The concert will include:
Idylle by Gwendolyn Avril Coleridge-Taylor (1903-1998) was an English pianist, conductor and composer, and the daughter of composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. She wrote a number of works for flute and piano which are held at the Royal Conservatory of Music's Library in London.
Legends by Valerie Coleman (b. 1970) is a four movement work, Lin-Fa (The Lotus Lily) – Rooted in mud, the lotus lily emerges from the water. Dagda’s Harp – The Dagda is a god in Irish mythology, portrayed as a father-figure, king, and druid. Gaia – In Greek mythology, Gaia is the personification of the Earth and the great mother of all creation. El Encierro – The Running of the Bulls – The most famous bull-run is the encierro held in Pamplona during the festival of Sanfermines.
The concert will conclude with Sonata in C Major by Otar Taktakishvili (1924-1989) Otar Taktakishvili was the most prominent composer and cultural functionary of his generation from Soviet Georgia. At the time that he composed his Sonata for Flute and Piano in 1968 he was Minister of Culture of Georgia. Much of his music draws upon Georgian folk music and themes to create an expressive style. The three movements are in a typical fast-slow-fast pattern. The first movement, allegro cantabile, features upbeat, very recognizable and catchy themes. The second movement is a slow, melancholy aria, and the third movement returns to a faster, more playful melody.
Flutist, Paula Gudmundson is Associate Professor of Flute. Recipient of the 2022-2023 McKnight Fellowship for Performing Musicians. Her work focuses on centering her work around collaboration, community engagement and bringing voice to the absent narratives in the arts. Recordings include La Flauta of Buenos Aires (2014), Breaking Waves (2019) and Melodies of the Forest (2022) Gudmundson has performed at numerous music festivals and events, including regional and national conferences of the College Music Society, National Flute Association conventions, Minnesota Public Radio’s Class Notes Artist, International Flute Festival of Costa Rica, and La Côte Flûte Festival. For more information check out her website: www.paulagudmundson.com
Diana Shapiro was born in Moscow, Russia. At the age of 17 she moved to Israel and started her studies at the Jerusalem Rubin Academy under Prof. Berkovich. At one of her classes in the Academy, she was encouraged by Prof. Alexander Tamir to try playing as a piano duo with Stanislava Varshavski. The collaboration turned to be a real success, bringing them to the top at numerous competitions worldwide, including world’s biggest competition in their field – Murray Dranoff Two Piano Competition. At 2005 the duo moved to Boston, where they studied under Prof. Victor Rosenbaum. In 2011 Ms. Shapiro earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Collaborative Piano from UW-Madison, where she studied under Prof. Martha Fischer. Besides being part of the piano duo, Diana Shapiro appeared with multiple leading instrumentalists and singers in Israel, New England and Wisconsin. Dr. Shapiro currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Piano at University of Wisconsin Whitewater.