Art: Tomorrow, the Society of the Four Arts opens a new exhibit that takes its art viewers into the world of the Old West. Recapturing the Real West: The Collections of William I. Koch includes about 500 items, most of which have not been seen but have been loaned to the society by Koch, the industrialist, sailing champion and founder of Oxbow Energy Group. The collection … [Read more...]
Violinist Hou branches out into show creation
Crossover is something that Yi-Jia Susanne Hou believes in, and not just in music. The Shanghai-born Canadian violinist, who played a solo recital in the Flagler Museum’s music series in 2009, is perhaps best-known for her work as a featured member of Bowfire, a multimedia fiddle extravaganza founded in 2000 that’s sometimes referred to as “Riverdance with violins.” Hou … [Read more...]
Hahn recital an exceptional feast of new music
The concertgoers Sunday night at the Broward Center for Hilary Hahn’s recital heard one of the finest violinists working today, but they also heard much more. They were present for nothing less than a festival of brand-new music, all of it worthy, and some of it that could have strong claims for the repertory. Hahn, who turns 32 at the end of this month, has had a remarkable … [Read more...]
Schubert recital admirable, but needed more drama
It takes some kind of pluck and courage to play a serious chamber music recital with the kind of piano that was available Saturday afternoon to violinist Tomas Cotik and pianist Tao Lin: a much-used brown Baldwin upright. But the two musicians soldiered on regardless, though the sound quality would have been much different with a concert instrument, and managed to make a large … [Read more...]
In semi-darkness, a good recital of Schumann and Tchaikovsky
Even the most devoted of piano fans could have been forgiven Saturday afternoon for taking a raincheck on a recital at the Steinway Gallery in Boca Raton. Moments before Lynn University pedagogue and pianist Yang Shen took the stage in the small recital room, a lightning strike took out the power, leaving the gallery in a semi-darkness that soon became close because of the … [Read more...]