Bringing together world-renowned musicians, including violinist Colin Jacobsen and his brother, cellist Eric Jacobsen, New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development presents an evening of live music with multi-cultural influences on Friday, December 5 at 8:00 p.m. at the Frederick Loewe Theatre, 35 West 4th Street. The performance is free and open to the public. [Subway: A, B, C, D, E, F, V (West 4th St.); R (8th St.)]
Performing with members of the NYU Symphony Orchestra, the Jacobsen brothers will present a series of works that reflect the influence of world cultures, including:
- Shakuhachi soloist Ko Umezaki in Angel Lam’s “Her Thousand Years Dance” for solo cello and shakuhachi
- Clarinetist Kina Azmeh in three of his compositions for strings, percussion, and bass
- NYU Jazz faculty member and pianist Richard Shemaria in his composition “The Truth Touches Everyone”
- Osvaldo Golijov’s tango-inflected “Last Round” for two string quartets and double bass
- A recently unearthed concerto grosso by Giuseppe Torelli (1658-1709)
Members of the press interested in attending the show should contact Tim Farrell in NYU’s Office of Public Affairs by phone at 212.998.6797 or email at tim.farrell@nyu.edu.
About the performers: Cellist Eric Jacobsen is a member of Yo Yo Ma’s Silk Road Project. Last year he participated in residencies in Japan’s National Museums in Nara and Fukuoka, and traveled with the ensemble to Baku, Azerbaijan, Switzerland, and Malaysia to perform for the Aga Khan. Recently, Jacobsen participated in residencies at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art in NY. He can be heard on recordings with distinguished artists such as Yo Yo Ma, Bono, and Mark O’Connor.
Violinist Colin Jacobsen performs regularly with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and at Bargemusic, and is a member of the Metropolitan Museum Artists in Concert. Summer performances have taken him to the Banff Centre for the Arts, Bravo! Colorado Music Festival, Caramoor International Music Festival, Marlboro Music Festival, Moritzburg Festival, Ravinia Festival, Salzburg Festival, and to Taiwan’s National Concert Hall. As the Young Artist in Residence for NPR’s “Performance Today,” he programmed and played live for listeners across the country this past November. He has also been a resident performer on WQXR Radio’s weekly On A-I-R (Artists-in-Radio) Series. Jacobsen plays a Guarneri violin crafted in 1696.
Kinan Azmeh is gaining a reputation as one of Syria’s new rising stars. Combining solid classical training with a deep understanding and appreciation of his roots and other cultures, Azmeh adeptly maneuvers between genres ranging from classical and jazz to electronica and Arabic music. He is presently living in New York, and has completed his Masters degree and graduate diploma at the Juilliard School under Charles Neidich. He is currently working toward a doctorate in music at the City University of New York Graduate Center.
Kojiro Umezaki grew up in Tokyo, Japan where he began studying Western flute and the shakuhachi. His career encompasses both traditional and technology-based music and a range of electronic media. Umezaki holds a degree in electro-acoustic music from Dartmouth College and is assistant professor of music at the University of California, Irvine. He performs regularly with the Silk Road Ensemble and the Montreal-based jazz trio, Beat in Fractions. His recordings are available on the Sony BMG, Healthy Boys, and Smithsosian Folkways labels, among others.
NYU faculty member Richard Shemaria is a New York City based composer, orchestrator and pianist. He is the director of the Rich Shemaria Jazz Orchestra and New York University Jazz Orchestra and is keyboardist with the eclectic jazz/world beat group Combo Nuvo. Shemaria teaches composition at NYU and the New School University, in New York City.