Meet the extraordinary musicians who will perform in the Fall 2023 concert in the Four Seasons in Music series:
Kathryn Lockwood, Viola and Artistic Director
Australian violist Kathryn Lockwood leads an active and varied career as performer, teacher, and artistic director. Kathryn’s career launched straight out of graduate school as founding member of the Pacifica Quartet where she traveled the world concertizing and recording. After moving to New York in 2001 Kathryn soon claimed the viola chair of the internationally renowned Lark Quartet.
Always evolving and thinking out of the box, Kathryn formed the innovative group duoJalal with percussionist and husband Yousif Sheronick. Kathryn’s creative mind led her to be appointed Artistic Director for the Four Seasons in Music at the Sands Point Preserve Conservancy – a very special series presenting four magical concerts with unique themed programs of chamber music and poetry.
Kathryn is also the Artistic Director for the “Music@MoMA” Series – an intimate salon style chamber music series and is newly appointed as co-artistic director of the Telluride MusicFest. She has recorded for Innova, Bridge, Cedille and Endeavor records. Kathryn is currently on faculty at University of Massachusetts/Amherst and at the John Cali School of Music at Montclair State University where she was recently appointed Curator of the Immersive Residency Program overseeing weeklong residency visits of internationally renowned artists and groups. 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, Cindy Blackman Santana, Glen Velez and Paul Winter.
A feature article in Drum! Magazine highlighted Yousif’s versatility in an article titled “At The Corner Of The World”. His many musical influences are showcased in duoJalal, his venture with violist and wife Kathryn Lockwood. Kathryn and Yousif are the new co-directors of the Telluride MusicFest which is a yearly summer festival in the gorgeous mountains in CO. A firm believer in the power of education, Yousif recently established an online school FrameDrumSchool.org and now has over 700 enrolled students from 54 countries around the world.
duoJalal, Ensemble in Residence
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 an Australian violist ignites her instrument with passion – one minute embodying a medieval rebec, the next a contemporary violist playing Philip Glass. Yousif, of Lebanese descent, dazzles as he manipulates multiple sounds on an array of hand drums followed by intoxicating melodies on vibraphone. duoJalal moves from Classical to Klezmer, Middle Eastern to Jazz, with a skillful confluence that is natural, exploratory, and passionate. duoJalal has performed throughout the United States, Australia and Brazil regularly performing world premieres of works composed or arranged for the group by Philip Glass, Andrew Waggoner, Derek Bermel, Kenji Bunch, Evan Ziporyn, Eve Beglarian and John Patitucci.
As the ensemble in residence for the Four Seasons in Music concert series, the duo have the luxury of collaborating with an array of top tier artists including string players, vocalists, clarinets, dancers and more! Known for their outstanding teaching skills, duoJalal offers masterclasses and clinics for string soloists and ensembles as well as drumming workshops 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. Kathryn and Yousif are proud to announce a new position as co-artistic directors and ensemble in residence of the Telluride MusicFest. A festival housed in a gorgeous mountain home situated at 10,000 feet!
FALL GUEST ARTISTS:
Nurit Pacht, Violin
Violinist Nurit Pacht was a top prize winner in the Irving Klein International Music Competition in California, the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition in Switzerland and the Kingsville International Music Competition in Texas. As a soloist she was featured on tours with the Pacific Symphony, the Israel Chamber Orchestra, the Houston Symphony and the Young Israel Philharmonic. She has performed as guest soloist with many of the major orchestras in Romania and Poland, the Rhode Island Philharmonic, the Des Moines Symphony, the Santa Rosa Symphony, the National Symphony in Columbia, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the Filarmonica di Roma (in Italy). Championing new music, Noam Sherif dedicated his violin concerto “Dibrot” to her and she has performed with Philip Glass and Pierre Boulez. She has recorded as soloist with the English Symphony Orchestra for Toccata Classics. Her Wigmore recital debut in London was released by Nimbus Records.
Ben Russell, Violin
Ben Russell, violinist, vocalist and composer began his career in 2005 by winning the Principal 2nd Violin chair of Portland Symphony Orchestra in Maine. In 2006, co-founded Bryant Park Quartet, a classical string quartet dedicated to teaching chamber music to high school and college students around the country. In 2008 he became a member of American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME), a daring new-music group focused primarily on the work of living American composers. Ben has performed with several ensembles: International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Talea, A Far Cry, Wordless Music Orchestra and Mark Morris Dance Group and has toured and recorded with several artists including Sufjan Stevens, Arcade Fire, The National, Blonde Redhead, Max Richter, Jóhann Jóhannsson and has appeared on stage with Björk, Jonny Greenwood, and Paul McCartney. After releasing his self-titled solo album of original music for violin and voice in 2012, he co-created Founders which combines classical and folk music with original compositions and pop arrangements. Founders released its debut album, You & Who, in early 2014.
Brook Speltz, Cello
Praised for his “fluid virtuosity” and “soulful melodies,” Los Angeles native Brook Speltz is the cellist of the internationally renowned Escher String Quartet and an artist of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. An extremely versatile cellist, Mr. Speltz has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and recitalist throughout the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. First Prize winner of the prestigious Ima Hogg Competition, he has performed as a soloist with the Houston Symphony, Colorado Music Festival Orchestra, and International Contemporary Ensemble, and is a regular performer at England’s IMS Prussia Cove and on tour with Musicians from Marlboro. Mr. Speltz has been personally invited by Itzhak Perlman and Richard Goode to collaborate in chamber music recitals throughout the country. Mr. Speltz studied at the Curtis Institute of Music and at The Juilliard School and performs on a 1857 J.B. Vuillaumei on loan from his father, a cellist and his first inspiration in a family of professional musicians.
Nathan Koci, Accordian
Nathan Koci is a music director and performer across many disciplines, including theater, folk music, jazz, contemporary classical music, dance, and karaoke singing. His MD credits include Illinois (Justin Peck/Sufjan Stevens), Hadestown (US Tour, Assoc. MD Bway/Citadel), Daniel Fish’s Oklahoma! (Bard Summerscape, St. Ann’s Warehouse, Bway, West End), Most Happy in Concert (Bard Summerscape, Williamstown Theater Festival), and Ted Hearne’s The Source (LA Opera, SF Opera, BAM Next Wave). Other theater credits include Maira Kalman and John Heginbotham’s The Principles of Uncertainty (BAM Next Wave), Maria Irene Fornes’ Promenade (Barnard/NYU), and William Kentridge’s The Head and the Load (Park Ave Armory, Ruhr Trienialle, Tate Modern, Art Basel Miami, Joburg Theater). He is the featured accordionist on Sam Sadigursky’s Solomon Diaries Vol I-III, and also performs and records with The Hands Free, Shovels and Rope, The Michael Leonhart Orchestra, Guy Klucevsek, and the SC-based trio The Opposite of a Train. www.nathankoci.com