Sunday, May 13, 3 pm
The Simon Family JCC will co-present Itzhak Perlman and a group of young musicians from The Perlman Music Program at the Sandler Center for Performing Arts as part of the Virginia Arts Festival. They will perform Mozart, Shostakovich and Mendelssohn.
Undeniably the reigning virtuoso of the violin, Perlman enjoys superstar status rarely afforded a classical musician. Beloved for his charm and humanity, as well as his talent, he is treasured by audiences throughout the world.
In less than two decades, his Perlman Music Program has become a leader in training the next generation of leaders in classical music.
“The Simon Family JCC’s partnership with the Virginia Arts Festival is an amazing opportunity to bring our Performing Arts Series to the next level,” says Susan Schwartzman, Main Event Series chair for the JCC. “We are excited to be able to offer our community the chance to enjoy such a special afternoon of music from an icon and his talented students. That this concert is on Mother’s Day is icing on the cake—a great way to spend the afternoon, in Town Center, at the beautiful Sandler Center, with Virginia Arts and the Simon Family JCC, enjoying Itzhak Perlman and a host of talented musicians.”
The Perlman Music Program welcomes young musicians of rare and special talent into a richly supportive musical community. Through intensive summer programs, year-round mentoring, or performance tour, the program offers musical training for students ages 12 to 30, playing the violin, viola, cello, bass and piano. With a faculty led by Perlman, the Program offers an artistic and personal experience that changes students’ lives forever.
Since its first two-week session in 1993, the Program has grown into a sophisticated series of programs that include a six-week Summer Music School, a two and a half-week Chamber Music Workshop, a two and a half-week Sarasota Winter Residency, and the Alumni Concerts and Mentorship program. Over the years, these programs have been enhanced by an occasional international tour to places such as Israel and China.
“I truly enjoyed listening to the wonderful presentation by Mr. Perlman and his students at their previous performance at the Sandler Center,” says Alan Bartel, a flutist, Virginia Arts Festival board member, and active supporter of the Main Event Performing Arts Series at the JCC. “The experience was the culmination of formal training for these gifted musicians who were all committed to highly sought positions all around the world.
“The chamber music performances mixed and mingled Perlman with his students in various ensembles to make beautiful chamber music for an afternoon,” Bartel says. “Chamber music is so different than music played in the concert hall because it was written for a much more intimate setting—the home or small hall. It thus engages an audience that is much closer to the performers, who have no conductor and must rely on each other for timing, cues to the music, consistent tempos and the proper volume and mix of sound and playing techniques for each piece to obtain the proper musical results. One can observe each instrument separately as solo performers or as an entire ensemble.
“The students are all young, highly accomplished musicians who will be the stars of the future—we will hear their names on the concert stage in the years to come.”
And, Bartel recalls, the students don’t take their opportunities for granted. “One handsome young cellist with long black curly hair and an olive complexion came to the reception after the performance with a metal cello case on his back,” says Bartel. “I asked him if he wore his music on his sleeve! He responded that his cello was on loan from the Julliard collection and was a Stradivarius, so valuable and irreplaceable that he could not leave it anywhere outside of his direct vision.”
Citing the young man as an example of the degree to which these young musicians take their music, Bartel says that the quality and musicianship he heard was outstanding, and will likely reach a comparable level in this year’s performance.
To order tickets, go to www.vafest.org.
by Leslie Shroyer and Perlman Music Project