Ventana Ballet and Austin Camerata (with artistic director Daniel Kopp, MM ’18) team up this weekend to bring another world premiere to the Draylen Mason Music Studio at KMFA. Beautiful World is a celebration of music, dance, and visual art—including the premiere of an original work entitled, A Million Alien Gospels, composed by Michael Alec Rose and choreographed by AJ Garcia-Rameau and Dorothy O’Shea Overbey.

Guests are invited to gather in the grand foyer at KMFA for Earth-themed refreshments and visual art exhibits before the show. On exhibit will be the winning entries of the Nature Photography Contest hosted by Capital Area Master Naturalists, a collaborative effort to highlight local photographers’ renderings of the four elements and native Texas flowers.

Ventana Ballet and Austin Camerata will then take the stage with the new ballet featuring an original score by Rose, filled with beautifully haunting music for string quintet. The ballet is the story of Alice, a girl who is given the gift of a Flower by the Four Elements—Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. The work is loosely inspired by a poem by Alice Meynell.

For more ticket, venue and more information, visit www.ventanaballet.com.

CANCELED… Due to an illness, the residency has to be rescheduled for October 2022 with exact dates to be confirmed shortly.

The Parrish Cello Trio makes its debut in Greenville, SC, next week on May 23-38, with a master class, concert and live-stream. Comprised of cellists Jamie Clark, Kenny Lee and Seth Russell (DMA ’19), the trio first met and played together during their undergraduate degree at Eastman School of Music, and then continued their education together at New England Conservatory. Now, while based in three different states, they are getting together in South Carolina to perform for online and local communities.

More info…

Next week. on Thursday and Friday, May 12-13, Austin Camerata, with Artistic Director Daniel Kopp (MM ’18), presents “Blue Planet” at the KMFA Draylen Mason Music Studio. Blue Planet is an evocative performance on a bold mission: to celebrate the beauty of planet Earth and reflect on what’s at stake in the 21st century. The performance juxtaposes powerful works for string orchestra with the origins of our universe, our place in the cosmos, and Earth’s precious landscapes. The performance will feature Austin Camerata’s conductor-less string orchestra with cellists Kopp, Cory Blais (MM ’19) and Yeyoung Yoo (DMA ’23), visual design by Jesse Easdon, and art by Zaria Forman.

Ticket price includes pre and post-concert cocktails thanks to our sponsors Titos Vodka, Dripping Springs Distillery, Still Austin Distillery, and Total Wine & More. Valid ID must be presented before consumption of alcoholic beverages.

6:15pm – 7:00pm: Pre-concert cocktails
7:00pm – 8:15pm: Performance
8:15pm – 8:45pm: Post-concert cocktails and meet the musicians

Free parking is available on-site at KMFA’s parking lot and on streets surrounding the KMFA building. Austin Camerata’s mission is to make chamber music accessible to all. If the ticket price prevents you from attending, please write to cameratamusic.austin@gmail.com to request a discounted ticket offer.

For more information visit austincamerata.com.

Bobae Lee (AD ’23), with her Risus Quartet, has won First Place at Chamber Music of Yellow Springs’ 37th Annual Competition for Emerging Professional Ensembles. Founded in Seoul in 2020, the Risus Quartet comprises of violinists Haeni Lee and Jieun Yoo, violist Mary Eunkyung Chang and cellist Bobae Lee.

For more information, visit the cmys.org.

On Sunday, April 24, 2022, Yeyoung Yoo (DMA ’23) performs the Haydn Cello Concerto in C Major with conductor Robert Radmer and the Balcones Community Orchestra in their final concert of the 2021-22 season. The concert begins at 4:00 PM at St. Martin’s Lutheran Church in downtown Austin. For venue, ticket and more information, visit www.bcorchestra.org.
 

More about Yeyoung…

From the Archives…

Bobae Lee (AD ’23), with her Risus Quartet, has won the special The City of Portsmouth Prize at the 2022 Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition.

Next Wednesday, March 16, the SXSW Official ATX Composers Showcase is back! Brought to you by Golden Hornet and KMFA Classical 89.5, the SXSW event presents an array of local new music artists and contemporary classical talent during the height of the city-wide festival.

The showcase features six ensembles throughout the night, fostering exposure to local groups leading the charge on revitalizing classical music for the modern age. The lineup this year includes Density512, Kompas Trio, Invoke, Graham Reynolds, Mother Falcon (with Diana Burgess, BM ’15), and Tetractys (with Matthew Armbruster, MM ’16, and James Burch, DMA ’16).

Offered to SXSW badge holders and non-holders alike, the intimate concert will be held at the Parker Jazz Club, where audiences can enjoy cocktail seating and a full bar as they listen to the ensembles throughout the night.

Featuring performances by:
8 pm Density 512
9 pm Kompas Trio
10 pm Invoke
11 pm Graham Reynolds
12 am Mother Falcon
1 am Tetractys

For more information, visit www.goldenhornet.org.

Tonight at 7:30pm, Kelvin Ka Long Lee (MM ’19, AD ’22) performs the Tchaikovsky Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33, with conductor Ke-Yuan Hsin and the UT University Orchestra. For more information on the free concert, visit music.utexas.edu.

Watch the live stream at vimeo.com.

More info…

On Tuesday, February 15, 2022, Bobae Lee (AD ’23), with her Risus Quartet, perform a special noontime concert in KMFA Classical 89.5’s Draylen Mason Music Studio. The Risus Quartet received the Gold Medal and Grand Prize in the 2021 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.

For ticket and more information visit kmfa.org.