THE CAPITAL TRIO PERFORMS A CONCERT FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 29, AT BARD COLLEGE

“What’s Your Era? A Musical ‘Dating Game’ and a ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide’ to Western Music” is an Educational Concert Featuring Works by Pachelbel, Mozart, Beethoven, and Françaix ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—The Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle, in cooperation with The Bard Center, presents a free educational concert for children of all ages on Sunday, October 29. Featuring The Capital Trio—violinist Madalyn Parnas, age 15; violist Alex Grimes, age 16; and cellist Cicely Parnas, age 13—the program, “What’s Your Era? A Musical ‘Dating Game’ and a ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide’ to Western Music,” begins at 3:00 p.m. in Olin Hall. “The point of the concert is to draw children to chamber music by showing them that young people can succeed in the arena and that it is a joyful endeavor,” says HVCMC board member Tara Shafer. “Many of my peers would like to expose their children to classical chamber music but do not have the opportunity, since most concerts are not intended for this purpose. The HVCMC would like to provide this opportunity for children and their parents to learn about music from young musicians, in a forum designed specifically for young listeners.” The Capital Trio offers an overview of four periods of music: the baroque, classical, romantic, and 20th century, during their “‘Hitchhiker’s Guide,” performing Pachelbel’s Canon in D; Mozart’s Divertimento No. 2, Rondo; Beethoven’s String Trio No. 3; and Françaix’s Allegro. In addition, the Trio leads a musical ‘dating game’ during the program. Seating is on a first-come, first-seated basis. For further information, call the HVCMC at 518-537-6665. About The Capital Trio: Alex Grimes, 16, began his musical studies at an early age, and at 13 devoted himself full time to the viola. As a scholarship student, he has attended the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Orchestral Program, where he served as principal violist, and the String Quartet Workshop. He is a student in the National Symphony Orchestra Fellowship Program, a competitive and very selective program for gifted musicians in Washington, D.C.; and he has served as associate principal violist for the American Youth Philharmonic. He received first prizes in the Alexandria Performing Arts Middle School Division and, later, in the Senior Division; the Advanced Violin/Viola Division of the Bach Festival Metro Washington, D.C., Area Competition; and in the American Fine Arts Competition, Duet Division. He has participated in ensembles, master classes, and orchestras at Kinhaven Music School, Strings International Music Festival at Bryn Mawr College, and the Sulzbach-Rosenberg International Music Festival in Bavaria, Germany. He has performed at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Merkin Hall, Weill Recital Hall, and Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood. A student of Ramon Scavelli, Grimes plays a Testuda Matsuda viola made in Chicago. Cicely Parnas, 13, began her musical studies at age 4, and at age 9 earned her first top prize in competition. This year Cicely won three more first prizes: the Uel Wade Scholarship Competition, Berkshire Lyric Theatre Competition, and Stefan Concerto Competition. As guest soloist with orchestras, she has garnered enthusiastic reviews on all occasions. In Rutter’s Requiem her playing was described as “an astonishing mix of pungency and finesse,” and she was recognized as “possessed of prodigious technique and an Olympic gymnast’s poise” in her orchestral debut playing the Monn Cello Concerto. Numerous performances have taken her to Tanglewood; Brattleboro Music Center; Bard, Williams, and Simon’s Rock Colleges; Searles Castle; and the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, among many other venues. She has studied chamber music in the Hotchkiss School Chamber Music Program on full scholarship and at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute String Quartet Workshop, in addition to private studies with Doris Stevenson and Jonathan Bass. Cicely studies with conductor and cellist Ronald Feldman, and plays a 1759 Thomas Smith cello. Madalyn Parnas, 15, became the youngest first-place winner of the Berkshire Music School Merit Competition at age 10. Her orchestral debut followed at 12; the review described Madalyn as “a young mistress of the violin [who] executed with poise and mastery.” She was featured in the magazine Music Alive! after playing in Boston’s Jordan Hall for the NPR radio show From the Top. A Grand Montgomery Chamber Music Series recital won these words: “Remember the name Madalyn Parnas! Surely, the 13-year-old violinist is destined for a long and successful career on the concert stage.” Other concerto performance reviews have complimented her “ability to dazzle the audience with her breathtaking dexterity achieved with effortless grace . . . technical virtuosity . . . emotional musicality far beyond her age.” Most recently, as the Stefan Concerto Competition winner, Madalyn performed the Vieuxtemps Second Violin Concerto with the Schenectady Symphony Orchestra. The Schenectady Gazette noted that Madalyn “was impressive in her debut . . . playing with a big sound that was strongly edged, a sure bow arm, and strong phrases.” She plays a Stefano Scarampella violin and is a student of internationally renowned violinist James Buswell. # # # (10.04.06)

This event was last updated on 10-30-2006

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