The British Connection

Casual Concert: September 8th, 2019 @ 7:30 PM
Salon Concert: September 9th, 2019 @ 7:30 PM

​The lush, pastoral romanticism and witty energy of many 20th century British composers derive from 19th century composers like Felix Mendelssohn, whose imaginative scene-setting and soaring melodies left a lasting impact on the musical world. English composers Edward Elgar and Arnold Bax offer open-hearted phrases and tonal harmonies with plenty of dramatic tension; Malcolm Arnold’s Sonatina, composed just after World War II, is rather a playful, jazz-influenced thrill-ride that pushes both performers to their limits.

Program​

Edward Elgar: Sonatina in G major for Piano Solo
Arnold Bax: Clarinet Sonata in D major for Clarinet and Piano
 Malcom Arnold: Sonatina Op. 29 for Clarinet and Piano
Intermission
Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 61, Overture arr. for piano 4-hands 
Felix Mendelssohn: Two Concert Pieces Op. 113/114 for Clarinet and Basset Horn

Listen

Musicians
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Stas Chernyshev, a native of St. Petersburg, Russia, is recently appointed principal clarinetist of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. He is the founder and artistic director of Fort Worth Performances for Autism, and a co-director of Opus Nova Chamber Music Series. Mr. Chernyshev is a prize winner of many international competitions, and has appeared at Carnegie Hall in New York, Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as well as in Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Russia, South Korea, Japan. A devoted chamber musician, Mr. Chernyshev has collaborated with Grammy-winning ensemblesEighth Blackbird and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, commissioned new works for his instrument. He has been featured on WQXR -New York’s classical music station and WHYY’s television program - On Stage at Curtis. Mr. Chernyshev holds a Bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of Music, and a Master’s degree from St. Petersburg Conservatory, Russia. He is an alumnus of Ensemble Connect (formerly Ensemble ACJW), a program of Carnegie Hall, the Juilliard School and the Weill Music Institute, and ArtistYear, a program of the Curtis Institute of Music.
Ann Hung, born in Taipei, Taiwan, began her musical studies at a young age, starting with piano at age five and clarinet at age nine. Dr. Hung is an active performer in the Dallas and Fort Worth area who regularly performs in the realms of both the orchestral and chamber music. She has shared the stage with the Fort Worth Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the members of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the faculty of the Juilliard School. Dr. Hung is always pushing the boundaries of her repertoire and skills, such as collaborating with jazz musicians and commissioning new composers. As a proponent of new music, she has avidlycommissioned new works including a wind quintet with her quintet Opus Now premiering in Symphony Space in NYC. One of the new works that Dr. Hung commissioned is included in a recently released album “Stained Glass Story” by Eldad Tarmu. Dr. Hung is currently teaching in Lewisville ISD, Burleson ISD as private lesson instructor and often plays with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. She is the associate director of the Fort Worth Performances for Autism and co- founder of Opus Nova Chamber Music Series.
A soloist, chamber musician and educator, pianist Daniel Anastasio combines an intellectual curiosity with “technical prowess and emotional sensitivity” (Rivard Report). His performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto no. 3, conducted by Leon Fleisher with the Ithaca College Chamber Orchestra, was “the highlight to everyone’s ears, if the full-house of standing ovation were any indication” (ECM reviews). 
Anastasio was a concerto competition finalist at Stony Brook University and Juilliard, where he won the Mieczyslaw Munz Scholarship. He received fellowships to Music Academy of the West, Kneisel Hall, Tanglewood Music Center and Yellow Barn Music Festival. Anastasio is the co-founder and pianist for Unheard-of//Ensemble, a group dedicated to commissioning composers and premiering their works. With his wife, pianist Erika Dohi, he co-directs BLUEPRINTS piano series in Manhattan. Anastasio continues to perform in New York City’s many venues, from Carnegie’s Weill Hall to Roulette Intermedium and National Sawdust in Brooklyn. 
Recently joining the faculty of San Antonio College as a full-time piano instructor, Mr. Anastasio is a member of Agarita, a San Antonio-based chamber ensemble dedicated to making classical music accessible to everyone in San Antonio, reaching the whole of its community including the most underserved populations and geographic areas. He has been a repeat concerto soloist with the Mid-Texas Symphony, and guest with the Olmos Ensemble, and Musical Bridges Around the World.  
Anastasio received a Bachelor of Arts degree in music and philosophy at Cornell University, and a Master of Music degree at Juilliard. He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts at Stony Brook University, where he is finishing his studies with Gilbert Kalish and Christina Dahl.
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