Lois Smith Jones, President

The Friday Morning Music Club, Inc.

Washington, D.C.

For classical musicians and music lovers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

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MEMBER NEWS PUBLISHED ON THIS WEB SITE IN FEBRUARY 2003

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES:

• February 7,(evening) and February 9,(afternoon) 2003,is a Chamber Music recital, with Amanda Balestrieri, soprano, and Timothy Summers, violin. This is a part of the exciting new Virginia Salon Series at the intimate chamber space in the Lyceum, Alexandria, Virginia. For more information, and to be included in the mailing list, call Mike Miller at 301-523-2195.
   
• Darren Perry is the baritone soloist in Ein Deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms, which will be performed by the University of Maryland Chorus, Chorale, Chamber Singers and Orchestra.Ý Darren was a winner of the FMMC vocal competition last spring.Ý Two performances are scheduled: the first on Thursday, February 20 at 8:00 pm and another on Sunday, February 23 at 3:00 pm in the Dekelboum Concert Hall, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center at the University of Maryland (301-405-ARTS; 301-405-2787).
   
• Christine Kharazian, violinist, and Francis Conlon, pianist, will perform on Friday, February 21 ,7:00 p.m. at St. Luke United Methodist Church, 3655 Calvert Street NW, Washington, DC 20007. Tel:(202)333-4949. The program will include works by Bach, Enesco, Khachaturian, Wieniawski, and Gershwin.
   
• Pianist Aldo Ragone, who was heard in January at the Sumner School, will perform a solo recital at the Lyceum in Alexandria (201 South Washington Street) on February 22 at 3:00 pm. featuring works by J.S. Bach and A. N. Skrjabin.
   
• Victoria Bragin recently accepted an invitation to be the Music Artist-in-Residence at the Huntington Museum of Art in West Virginia. In this capacity, she will be performing a solo recital at the Museum's Grace Rardin Auditorium on February 23 at 2:30 pm. Included in the program are Schumann's Carnaval and selected pieces from her prize-winning performance at the 2002 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs. Vicki, who has worked as a chemical educator for most of her professional life, was recently featured in the December 9, 2002 issue of the Chemical and Engineering News, a news weekly for the chemical profession and chemical industry with a circulation of more than 100,000 worldwide. She recently retired as chemistry professor at Pasadena City College in California but continues to work as a science consultant in addition to her musical activities.
   
• Marje Palmieri will be appearing as Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata with the Eldbrooke Artist Series. The performance dates are February 28, 2003 at 7:30 pm and March 2, 2003 at 1:30 pm. Eldbrooke United Methodist Church is located at 4100 River Road, N.W. It is easily accessible from the Tenlytown Metro stop. Information about the performance is available at 202-966-4975.
   
• The vocal ensemble, Carmina, directed by Vera Kochanowsky, will join the Chesapeake Viol Consort in a program of English Renaissance music on March 1 and March 2. The program will include verse anthems by Thomas Weelkes and William Byrd, the Lamentations of Jeremiah by Thomas Tallis, and keyboard and consort music. The first performance will take place at St. John's Episcopal Church, 9801 Livingston Rd., Fort Washington, Maryland (info:301-449-0254). A second performance will be offered at the Church of the Ascension and St. Agnes, 1217 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington DC (info: 202-347-8161). Both concerts are free to the public.
   
• Musical Arts International Inc. will present A Night of BeBop, Ballads, Bossas and Blues on Saturday, March 22, at 8:00PM in the Latvian Lutheran Church, 400 Hurley Ave., Rockville, MD 20850. The program will feature the Robert Sykes Quintet with music by Powell, Martino, Hart, Link, Noble, Monk, Conally and Sykes.
   

STUDENT MEMBER NEWS:

• On January 21, three talented FMMC student members played a concert at Goodwin House in Alexandria. They were Andy Luse, piano; Bill Perdu, cello; Chris Hahn, viola.
• On February 17, three student members will play at the Georgetown Retirement Home. Be sure to hear these young artists: Benjamin Scott, violin; Zak Sandler, composer, and Emily Phelps, piano.
• Violist Diana Wade, student of Helen Fall, was accepted to the National High School Honors Orchestra. Only 16 violists nationwide were accepted to this elite orchestra. The NHSHO will perform at the American String Teachers Association Conference in Columbus, OH in March. Diana was accepted by audition as a student member of FMMC in January.

SPECIAL MEMBER NEWS:

Special Honors For ROY HAMLIN JOHNSON
       Roy Hamlin Johnson received an Honorary Doctor of Music degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, at the University's Fall 2002 Commencement. The entire degree citation may be viewed at http://carillon.engin.umich.edu/lurie/events/johnson/index.html. Performances by several carillonists of thirteen of Johnson's compositions for cast-bell carillon can be heard at the website. An excerpt from the citation appears below:

Citation for Roy Hamlin Johnson University of Michigan Honorary Doctor of Music Degree December 15, 2002

Roy Hamlin Johnson is Americaís foremost living composer of carillon music. Lauded for their tonal beauty, intelligence, and seriousness, Dr. Johnson's works have profoundly influenced both the style and substance of the carillon repertoire. Dr. Johnson's "Summer Fanfares" (1956) proved to be a stunning debut in a prolific career. Prior to "Summer Fanfares," carillon composition was often based on models from other keyboard instruments. Dr. Johnson was the first composer to derive music exclusively from the carillon's unique acoustical, keyboard, and location characteristics. His use of the octatonic scale, for example, with its strong minor third orientation, is especially well-suited for the bells. A Carillon Book for the Liturgical Year, a collection of Hymn-Preludes, at its 2.5-hour (and growing) length, is Dr. Johnson's largest and most widely performed contribution to the carillon literature. This work is inspired by the spirit and technique found in the monumental Chorale Preludes of J. S. Bach, adapted to Johnson's reconciliation of tonal melodies and octatonic harmony. He also has written many other large works that are regarded as true carillon concert pieces.