February 08, 2011
For immediate release
A WEEKEND OF DEBUTS WITH THE
ROCHESTER PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
Two Female Guest Artists Join the RPO for a Weekend of
Hindson, Debussy, and Stravinksy
ROCHESTER, NY – It is not often that two females join the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) as guest conductor and soloist, on the same program, for a weekend of classical music. This weekend, the RPO is hosting the exciting debut performances of guest conductor Sarah Ioannides and violinist Lara St. John. The concerts are February 17 and 19 in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre and feature Hindson’s Violin Concerto, Debussy’s La Mer, and Stravinsky’s Suite from The Firebird.
Hailed by The New York Times as a “high powered soloist,” Lara St. John performs the Rochester premiere of Matthew Hindson’s Violin Concerto “Australian Postcards,” aptly nicknamed for its evocative depictions of Australian culture and landscapes. Ioannides also leads the Orchestra in Debussy’s La Mer and Stravinsky’s Suite from The Firebird.
Described by the New York Times as a conductor with “unquestionable authority,” Sarah Ioannides is Music Director of both the El Paso Symphony Orchestra and Spartanburg (SC) Philharmonic Orchestra. She also has served as Assistant Conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra from 2002-2004. Ioannides has been awarded the Bruno Walter Assistant Conductor Chair and is currently the recipient of a professional development grant from the League of American Orchestras. She holds a Master of Arts degree in music from Oxford University in addition to a Master of Music in conducting from The Juilliard School.
Canadian-born violinist Lara St. John has been described as “something of a phenomenon” by The Strad and a “high powered soloist” by The New York Times. St. John began playing the violin when she was two years old, made her first appearance as soloist with orchestra at age four, and her European debut with the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Lisbon when she was 10. St. John entered the Curtis Institute at 13, and has studied with such teachers as Felix Galimir, David Takeno, and Joey Corpus. She has performed as soloist with the orchestras of Cleveland, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Seattle, Brooklyn, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, the Boston Pops, and many more in North America.
Editors Please Note:
Thursday, February 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 19 at 8 p.m.
Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
Sarah Ioannides, conductor
Lara St. John, violin
HINDSON Violin Concerto “Australian Postcards”
DEBUSSY La Mer
STRAVINSKY Suite from The Firebird
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