Café Concert with Panache!

The Weekend of Chamber Music’s Summer Festival 2008 – Music for All Time will arrive at The Settlers Inn for “Café Concert with Panache!” on Tuesday, July 22 at 6 PM.

The concert will include a summer supper in our Undercroft Room followed by the music of Bach, Schubert, Pleyel and other legendary composers performed by flutist Judith Pearce, violinist Mark Rush, cellist Caroline Stinson, and fortepianist Kenneth Hamrick. Cost is $55 per person; reservations are suggested.

“We are delighted to host ‘Café Concert with Panache!’ which will feature some of our region’s premiere musicians in an intimate and artful setting,” says Settlers proprietor Jeanne Genzlinger.

Judith Pearce, Founder and Artistic Director of WCM, has been described by The New Yorker as “a rare and beautiful performer who can transport listeners with a single note.” Her work encompasses collaborations with some of this era’s most notable musicians, from Simon Rattle and Peter Maxwell Davies, to Kathleen Battle and Cleo Laine. Pearce has played in many great concert halls including the Lincoln and Kennedy Centers, London’s Festival Hall, La Scala Milan, Berlin’s Philharmonie, the Beethovenhalle, Bonn, and the Sydney Opera House.

Violinist Mark Rush is a soloist, chamber musician and teacher whose diverse career encompasses many interests and musical disciplines. Educated at Yale School of Music, his many honors include a Fulbright Award to study in Brussels. Since 1981, he has collaborated with his wife, pianist Tannis Gibson, in recitals and ensembles, most notably with the Monticello Trio. Rush is currently Professor of Violin at the University of Arizona, and co-Artistic Director of the Coyote Consort, an innovative ensemble presenting experimental multi-media concert events. He is often heard on NPR’s “Performance Today,” and has performed on radio programs across the country, including WGBH Boston and WQXR New York.

Cellist Caroline Stinson is the winner of the 2007 J.B Watkins Prize from the Canada Council for the Arts. She dedicates equal time to traditional and contemporary repertoire and has become known for her expressive and personal interpretation of new works. In addition to solo and recital engagements, Stinson is active with Open End, a new music and free improvisation ensemble which she founded in 2004 with her husband, composer Andrew Waggoner, and with whom she has appeared in the US, France and Italy. Her recordings include Pulitzer Prize Winner Steven Stucky’s String Quartet on the Albany Label, the Popper Requiem for three celli and orchestra with Maria Kliegel on the Naxos label, among other recordings on Bridge, Koch and Phoenix Records.

Fortepianist and harpsichordist Kenneth Hamrick is a conductor, keyboard soloist and musicologist who has garnered top prizes at many major festivals and competitions. With The American Virtuosi and as Director of the Baroque Opera Institute, his innovative performances and recordings have been critically acclaimed, including new stagings of 17th and 18th century operas. Hamrick has performed with soloists and ensembles from the NY Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera, and has also collaborated with tap legend Savion Glover and the Limón Dance Company on projects involving both baroque harpsichord concertos and jazz improvisation.

For more information or reservations for visit WCMconcerts.org or call 845-887-5803.