youngest artist to appear on the Dame Myra Hess Series and has performed on Ravinia Rising Stars. Her many awards include first prizes at the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition, Irving M. Klein International String Auditions, Seventeen Magazine/General Motors Concerto Competition, William C. Byrd Competition and the Julius Stulberg Auditions. Recently, as part of the Beethoven Project Trio, Sang Mee performed previously unknown chamber works of Beethoven, including a world premiere and two American premieres. A graduate of The Juilliard School, Sang Mee earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in violin performance. Her past teachers and mentors have included Dorothy DeLay, Roland and Almita Vamos, Robert Lipsett, Josef Gingold, and Betty Haag. She has been on the Music Institute faculty since 2000.

John Tuck, bass
John Tuck is a member of the Lake Forest Symphony, assistant principal bass of the Northwest Indiana Symphony, and assistant principal bass of the Des Moines Metro Opera. He has performed with the Chicago Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony, Chicago Chamber Orchestra, Ravinia Festival Orchestra, Ars Viva, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Chicagoland Pops Orchestra, Northlight Theater, Mannheim Steamroller, and the Three Tenors. He has also participated in the Aspen Music Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, Festival dei due Mondi (in Spoleto, Italy), and the Woodstock Mozart Festival. John received his bachelor and master of music degrees from the Northwestern University School of Music and has been on the Music Institute faculty since 2007.

Sophie Webber, cello
Sophie Webber performs regularly in solo and chamber music settings in the U.S. and UK. An enthusiast of traditional and new music, from classical to rock, she has collaborated with acoustic and electro-acoustic composers. Her involvement with mixed media performances led her to form the Chicago-based Fused Muse Ensemble, which specializes in the presentation of new music in performances that “fuse” music with other media, such as dance, film, lighting, poetry, electronic music, and performance art. Currently, Sophie is excited to collaborate with musician Joel Styzens on his second album, Resonance (to be released early 2012), as well as with pianist-composer Zvonimir Nagy on a debut album of music for cello and piano inspired by the three Abrahamic religions (also for early 2012 release). Sophie graduated from Trinity College of Music, London, in 2001, with a First Class Honors degree, as well as the Sir John Barbirolli memorial prize for cello. She earned master’s and doctor of music degrees from Indiana University, Bloomington. Her principal teachers include Janos Starker, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, and Richard Markson. She has been the recipient of a number of awards and prizes. At Indiana University, Sophie was a music theory instructor for four years. She has taught cello and double bass at Southeast Missouri State University and currently teaches cello, chamber music, and courses in World Music and Early Music History at Lake Forest College, as well as cello, chamber music, and musicianship classes at the Music Institute of Chicago since 2009.

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