apollo chamber players press packet

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! !Apollo Chamber Players musical approach has been described as “virtuosic, genuine and passionate” and its original folk arrangements “tour-de-force compositions that feature the group’s strengths” by

CultureMap Houston. Founded in 2008, the organization has gained prestige through innovative, thematically-programmed concerts and culturally-enriching educational activities. Apollo performs season concerts in notable Houston area concert halls, including Duncan Recital Hall (Shepherd School of Music at Rice University) and Zilkha Hall (Hobby Center for the Performing Arts), as well as myriad community venues in the southeast Texas area. The group performed for over 1,000 enthusiastic concert-goers - including dignitaries from the Consulates General of Bulgaria and the Czech Republic of New York - during their recent 2013 East Coast Tour. The tour included concerts and educational programs in Pennsylvania and New York City, featuring a highly acclaimed debut concert at Carnegie Hall (Weill Recital Hall) on October 11, 2013. !In 2012, Apollo was privileged to be the featured performing ensemble for high-profile events sponsored by the Mayor’s Office of Houston, including a dedication of artwork honoring astronaut John Glenn and cosmonaut Yuriy Gagarin, hosted by Houston Mayor Annise Parker and attended by Russian and US dignitaries; the Japanese Cherry Blossom Centennial Celebration, hosted by the Mayor and the Honorable Jota Yamamoto, Consul-General of Japan in Houston; and Europe’s Day at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, hosted by the Consulate General of Spain in Houston. !Apollo is a frequent guest on Classical 91.7/Houston Public Radio’s performing arts program The Front Row, which reaches a listening audience of over 400,000. As members of Young Audiences of Houston, a non-profit arts-in-education provider reaching 330,000 students, Apollo presents educational programs in Houston-area schools and educational venues. !Members of Apollo have been featured soloists with major orchestras, both nationally and internationally, including the Mexico City Philharmonic, National Symphony (Mexico), Mineria Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, York Symphony, and the Symphony of Southeast Texas. Additionally, Apollo’s musicians hold principal chairs in the Symphony of Southeast Texas and perform regularly with Houston Grand Opera and Ballet Orchestras, Sarasota Opera, Ars Lyrica and Mercury Baroque. Apollo’s artistic advisors include the legendary pedagogues James Dunham and Kenneth Goldsmith, and its members have studied or collaborated with Fredell Lack, Ivo-Jan van der Werff, Gil Shaham, Robert Mann, Almita Vamos, Paul Kantor, Sylvia Rosenberg, Emanuel Borok, James Buswell, Charles Castleman, Norman Fischer, Ko Iwasaki, and David Updegraff, among others. Apollo’s musicians hold degrees from the Shepherd School of Music (Rice University), Vanderbilt University, University of Houston, and Southern Methodist University. !Apollo’s debut album - European Folkscapes - will be released on Parma Recordings’ Navona Records label in January 2014. The album features original folk melody arrangements from European cultures as well as Apollo’s first commissioned work, Fantasy on Bulgarian Rhythms, by Rice University composer Karim Al-Zand. The work was sponsored in part through the Houston Arts Alliance and the City of Houston. Apollo Chamber Players is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.

BIOGRAPHY

October 11, 2013

From October 8-13, Apollo embarked on their 2013 East Coast Tour, presenting concerts and educational programs in Pennsylvania and NYC. A highly successful Carnegie Debut drew one of their largest, most diverse audiences to date and was attended by dignitaries from the Consulates General of Bulgaria and the Czech Republic of New York. As part of the tour, Apollo performed for enthusiastic audiences in Lancaster and York, PA, as well as an educational concert for 200 elementary and middle and high-school students at Dallastown Area High School.

"Fantasy on Bulgarian Rhythms took me and my friends back to our homeland with its vivid colors and

irregular meters. The refined combination of Slavic and Basque

themes really reached the audience and the concert was excellent!” !

Lubomir Grancharov, Consul General of Bulgaria in New York

"We very much enjoyed the program, especially the Slavic melodies and

your inspired performance of works of the Czech favorite composer

Leos Janácek.” ! Stanislav Benes, Deputy Consul

General of the Czech Republic in New York

Apollo’s Carnegie program - Basque and Slavic Folkscapes - was performed for over 1,000 concert-goers over the course of the tour.

Basque and Slavic Folkscapes featured Apollo’s first commissioned work, Fantasy on Bulgarian Rhythms, by Rice University composer Karim Al-Zand. The work was sponsored in part by the Houston Arts Alliance and the City of Houston.

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Apollo’s debut album, European Folkscapes, is slated for worldwide release in January 2014. The CD showcases traditional European folk melodies in dynamic new contexts, featuring original arrangements for string quartet transcribed from field recordings. Album includes Fantasy on Bulgarian Rhythms, a newly commissioned work by Rice University composer Karim Al-Zand.

Listen to sample tracks from the album EP on Apollo’s Soundcloud page at www.soundcloud.com/apollo-chamber-players

ALBUM INFORMATION

!Album Title

EUROPEAN FOLKSCAPES

!Artists

Apollo Chamber Players

!Label

Navona Records

(Parma Recordings)

!Release Date

January 28, 2014

!Genres

• Classical

• Folk/Ethnic

• Chamber

Recording session in Clarion Theater at Brazosport College, Lake Jackson, TX (August 6, 2013)

Distribution

All releases on Navona Records distributed by industry leader Naxos.

!Website:

www.parmarecordings.com

EUROPEAN FOLKSCAPES

Intimate Folk Realms 2013/14 Concert Season

From the visceral folk sounds of the Slavic region to the spirited, alluring folkloric music of Scandinavia and the British Isles, Apollo’s 2013/14 concert season explores the profoundly personal ways from which composers glean inspiration. !The organization’s fifth anniversary season begins with music from the Basque and Slavic regions, where folk melody arrangements serve as an interpretive bridge to seminal quartets by Janáček and Ravel. Also of note, Apollo premieres its first commissioned work, composed by Rice University Professor Karim Al-Zand and sponsored in part through the City's Initiative Grant Program of the Houston Arts Alliance. Journeying through works by Grieg, Sibelius and Vaughan Williams, the season closes with the rhapsodic flavors of Hungary and the continuation of the group’s Bartok string quartet cycle. Watch Apollo’s season promotional video at www.youtube.com/watch?

SCANDINAVIAN SPIRIT Sunday, January 12, 2014; 6:00pm Christ the King Lutheran Church (Parish Hall) !Program: • Grieg: String Quartet in G minor • Sibelius: String Quartet, Voces intimae • Norwegian folk melody arrangements, featuring the Hardanger fiddle

FOLK DANCES OF THE BRITISH ISLES Sunday, March 30, 2014; 6:00pm Christ the King Lutheran Church (Parish Hall) !*Featuring special guest Ivo-Jan van der Werff, Professor of Viola at Rice University !Program: • Frank Martin: Trio on Popular Irish Folk Tunes • Britten: Three Divertimenti • Vaughan-Williams: Phantasy Quintet • Folk melody arrangements from the British Isles

BASQUE AND SLAVIC FOLKSCAPES Sunday, September 22, 2013; 6:00pm Duncan Recital Hall (Shepherd School of Music at Rice University) !Repeat Performance: Carnegie Hall (Weill Recital Hall) Friday, October 11; 8:00 pm !Program: • Janáček: String Quartet No. 2 (Kreutzer Sonata) • Ravel: String Quartet in A Minor • Karim Al-Zand: Fantasy on Bulgarian Rhythms (WORLD PREMIERE) • Basque and Slavic folk melody arrangements

OF GYPSIES AND RHAPSODIES Sunday, May 18, 2014; 6:00pm Duncan Recital Hall (Shepherd School of Music at Rice University) !Program: • Haydn: Piano Trio No. 39 in G Major, Gypsy • Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody Piano Trio, No. 12 • Bartok: String Quartet No. 2 • Hungarian Folk melody arrangements

EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH

SPECIAL EVENTS

Apollo Chamber Players is committed to providing educational concerts, masterclasses and programs to schools and institutions in the Houston area and beyond. Apollo proud to be a part of Young Audiences of Houston, a non-profit arts-in-education provider reaching 330,000 students in the Greater Houston area.

Apollo’s program, Musical Melting-Pot World Tour, takes students on an engaging musical journey around the world, performing music which illuminates the folk traditions, important historical figures, and cultural contexts of select countries. Along the journey, students gain insight into the instruments and workings of a string quartet and the similarities between musical language and basic human interactions. Apollo-arranged folk songs serve to complement discussion, interaction, and participation with the audience.

In the fall of 2012, Apollo was privileged to perform for two special events sponsored by the Mayor’s Office: The first, at a dedication of artwork honoring John Glenn and Yuriy Gagarin, hosted by Mayor Annise Parker and attended by Russian and US dignitaries; The second, performing at the Japanese Cherry Blossom Centennial Celebration, hosted by the Mayor and the Honorable Jota Yamamoto, Consul-General of Japan in Houston.

With Houston Mayor Annise Parker, October 2012.

Performance at Ferguson Elementary School, Clear Lake, TX. 11/22/13

Houston Arts Alliance • Pre-Incubator Grant Award • City’s Initiative Grant (Awarded by the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, City of Houston) • Arts Project Grant Award

Patricia and Kamal Ahmad Karen Akkerman Alliance Francaise of Houston George Antunes Eugene and Joanne Arnold Dorene Balmer and River Dunarin Vince and Wendy Barr Yochpi Binnrpun Betty Bomberger Gretta Boshara Chris Botterbusch Patricia Bray Harriet Brown Adam Chandler Calder Baptist Church (Beaumont) Centrum FACE City of West University Laura Cividino Noel and Jim Crittenden Leroy Curtis Ben E. Detrick Chris and Ashley Detrick Joe and Venona Detrick Matthew Detrick !

Cihan Duran Jerry and Diana Dudzik Barbara Eaves Craig and Laura Escamilla Joyce Fancher Steven Friedlander Rev. Jim and Joe Fuller Joe Gendempo Lorento Golofeev Elizabeth Good B.D Griffin Jan Harasim Paul Harris Lynn Hawkins Jeff Haydon Mark and Toni Hengesteg Daniel Hernandez Sarah Hill Roger and Sue Hochman Houston Symphony League Bay Area Scott Hunt Dr. and Mrs. Leon Hicks Sachie Hosokawa Charlotte Jones John and Mariko Jordan

James and Deanna Lamore Mary Lee Lankford-Morris Wanda Leclair Hae-a Lee Myrtle Lee Clara Lewis Mark Lisle (Lisle Violin Shop) Judy Loftis Cher Loving Heather Maedgen Carolyn Managan Maika Marasigan Paul Mayes Colleen McCullough Barbara McEwin Eileen Mehnert Andrea Meneses Walter Moore Gerald and Barbara Moynier Ginny Ofiel Jon and Kendra Ogg State of Howard Pieper David and Lori Price RG Price

Marilyn Rambow Anabel Ramirez J. Luis Ramirez Chris and Erma Richter Jeanie and Jonathan Ross Joan Schell Harold and Marian Segelstrom Sherry Cheng Sam Showalter Claude and Yanick Stam Ingeborg Stevenson Arney Strickland St. James Episcopal Church St.Paul's United Methodist Church Rabi Joshua Taub Josie Timm Scott and Lola Tinkham Chelsea Tipton Manuel and Mary Vazquez Kathy Vivian Sheldon Watsky John Whittle Yuliya Yelkhimova Arnette Zaleski

GRANT AWARDS 2013-2014

CORPORATE/INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTORS

1. James Dunham, Professor of Viola at Shepherd School of Music, Rice University

CONTACT:

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 713-348-3782

Bio: www.rice.edu

2. Kenneth Goldsmith, Professor of Violin at Shepherd School of Music, Rice University

CONTACT:


Phone: 713-348-2169

Bio: www.rice.edu

3. Robert Yekovich, Dean of the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University

CONTACT:


Phone: 713-348-4347

Bio: www.rice.edu

6. Lubomir Grancharov, Consulate General of Bulgaria New York

CONTACT:


Phone: 212-935-4646

Website: www.mfa.bg

5. Melissa Tatum, Administration Manager, Mayor’s Office of Special Events

CONTACT:


Phone: 832-393-0863

Website: www.houstontx.gov

7. Dr. James R. Fuller, Senior Pastor of Calder Baptist Church, Chamber Music Series Director (Beaumont, TX)

CONTACT:


Phone: 409-892-4251

Website: www.calderbaptist.org

REFERENCES

8. Ellen Goldberg, President, Sister Cities of Houston

CONTACT:


Phone: 713-686-5867

Website: www.sistercitiesofhouston.org

4. Joanie Patrick, President of Alliance Française de Houston

CONTACT:


Phone: 713-526-1121

Website: www.afdehou.org

PRESS

CultureMap Houston, Joel Luks. 9/21/13

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Arts & Culture Texas, Nancy Zastudil. 10/5/13

HoustonPress, Olivia Alvarez. 9/5/12

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION/COMMENDATION

MATTHEW DETRICK

violin

ANABEL RAMIREZ

violin

WHITNEY BULLOCK

viola

MATTHEW DUDZIK

cello

www.apollochamberplayers.org [email protected] !

(832) 496-9943 | 1620 Elgin St. Houston, TX 77004 a Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization !

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROBERT SEALE

Thank you for reviewing Apollo’s press packet. For more information, please visit our website at:

!www.apollochamberplayers.org

or call

832-496-9943

apollo chamber players press packet

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