Meet the extraordinary musicians who will perform in the Summer concert of the Four Seasons in Music 2020 series:
Kathryn Lockwood, Viola and Artistic Director
Kathryn has been hailed as a violist of exceptional talents in reviews around the country. The Cleveland Plain Dealer proclaimed, “…Lockwood played the vociferous viola cadenza with mahogany beauty and vivid character.” Kathryn is the violist of the internationally renowned Lark Quartet and the unique viola and percussion duo, duoJalal. She is the Artistic Director of the Four Seasons in Music concert series at the Sands Point Preserve, Long Island, NY, now in its second year.
She moved from her homeland of Australia to the United States in 1991 and captured some of the most sought-after awards in the country, including the Naumburg Chamber Music Award. As a member of Lark, she recently released two CDs on Bridge records: an All Higdon CD and Composing America. With duoJalal, she released A Different World on Innova Records of which the Toronto Star wrote: “Lockwood is all slow, sensuous allure with her bowing arm one moment, a tempest of notes the next.”
As an original member of Pacifica Quartet, Kathryn has performed at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall, Corcoran Gallery, St. Lawrence Center, and University of Thessaloniki / Greece, and has been heard live on NPR’s Performance Today. She collaborated with violist Michael Tree on an all Dvorak CD and composer Easley Blackwood on recordings released by Cedille Records. In 2005, Kathryn released a solo recital CD of Viola Music by Inessa Zaretsky, Fireoptics, about which Strad declared “Lockwood is absolutely inside the music’s idiom finding appropriate tonal shadings.”
Kathryn is currently on faculty at University of Massachusetts/Amherst and the John Cali School of Music at Montclair State University, previously serving on the faculty at Rutgers University in NJ, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, Music Institute of Chicago, and National Music Camp in Australia. She earned her Master’s Degree with Donald McInnes at the University of Southern California, and her Bachelor of Music Degree from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music with Elizabeth Morgan. www.kathrynlockwood.com
Yousif Sheronick, Percussion
Hailed by the New York Times for his “dazzling improvisations” and his “wizardry on a range of humble frame drums” Yousif Sheronick enjoys an active career as percussionist, composer, producer and educator. Having studied classical percussion through a Masters degree at Yale, Yousif went on to study music from Brazil, India, Africa and the Middle East which he seamlessly incorporates into his playing. Yousif’s unique skills in both World and Classical music have led him to perform with a diverse range of ensembles and musicians including Philip Glass, Yo-Yo Ma, Laurie Anderson, Ethos Percussion Group, Lark Quartet, Silk Road Ensemble, Branford Marsalis, Sonny Fortune, Glen Velez and Paul Winter. His many musical influences are highlighted in duoJalal, his venture with violist and wife Kathryn Lockwood. A feature article in Drum! Magazine highlighted Yousif’s versatility in an article titled “At The Corner Of The World”.
Always wanting to build bridges through music, Yousif has become a major force in bringing world percussion into contemporary/classical music. He has had the luxury of in-depth work with composers Evan Ziporyn, Derek Bermel, Kenji Bunch, Ljova and John Patitucci, all of whom were eager to compose for his exotic instruments. As a composer himself, Yousif’s compositions have been premiered and performed around the world at both the collegiate and professional level.
In demand as an educator, Yousif has conducted residencies and master classes at top universitiesincluding Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, University of Michigan, University of Kentucky, the Queensland Conservatorium and National University in Australia. In 2018 Yousif established his online frame drum school www.framedrumschool.org.
Yousif has appeared throughout North and South America, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia. Prestigious venue performances include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Hollywood Bowl, Royal Festival Hall (London) and Wigmore Hall (London). Yousif holds degrees from Yale University and the University of Iowa. www.yousifsheronick.com
duoJalal, Ensemble in Residence
Racing along with our new global society, duoJalal surprises the music world with their diverse and stunning artistry. duoJalal “are fearless seekers and synthesizers of disparate instruments and cultures” raves the Toronto Star. Like the marriage between Kathryn Lockwood and Yousif Sheronick, their music represents an organic amalgam of cultural traditions and musical styles. Audiences are enthralled as a classically trained violist from Australia ignites her instrument with passion – one minute embodying a medieval rebec, the next a Shakuhachi (Japanese flute). Yousif, of Lebanese descent, dazzles as he manipulates sound by simply snapping his fingers at the edge of an Egyptian frame drum or dragging his foot across the Peruvian cajon. From their chamber music foundation, duoJalal moves from Classical to Klezmer, Middle Eastern to Jazz, with a skillful confluence that is natural, exploratory and passionate. Inspired by their namesake, 13th century poet Jalal a din Rumi, whose visions and words brought together people of different religions, cultures and races, duoJalal opens their doors to all communities for a diverse and stimulating inter-cultural experience.
For the past eleven years duoJalal has performed throughout the United States, Australia and Brazil regularly performing world premiers of works composed or arranged for the group by Philip Glass, Andrew Waggoner, Derek Bermel, Kenji Bunch, Evan Ziporyn and Giovanni Sollima.
Their project The Rumi Experience was premiered at the Williams Center in Easton PA and continues to intrigue audiences with the coupling of poetry, multi media and music. duoJalal released their first CD on Innova Recordings titled A Different World. Critics hail the CD as an “exhilarating sonic and somewhat mystical experience” (Jordon Times). And their second CD on Bridge Records titled Shadow & Light. The Toronto Star exclaimed, “If this is what the world music’s future holds, bring on the party.”
Always eager to collaborate, the duo embarks on a new venture as the ensemble in residence for the Four Seasons in Music concert series in Long Island in 2019 and 2020. The duo collaborate with the string quartet, voice, clarinet, and dancers.
Also known for their outstanding teaching skills, duoJalal offers masterclasses and clinics for string soloists and ensembles as well as world drumming to both children and adults. Recent masterclasses were held at Manhattan School of Music, New York University and the Percussive Arts Society’s International Convention.
Gregg August, Bass
Bassist and composer Gregg August spans the classical, avant-garde, jazz, and Latin jazz worlds making him one of the most versatile musicians on the scene today. Formerly the Principal Bass of La Orquestra Ciutat de Barcelona and the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Gregg plays regularly with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s and American Composers Orchestra. As a jazz bassist he is a member of the JD Allen Trio, having recorded nine albums with the group, as well as Arturo O’Farrill’s Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, with whom he’s won five Grammy awards. Gregg has also performed and/or recorded with The New York Philharmonic, Steve Reich, The Bang on a Can All Stars, Alarm Will Sound, as well as Ornette Coleman, Chick Corea, Branford Marsalis, and Ray Barretto.
In 2003, Gregg formed his own record label, Iacuessa Records, for which he has recorded three critically acclaimed albums of entirely original music: Four by Six ( 2012), One Peace (2007) and Late August (Iacuessa Records 2005). Gregg has also written many full-length concert works, including Una Rumba Sinfonica, a commission from the Jazz Composers Orchestra Institute and Earshot, which was premiered by the Buffalo Philharmonic. His recent project is Dialogues on Race, a suite scored for large ensemble, including a twelve-member jazz core, three vocalists, and strings. The work was recorded in early 2019 and is scheduled to be released in March 2020.
Gregg is on faculty at New York University and the University of Connecticut, as well as the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASSMoCA in North Adams, MA.
Gregg was on the Downbeat Magazine Critics’ Rising Star Poll in 2017, 2015, and 2013. He received his degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the Juilliard School.
Todd Reynolds, Violin
Todd Reynolds, violinist, composer, conductor, producer, has been a member of Bang on a Can and the Steve Reich Ensemble for 28 years. A “daredevil musician,” and as New Sounds’ John Schaefer notes, “the hardest working violinist in New York,” his compositional and performance style is a hybrid of old and new technology built into a multi-disciplinary aesthetic, employing pan-genre composition and improvisation at its foundation. He founded his own string quartet, ETHEL, in 1998, which he toured with for seven years, developing a unique style of concert theater alongside his colleagues. Reynolds’ music has been called “a charming, multi-mood extravaganza, playful like Milhaud, but hard-edged like Hendrix” (Strings Magazine), and his countless premieres and performances of everything from classical music to jazz to rock ‘n’ roll, long ago redefined the concert hall and underground club as undeniably and inevitably intertwined. He has played as soloist with Yo-Yo Ma, was one of the original members of the Silk Road Project, and has toured with a multitude of artists from John Cale to Meredith Monk to Bruce Springsteen. He continues to develop new electronic and chamber music collaborations and projects, enjoying orchestral, Broadway, and commercial careers along the way. http://www.toddreynolds.com/
Allison Loggins-Hull, Composer – World Premiere: “Changes”
Flutist and composer Allison Loggins-Hull, maintains an active career performing and creating music of multiple genres. Praised for being able “to redefine the instrument…” (The Wall Street Journal), Allison has garnered a reputation for successfully navigating an array of musical worlds and appealing to varied audiences. She is co-founder of the critically acclaimed urban art pop ensemble, Flutronix, known for “redefining the flute and modernizing its sound by hauling it squarely into the world of popular music.” (MTV Iggy) She has worked with an array of artists and ensembles including the International Contemporary Ensemble, NOVUS NY and been featured in an ESPN Super Bowl commercial and the Black Girls Rock! Award Show. As a composer, Allison has been commissioned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and published by Carl Fischer. She is on the faculty of The John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University.