Shriver Hall Concert Series Continues 22-23 Season with Return of Cellist Steven Isserlis, October 23

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mallory McFarland | Morahan Arts and Media
mallory@morahanartsandmedia.com

Shriver Hall Concert Series Continues
2022-23 Season with Return of
British Cellist Steven Isserlis

Award-Winning Canadian Pianist Connie Shih Joins
Isserlis on Sunday, October 23 at Shriver Hall

“The music world— and music itself—
is infinitely richer for the presence of Steven Isserlis.”
– Gramophone Magazine

www.shriverconcerts.org

Baltimore, MD (September 12, 2022) — Shriver Hall Concert Series (SHCS) — Baltimore’s premier presenter of chamber music ensembles and solo recitalists — continues its 2022-23 season with the highly anticipated return of acclaimed cellist Steven Isserlis on Sunday, October 23, 2022 at 5:30pm. Award-winning Canadian pianist Connie Shih joins Isserlis for his fifth appearance with SHCS. A pre-concert talk takes place at 4:30pm and is open to all ticket holders.

This unforgettable evening of gorgeous works for cello and piano include Schumann’s Adagio and Allegro, a work of ??arduous technical demands; Fauré’s Cello Sonata No. 2 in G minor, full of lush Romantic harmonies and muscular lyricism; Adès’ Lieux retrouvés, which the composer and Isserlis premiered at the 2009 Aldeburgh Festival in England, where Adès served as music director from 1999 to 2008; Hahn’s Variations chantantes sur un air ancien (“Singing variations on an ancient air”), a lovely, rare piece that is a small nod to Proust in his centenary death year – Isserlis has focused on the writer before in other ways, including an album, Cello Music from Proust's Salons, released last year; and Brahms’ Cello Sonata No. 2 in F major, produced on a summer holiday at a rented villa in the Swiss Alps and dedicated to Robert Hausmann, the cellist of the famous string quartet led by Brahms’s old friend Joseph Joachim.

One of classical music’s most respected and distinguished artists, Isserlis “fathoms the range of emotions so perfectly, with both elegant and raw playing” (The Strad) and is “at his ravishing best…this is what nourishes the soul…gorgeously arresting…life-enhancing” (The Times, London). 

For the 22-23 season, SHCS offers a concert streaming option as an exclusive subscription benefit for mainstage concerts taking place at Shriver Hall.

SHCS’ 22-23 season additionally includes performances by flutist Emi Ferguson and early music band Ruckus in their Baltimore debuts on Sunday, October 2, 2022 at 5:30pm; the Baltimore debuts of bass-baritone Davóne Tines and pianist Adam Nielsen on Sunday, November 6, 2022 at 5:30pm; Grammy-winning pianist Daniil Trifonov on Sunday, December 4, 2022 at 5:30pm; the Dover Quartet and double-bassist Joseph Conyers, in his Baltimore debut, on Sunday, February 26, 2023 at 5:30pm; violinist Christian Tetzlaff and cellist Tanja Tetzlaff on Sunday, March 26, 2023 at 5:30pm; pianist Piotr Anderszewski on Sunday, April 23, 2023 at 5:30pm; and Grammy-nominated quintet Imani Winds on Sunday, May 14, 2023 at 5:30pm.

Shriver’s 2022-23 free Discovery Series features 2022 Yale Gordon Concerto Competition-winner tubist Jasmine Piggot on Saturday, January 28, 2023 at 3:00pm at the Baltimore Museum of Art; 2021 Avery Fisher Career Grant and youngest ever winner of the National Sphinx Competition cellist Sterling Elliott, who makes his Baltimore debut, and pianist Elliot Wuu on Saturday, February 18, 2023 at 3:00pm at UMBC’s Linehan Concert Hall; and the Thalea String Quartet on Saturday, March 11, 2023 at 3:00pm also at UMBC’s Linehan Concert Hall.

Concert Information

Steven Isserlis and Connie Shih
Sunday, October 23, 2022 at 5:30pm
Pre-concert talk at 4:30pm
Shriver Hall | 3400 N. Charles Street | Baltimore, MD 21218
Tickets: $269 Subscription; $44 General Admission; $10 Students
Link: https://www.shriverconcerts.org/isserlis

Steven Isserlis, cello
Connie Shih, piano

REYNALDO HAHN: Variations chantantes sur un air ancien
GABRIEL FAURÉ: Cello Sonata No. 2 in G minor, Op. 117
THOMAS ADÈS: Lieux retrouvés
ROBERT SCHUMANN: Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70
JOHANNES BRAHMS: Cello Sonata No. 2 in F major, Op. 99

About Shriver Hall Concert Series
For more than 50 years, Shriver Hall Concert Series (SHCS) has been “Baltimore’s finest importer of classical music talent” (The Baltimore Sun) and the area’s premier presenter of chamber music ensembles and solo recitalists with a mission to craft performances and educational programs at the highest level of excellence. A 5-time recipient of Baltimore Magazine’s distinction “Best Classical Music” in its annual “Best of Baltimore” issue, the coveted subscription series features many of the world’s most renowned soloists and ensembles, presented in The Johns Hopkins University’s Shriver Hall. 

Founded in 1966 by Dr. Ernest Bueding, a pharmacologist at The Johns Hopkins University, and a group of similarly dedicated music enthusiasts, SHCS set out to make an important contribution to the vitality of an already vibrant city. When flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal walked onto the stage of Shriver Hall for the first concert, more than 1,100 people witnessed the launch of what is now recognized as a remarkable success story: Shriver Hall Concert Series. In the succeeding years SHCS has presented hundreds of acclaimed and emerging international artists in classical chamber music and recitals and a legacy of important debuts and premieres. In addition, SHCS collaborates with local schools and subsidizes hundreds of student tickets each season. 

The list of artists presented by SHCS is remarkable—Radu Lupu, Murray Perahia, Ewa Podlés, Maurizio Pollini, Jacqueline du Pré, Mstislav Rostropovich, Jordi Savall, András Schiff, Rudolf Serkin, Janos Starker, Daniil Trifonov, Lynn Harrell, Emmanuel Ax, Alban Berg Quartet, Guarneri Quartet, Kronos Quartet, Cleveland Quartet, and Quartetto Italiano, among many others. SHCS also has a history of championing important musicians early in their careers, including Richard Goode, Hilary Hahn, Hélène Grimaud, Dawn Upshaw, Lang Lang, and the Emerson String Quartet. Commissioned composers include Timo Andres, Sebastian Currier, Jonathan Leshnoff, James Lee III, Hannah Lash, Caroline Shaw, and Nina C. Young.

Designed specifically for the community, SHCS offers the Discovery Series, a series of free concerts presented in venues throughout the region focused on artists emerging on the national and international scene. Artists featured include Narek Hakhnazaryan, Colin Currie, Xavier Foley, Eric Lu, and the Dover Quartet. SHCS also offers the annual Spring Lecture Series, a series of free talks focused on annual topics related to the intersection of music and society, and a variety of student programs.

For more information, visit www.shriverconcerts.org.

About Steven Isserlis
Acclaimed worldwide for his profound musicianship and technical mastery, British cellist Steven Isserlis enjoys a uniquely varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author and broadcaster. He appears with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, and gives recitals in major musical centers. As a chamber musician, he has curated concert series for many prestigious venues, including London’s Wigmore Hall, New York’s 92nd Street Y, and the Salzburg Festival. Unusually, he also directs chamber orchestras from the cello in classical programs.

With a strong interest in historical performance, Steven has worked with many period-instrument orchestras and has performed and recorded recitals with harpsichord and fortepiano. Also a keen exponent of contemporary music, he has given many premieres of new works, including Sir John Tavener’s The Protecting Veil and many other works, Thomas Adès' Lieux retrouvés, three works for solo cello by György Kurtág, and pieces by Heinz Holliger and Jörg Widmann.

Steven’s extensive and award-winning discography includes J.S. Bach’s complete solo cello suites (Gramophone’s Instrumental Album of the Year), Brahms' Double Concerto with Joshua Bell and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and – as director and soloist – concertos by Haydn and C.P.E. Bach with Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. His recording of works by John Taverner won the 2021 BBC Music Magazine Award.

Since 1997, Steven has been artistic director of the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove, Cornwall. He also enjoys playing for children, and has created three musical stories, with the composer Anne Dudley. His two books for children, published by Faber & Faber, have been translated into many languages; his latest book for Faber is a commentary on Schumann’s Advice for Young Musicians. His most recent book about the Bach Cello Suites was published in 2021. He has also devised and written two evenings of words and music, one describing the last years of Robert Schumann, the other devoted to Marcel Proust and his salons, and has presented many programs for radio, including documentaries about two of his heroes – Robert Schumann and Harpo Marx.

The recipient of many awards, Steven’s honors include a CBE in recognition of his services to music, the Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau, the Piatigorsky Prize and Maestro Foundation Genius Grant in the U.S, the Glashütte Award in Germany, the Gold Medal awarded by the Armenian Ministry of Culture, and the Wigmore Medal.

Steven plays the ‘Marquis de Corberon’ Stradivarius of 1726, on loan from the Royal Academy of Music. His website is stevenisserlis.com.

About Connie Shih
The Canadian pianist, Connie Shih, is repeatedly considered to be one of Canada’s most outstanding artists. In 1993 she was awarded the Sylva Gelber Award for most outstanding classical artist under age 30. At the age of nine, she made her orchestral debut with Mendelssohn’s first Piano Concerto with the Seattle Symphony. At the age of 12, she was the youngest ever protégé of György Sebok, and then continued her studies at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia with Claude Frank, himself a protégé of Arthur Schnabel. Later studies were undertaken with Fou Tsong in Europe.

As soloist, she has appeared extensively with orchestras throughout Canada, U.S., and Europe. In a solo recital setting, she has made countless appearances in Canada, U.S., Iceland, England, Spain, Italy, Germany, Japan and China. Connie has given chamber music performances with many world-renowned musicians. To critical acclaim, she appears regularly in concert with her duo partner, cellist Steven Isserlis worldwide. Including chamber music appearances at Wigmore and Carnegie halls, she performs at the prestigious Bath Music Festival, Aldeburgh, Cheltenham, Weill Hall (N.Y.), Verbier, Luzern and at the Kronberg Festival. Her collaborations have included Sir Simon Keenlyside, Joshua Bell, Maxim Vengerov, Tabea Zimmerman, Manuel Fischer-Dieskau and Isabelle Faust.

In 2021 Connie toured Asia, America, Europe, and Australia with Steven Isserlis. With the cellist Manuel Fischer-Dieskau, she recorded the first-ever CD of the sonatas for piano and cello by Carl Reinecke and the complete Beethoven sonatas. In 2017 she released her first of her two CDs with Steven Isserlis on the BIS label, while this year will see the release of their first CD collaboration on Hyperion.

Connie’s performances are frequently broadcast via television and radio on CBC (Canada), BBC (U.K.), SWR, NDR, and WDR (Germany) as well as on other various television and radio stations in North America, Asia and Europe.

Connie was adjunct faculty at the Hochschule für Musik Mainz and presently at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg. In addition she has given masterclasses at renowned music institutions and was on the faculty at the Casalmaggiore International Festival in Italy. 

Photo credit: Steven Isserlis by Jean Baptiste Millot

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