PCMS 40th Anniversary Celebration

About This Performance We invite you to join us as we celebrate and honor our founding Executive Director Philip Maneval in a program of great music making, in support of the mission, values, and programs that have made PCMS such a vital part of the cultural life of our city and region. In collaboration with some of our closest musical friends, we will present a program that highlights our mission to engage our community in a life more beautiful through the shared experience of chamber music. East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO); Anthony McGill, clarinet; Tai Murray, violin; Shai Wosner, piano; Sivan Magen, harp; Nathan Farrington, double bass Wallen: Concerto Grosso Copland: Clarinet Concerto Maneval: Divertimento World Premiere Dvořák: Serenade in E Major, Op. 22 Running time: 1 hour and 50 minutes (including intermission) Reception to Follow – DoubleTree Hotel The Artist(s) ECCO In 2001, a group of musicians – colleagues and friends from leading conservatories and music festivals across the country – collectively envisioned the creation of a democratically-run, selfconducted chamber orchestra that would thrive on the pure joy and camaraderie of classical music making. This organic approach and high level of passion and commitment resulted in ECCO,… Read More × Artist’s website ECCO In 2001, a group of musicians – colleagues and friends from leading conservatories and music festivals across the country – collectively envisioned the creation of a democratically-run, selfconducted chamber orchestra that would thrive on the pure joy and camaraderie of classical music making. This organic approach and high level of passion and commitment resulted in ECCO, a dynamic collective that combines the strength and power of a great orchestral ensemble with the personal involvement and sensitivity of superb chamber music. ECCO is comprised of some of today’s most vibrant and gifted young string players — soloists, chamber musicians, principals of major American orchestras, and GRAMMY award winners. ECCO members play with the symphony orchestras of Philadelphia, Minnesota, San Francisco, Chicago, St. Louis, Seattle, and Boston among others. Members also play with the Enso, Jasper, Jupiter, and Parker quartets, as well as the Horszowski Trio, Trio Cavatina, Sejong Soloists, Time for Three, and Chamber Music Society II. For a few concentrated periods of time each year, the members of ECCO meet for rehearsal and musical exploration. Cooking, eating, enjoying close friendships, and now sharing tips for raising the next generation of ECCO are important aspects of their gatherings. Along with musical exploration, there is always an intense discussion about the joys and challenges of maintaining a truly communal creative organization. In 2012, ECCO celebrated its first decade of friendship and discovery with the release of its first commercial recording on eOne. It includes Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings in C Major Op. 48, and the exuberant and surprising “La Follia” Variations for String Orchestra, arranged by ECCO’s own Michi Wiancko after Francesco Geminiani’s Concerto Grosso No. 12 in D Minor. Among recent highlights were a Fall 2023 world premiere with pianist Shai Wosner of Handmaid Universe by Vijay Iyer, a 2021 tour with Wosner; return visits to Chamber Music Northwest, the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC and the Indianapolis Violin Competition; and a residency at UT Austin/Texas Performing Arts. Spring 2022 included their debut on the Phoenix Chamber Music Society Series. Their regular visits to the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and outdoor performances in Central Park for the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts with live broadcasts on WQXR are also treasured experiences. Known for innovative programming with works old and new, they have premiered or championed numerous new works. In addition to the Iyer work, those include Christopher Theofanidis’ 1000 Cranes, Pierre Jalbert’s String Theory, Kenji Bunch’s Supermaximum, Derek Bermel’s Murmurations, and Christopher Cerrone’s The Air Suspended with pianist Shai Wosner. Anthony McGill, clarinet Hailed for his “trademark brilliance, penetrating sound and rich character” (The New York Times), clarinetist Anthony McGill is one of classical music’s most recognizable and brilliantly multifaceted figures. In addition to his dynamic international solo and chamber music career, McGill is Principal Clarinet of the New York Philharmonic-the first African-American principal player in the organization’s history.… Read More × Artist’s website Anthony McGill, clarinet Hailed for his “trademark brilliance, penetrating sound and rich character” (The New York Times), clarinetist Anthony McGill is one of classical music’s most recognizable and brilliantly multifaceted figures. In addition to his dynamic international solo and chamber music career, McGill is Principal Clarinet of the New York Philharmonic-the first African-American principal player in the organization’s history. Musical America named him the 2024 Instrumentalist of the Year. He is the recipient of the 2020 Avery Fisher Prize , one of classical music’s most significant awards given in recognition of soloists who represent the highest level of musical excellence. McGill was honored to take part in the 2009 inauguration of President Barack Obama , premiering a piece written for the occasion by John Williams and performing alongside violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and pianist Gabriela Montero. He earned his first GRAMMY® nomination for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance for his album American Stories with the Pacifica Quartet (Cedille). McGill appears regularly as a soloist with top orchestras, including the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, and Detroit Symphony Orchestras. This season he solos Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto for his BBC Proms debut with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra & Gemma New, as well as at Ravinia with Music of the Baroque & Dame Jane Glover, and with the New York Philharmonic & Rafael Payare. This season, McGill embarks on a multi-city tour with Emanuel Ax. He joins the performance and recording project Principal Brothers featuring his brother, Demarre McGill, as well as Titus Underwood and Bryan Young, four leading Black American woodwind principals performing the works of three prominent Black composers: James Lee III, Valerie Coleman, and Errollyn Wallen. As a chamber musician, McGill is a favorite collaborator of the Brentano, Daedalus, Guarneri, JACK, Miró, Pacifica, Shanghai, Takács, and Tokyo Quartets, as well as Inon Barnatan, Gloria Chien, Yefim Bronfman, Gil Shaham, Midori, Mitsuko Uchida, and Lang Lang. He has toured with Musicians from Marlboro and regularly performs for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. His festival appearances include Bravo! Vail, Marlboro, Mainly Mozart, Ravinia, Skaneateles, Tanglewood, and the Music@Menlo, Santa Fe, and Seattle Chamber Music Festivals. McGill is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, and previously served as the Principal Clarinet of the Metropolitan Opera and Associate Principal Clarinet of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. He is an ardent advocate for helping music education reach underserved communities and for addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in classical music. He serves on the faculty of The Juilliard School and also at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he holds the William R. and Hyunah Yu Brody Distinguished Chair. He is the Artistic Director for Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program, a weekend program dedicated to students who demonstrate a commitment to artistic excellence, which actively seeks young musicians from backgrounds underrepresented in classical music. In 2021, The Juilliard School announced a permanent endowment grant of $50 million for its Music Advancement Program (MAP) from