November 12, 2009: Volume 77, Number 10

Sasha Cooke, Boston Camerata among great talents to perform at Union over break

Sasha Cooke has a way of exposing a song’s soul with her rich, full-bodied voice. On Saturday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m., the mezzo-soprano brings her gift for singing to Union, where she’ll be accompanied by renowned pianist Ken Noda.

During their upcoming Chamber Concert Series appearance, the pair will present “Three Venetian Songs” from Rossini and “Liederkreis” from Schumann. In addition, Noda and Cooke will also perform “What a Movie” from L. Bernstein’s “Trouble in Tahiti.”

Cooke’s recent musical roles, sung to critical acclaim, include Kitty Oppenheimer in the Metropolitan Opera premiere of “Doctor Atomic” and Mercedes in a National Symphony Orchestra performance of Bizet’s “Carmen.”

Noda is musical assistant to James Levine on the artistic administration of the Metropolitan Opera. He began working there in 1991 after retiring from a full-time career as a concert pianist, and he devotes much of his energy to training young singers in the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program.

Following Cooke and Noda, Boston Camerata will perform Sunday, Dec. 13 at 3 p.m. Founded in 1954, the group plays historically informed compositions from European medieval, Renaissance and Baroque eras. It’s one of the world’s oldest continually functioning early music ensembles.

At Union, Boston Camerata’s distinguished singers and specialists in early instruments will present a Christmas narrative, retold through songs, chants and instrumentals from Spain, Italy, southern France and northern Africa.

After this unique show, concert-goers can look forward to cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han. Always a crowd favorite, they’ll give their 18^th series performance on Sunday, Jan. 3 at 3 p.m.

During their appearance, Finckel and Han, artistic directors of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, will play the complete sonatas of Beethoven.

In addition to their work at Lincoln Center, the duo also has ArtistLed, classical music’s first musician-directed, Internet-based recording company. All 10 recordings released under the label have received critical acclaim. This season, ArtistLed releases its 11th album, a recording of Schubert piano trios featuring Han and Finckel with violinist Philip Setzer. Setzer, like Finckel, is a member of the famed Emerson String Quartet.

All three shows are free to members of the Union community and will be held in Memorial Chapel. For more information call 388-6080 or visit http://www.union.edu/ConcertSeries.

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