Special guests -- The award-winning trio Eroica is the highlighted guest at this year’s Southern Illinois Music Festival, performing June 26 at Shryock Auditorium and on June 27 at SEMO’s River Campus in Cape Girardeau. (Photo provided) Download Photo Here
May 29, 2009
Southern Illinois Music Festival opens June 14
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Music comes to life in the annual Southern Illinois Music Festival, presented by the School of Music at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
From the haunting and yet light story of a mechanical doll coming to life to Haydn’s musical interpretation of the Book of Genesis, to the lively musical presence of the acclaimed trio Eroica, this year’s festival promises to be one of beauty, vivacity and of course, great music.
As in past years, the music festival spills out into the surrounding area, even crossing the Mississippi River, as part of a School of Music community outreach. Symphony conductor and festival organizer Ed Benyas notes that community outreach through musical performance is an important part of the festival. The heart of the festival, of course, is the historic Shryock Auditorium on the SIUC campus. Other sites this year include civic centers, wineries, churches and schools in Benton, Cairo, Cape Girardeau, Carterville, Du Quoin, Herrin, Johnston City, Lebanon, Marion, Mt. Vernon, Murphysboro and Sesser.
The highlighted guest this year is the trio Eroica, described as “the most sought-after trio in the world.” Eroica is Erika Nickrenz on piano, Susie Park on violin and Sara Sant-Ambrogio on cello. Eroica won the Naumburg Chamber Music Award in 1991, and followed up that success with a Lincoln Center debut and an international tour. Now they are acclaimed as “one of the first all-female chamber music ensembles to reach the top echelon.” Their repertoire includes 300 years of music, from baroque to “café music,” including classical masters and new composers alike. Veterans of Carnegie Hall, where they have played sold-out performances, the trio graced some of the most famous European concert halls. They are also active in the recording studio, with five CDs to their credit with Angel/EMI Classics. In spite of the glamour and prestige, Eroica remains committed to musical education, playing at times for young audiences or leading master classes for students. For more information, as well as individual biographies, visit their Web site at www.eroicatrio.com.
The music festival traditionally includes a ballet and an opera. The ballet this year is “Coppélia,” sometimes known as “The Girl with Enamel Eyes.” The story takes its inspiration from an eerie story by German author E.T.A. Hoffman, “The Sandman.” In the ballet, the story becomes more of a gently comedic love story with magical highlights. The story follows the love story of woman Swanhilda and Franz, and the mysterious Dr. Coppélius and his still more mysterious “daughter.” Susan Barnes and Sydelle Fulk of the Susan Barnes/Willow Street Dance Studio direct and choreograph the SIFest Dance Company, featuring young local and regional dancers. Though the performance is a “children’s ballet,” the audience can expect a beautifully danced and staged performance.
The opera is Giuseppe Verdi’s tragic La Traviata, or, “The Woman Who Strayed.” The story tells of the Parisian courtesan Violetta Valéry and the young nobleman Alfredo Germont. As might be expected in an opera, the love between the two people is beset with problems, including a heartbroken separation, a misunderstanding that tears the lovers still further apart, and then a deathbed reunion.
The festival also features performances of The Creation, an oratorio by Joseph Haydn. Besides the Biblical story of creation as given in Genesis, Haydn also referred to the Book of Psalms and the creation story in John Milton’s Paradise Lost. The composition requires a full orchestra, resulting in a grand sound supplemented by vocal soloists and choral singers. A performance typically lasts just over one and a half hours.
A full schedule of events is available online at www.sifest.com, in brochures widely available at various sites in the area, and right here:
JUNE 14
• 2 p.m. at Mélange Coffee Shop, Carbondale, chamber music featuring a brass trio. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, Carbondale, chamber music and festival preview, featuring an oboe and piano recital by Ed and Kara Benyas. Free event.
JUNE 15
• 7:30 p.m. at the Old Baptist Foundation Recital Hall, SIUC, chamber music featuring a clarinet recital by Boja Kragulj. Free event.
JUNE 17
• 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church, Johnston City, Klassics for Kids featuring a string quartet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at the Herrin Civic Center, Jive with Jazz (for young listeners) featuring New Arts Jazztet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Herrin Civic Center, New Arts Jazztet concert. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Liberty Theater, Murphysboro, chamber music concert featuring a wind quintet and a wind octet. Free event. A reception follows at The Gallery Space.
JUNE 18
• 10 a.m. at the Marion Civic Center, Klassics for Kids featuring a wind quintet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at the Carterville Community Center, Klassics for Kids featuring a tango sextet. Free event.
JUNE 19
• 7:30 p.m. at the Marion Civic Center, A Children’s Ballet: Coppélia. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students.
JUNE 20
• 2 p.m. at Shryock Auditorium, A Children’s Ballet: Coppélia. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Varsity Center for the Arts, Carbondale, chamber music soiree. Free event.
JUNE 21
• 2 p.m. at Mélange Coffee Shop, Carbondale, chamber music featuring a wind quintet. Free event.
JUNE 23
• 10 a.m. at the National Bank, Benton, Klassics for Kids featuring a wind quintet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at the Liberty Theater, Murphysboro, Klassics for Kids featuring a tango sextet. Free event.
• 4 p.m. at the Bank of Herrin, chamber music featuring a string quartet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Mt. Vernon, Haydn’s The Creation. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students.
JUNE 24
• 10 a.m. at the Sesser Opera House, Klassics for Kids featuring a string quartet and a piano quintet. Free event.
• 4 p.m. at the A. S. Stafford Memorial Library, Cairo, Jive with Jazz (for young listeners). Free event.
7:30 p.m. at Rustle Hill Winery, Cobden, chamber music featuring a wind octet and a tango sextet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the A. S. Stafford Memorial Library, Cairo, New Arts Jazztet concert. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Sesser Opera House, chamber music featuring a string quartet. Tickets $10 for general admission, $3 for students.
JUNE 25
• 10 a.m. at Du Quoin Middle School, Klassics for Kids featuring a string quartet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at the Eurma Hayes Center, Carbondale, Jive with Jazz (for young listeners) featuring the New Arts Jazztet. Free event.
• 7:30 a.m. at the First Baptist Church, Carbondale, Haydn’s The Creation. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students.
JUNE 26
• 7:30 p.m. at Shryock Auditorium, SIUC, The Eroica Trio in concert. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students.
JUNE 27
• 10 a.m. at Altgeld Hall, Room 112, SIUC, Klassics for Kids featuring a wind octet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at SEMO’s River Campus, Cape Girardeau, Mo., The Eroica Trio in concert. Tickets, $20 for general admission, $6 for students. For tickets, call the River Campus Box Office at 573/651-2265.
JUNE 28
• 2 p.m. at Mélange Coffee Shop, Carbondale, chamber music featuring a string quartet and a tango sextet. Free event.
• 2 p.m. at Hettenhausen Center for the Arts, McKendree University, Lebanon, chamber music featuring a wind octet and a piano quintet. For tickets, call the Hett Box Office at 618/537-6863.
• 7:30 p.m. at Cedarhurst Center for the Arts, Mt. Vernon, chamber music featuring a wind quintet and a piano quintet. Tickets, $10 for general admission, $3 for students.
JUNE 29
• 7:30 p.m. at SIUC’s Quigley Auditorium, Shryock: The Next Century, a presentation by Ryan Keutzer. Free event.
JUNE 30
• 10 a.m. at the Eurma Hayes Center, Carbondale, Klassics for Kids featuring a wind quintet. Free event.
• 4 p.m. at the A. S. Stafford Memorial Library, Cairo, Klassics for Kids featuring a brass trio. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the A. S. Stafford Memorial Library, Cairo, chamber music featuring a wind quintet and a brass trio. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at Shyrock Auditorium, Verdi’s La Traviata. Tickets, $20 for general admission and $6 for students.
JULY 1
• 10 a.m. at the Sesser Opera House, Jive with Jazz (for young listeners) featuring the New Arts Jazztet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at the Herrin Civic Center, Klassics for Kids featuring a string quartet. Free event.
• 10 a.m. at Altgeld Hall, Room 112, SIUC, Klassics for Kids featuring a tango sextet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Sesser Opera House, chamber music featuring the New Arts Jazztet and a tango quartet. Tickets, $10 for general admission, $3 for students.
• 7:30 p.m. at the Herrin Civic Center, chamber concert featuring a wind octet, piano quintet and mixed ensemble. Tickets $10 for general admission, $3 for students.
JULY 2
• 10 a.m. at Hettenhausen Center for the Arts, McKendree University, Lebanon, Klassics for Kids featuring a wind quintet. Free event.
• 7:30 p.m. at Hettenhausen Center for the Arts, McKendree University, Lebanon, Verdi’s La Traviata. For tickets, call the Hett Box Office at 618/537-6863.
Unless otherwise noted, all tickets are available at the Shryock Auditorium Box Office by calling 618/453-6000, or at any Ticketmaster Outlet, including www.Ticketmaster.com.