Performances by Slee Sinfonietta, Wincenc highlight concert schedule

Music lovers at UB will have a chance to attend concerts this month featuring such notable artists as the Slee Sinfonietta, flautist Carol Wincenc and organists from the Eastman School of Music.

Also on the docket are recitals by UB music students pursuing master’s and bachelor’s degrees.

The Slee Sinfonietta, UB’s professional chamber orchestra in residence, will perform works by Roger Reynolds and Edgard Varèse at its spring concert being held at 7:30 p.m. April 8 in Lippes Concert Hall in Slee Hall, North Campus.

Half of the concert program, performed under the direction of James Baker, will feature the complete piano etudes of Reynolds performed by multiple pianists, including UB faculty member Eric Huebner. Also on the program will be Varèse’s “Offrandres,” featuring soprano Laura Mercado Wright, and one movement from Reynolds’ “Seasons for percussion, cello, flute and electronics.”

The concert is presented by the Department of Music in conjunction with the Robert and Carol Morris Center for 21st Century Music at UB.

Advance tickets are $12 for the general public; $9 for UB faculty, staff, alumni and senior citizens; and $5 for students. At the door, tickets are $20, $15 and $8. 

The Slee Sinfonietta, the flagship ensemble of the Robert and Carol Morris Center for 21st Century Music, presents a series of concerts each year that feature performances of challenging new works by contemporary composers and lesser-known works from the chamber orchestra repertoire. Founded in 1997 by composer and UB faculty member David Felder, the ensemble is comprised of a core group, including UB faculty performance artists, visiting artists, national and regional professionals, and advanced performance students. It is conducted by leading conductors and composers.

The annual Eastman Organists’ Day featuring some of the most talented students from the renowned organ studio at the Eastman School of Music will take place at 7:30 p.m. April 11 in Lippes Concert Hall.

Performing this year on UB’s Fisk organ are Thomas Gaynor, Bryan Holten, Abigail Rockwood, and Ivan Sarajishvili.

Tickets are $10 for general admission and $5 for students.

Visiting instrumentalist Carol Wincenc will perform works for solo flute at 7:30 p.m. April 15 in Lippes Concert Hall as part of the Slee/Visiting Artist Series.

She will be joined by Stephen Gosling, piano, and UB faculty member Emi Ferguson, flute, for a program featuring music by Mozart, Bach, Heggie, Debussy, Fauré, Enesco, Messiaen and Doppler.

While at UB, Wincenc also will conduct a master class for UB flautists at 4 p.m. April 16 in Baird Recital Hall, 250 Baird Hall, North Campus.

A faculty member at the Juilliard School and Stony Brook University, Wincenc has appeared as a soloist with such ensembles as the Chicago, St. Louis, Atlanta and London symphonies; the BBC and Buffalo philharmonics, the St. Paul and Stuttgart Chamber orchestras, and the New York Woodwind Quintet. She also has performed in the Mostly Mozart Festival and the music festivals in Aldeburgh, Budapest, Frankfurt, Santa Fe, Spoleto and Marlboro.

Winner of the First Prize of the Walter W. Naumburg Solo Flute Competition, she has premiered numerous works written for her by many of today's most prominent composers, including Christopher Rouse, Henryk Gorecki, Lukas Foss, Peter Schickele, Joan Tower and Tobias Picker.

Advance tickets for Wincenc’s UB concert are $12 for the general public; $9 for UB faculty, staff, alumni and senior citizens; and $5 for students. At the door, tickets are $20, $15 and $8. 

The Department of Music also is offering a number of free concerts during the month of April:

• MM recital, Steven DeMart, saxophone, 7:30 p.m., April 8, Baird Recital Hall.
• MM recital, Ross Aftel, percussion, 7:30 p.m., April 12, Lippes Concert Hall.
• MM recital, Teresa Leone, trombone, 7:30 p.m., April 13, Baird Recital Hall.
• MusB recital, Jon Lehning, saxophone, 7:30 p.m., April 14, Baird Recital Hall.
• Master’s capstone project, Bethanie Keem, horn, 7:30 p.m., April 17, Baird Recital Hall.
• MM recital, Nick Emmanuel, piano, 7:30 p.m., April 18, Lippes Concert Hall.
• MusB recital, Jinpeng Zhao, piano, 7:30 p.m. April 21, Baird Recital Hall.
• UB Choir and Chorus spring concert, 7:30 p.m., April 23, Lippes Concert Hall.
• UB Jazz Ensembles spring concert, 3 p.m., April 27, Baird Recital Hall.

Tickets for all Department of Music concerts can be obtained by calling the Slee Hall box office at (716) 645-2921, in person at the Center for the Arts box office, or online at tickets.com.