Salon Radio: PREformances with Allison Charney; Viola-Tianni Bao

This article, along with a recording of the accompanying podcast, were originally published by Salon Radio in collaboration with International Women Artists’ Salon on October 11, 2017.

PREformances with Allison Charney moves to a new home at Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Music Center on Monday October 16, 2017 at 1PM.

PREFORMANCES WITH ALLISON CHARNEY invites audience to experience celebrated classical musicians in “PREformances” anticipating their upcoming engagements on the world’s most prestigious stages. Acclaimed opera singer Allison Charney hosts a behind-the-scenes glimpse into top-level artists’ practices and performance, deliberately blurring the traditional barriers which exist between classical musicians and audience in concerts by providing “un-Google-able” insights into these great performers thoughts and practices.  PREFORMANCES WITH ALLISON CHARNEY has presented over 95 of the preeminent musicians of our time. Notable appearances include those by New York Philharmonic Music Director Alan Gilbert, Metropolitan Opera stars William Burden and Maria Zifchak, flutist Carol WIncenc, violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins, pianists Joel Fan and Navah Perlman. The series has presented new classical works by composers Michael Ching, Moshe Knoll, Kim D. Sherman and Dina Pruzhansky. Together with Craig Ketter, PREformances’ noted collaborative pianist, soprano Allison Charney, performs on every concert. Each evening and matinee concert typically run an hour and a half, with no intermission. “PREformances with Allison Charney” maintains a charitable relationship with the Basser Center for BRCA at the University of Pennsylvania – both contributing to its cutting-edge research efforts and promoting awareness of the Basser Center’s mission of advancing the care of individuals living with BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations.

Soprano Allison Charney, made her New York City Opera debut as Musetta in LA BOHÈME and went on to critical acclaim in opera houses across the US.  Concert appearances include performances at Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Boston Pops under the baton of NY Philharmonic music director, Alan Gilbert.  A champion of contemporary classical music, Ms. Charney has commissioned and premiered many new works, including 6 pieces written for the ARK Trio, of which she is a founding member. Ms. Charney is the founder and host of the classical concert series, PREformances with Allison Charney (now in its 9th season)  This fall, she will be the soprano soloist at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center  in “Prayer for Peace: The Power of One Voice” singing Beethoven’s NINTH SYMPHONY and Knoll’s PSALM 133. Ms. Charney is featured in the recently-released, first recording of the Pulitzer Prize nominated oratorio Choose Life, by composer Mona Lyn Reese and can be heard in a CD of American song with pianist, Benjamin Loeb, on the DSC Label. Ms. Charney is an active recitalist and master teacher and is the founder and curator of the concert series, PREFORMANCES WITH ALLISON CHARNEY. After receiving her Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude with highest honors, in Special Concentrations from Harvard University, she went on to earn two graduate degrees in music from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University. Ms. Charney now lives in New York City with her husband and their two sons.

On October 16 Soprano Allison Charney, with long time collaborative pianist Craig Ketter, will launch  the 2017-2018 Classical Concert Series and Debut of PREformances with Allison Charney at Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Music Center.

The matinee concert will feature ‘preformance’ appearances by special guests pianists Joel Fan and Julia Zilberquit, conductor Jason Tramm, actor Jordan Charney and violinist Kelly Hall Tompkins –

Violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins and soprano Allison Charney will “preform” Israeli composer Moshe Knoll’s lush setting of Psalm 133. Maestro Jason Tramm will conduct veteran actor of stage and screen Jordan Charney in Schoenberg’s gripping cantata “A Survivor from Warsaw” along with a special performance by the Seton Hall University Choir in anticipation of “Prayer for Peace: The Power of One Voice” classical music concert, October 27th at NJPAC.

Violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins will also play a suite from Fiddler on the Roof, arranged for her, that she will both perform with orchestra and record later this year. She will be accompanied by Stephen Benson, guitar; Joshua Camp, accordion and Steve Moran, bass.

Pianist Julia Zilberquit will play selections of the great Russian composers – Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Tchaikovsky – in advance of her upcoming concerts in London and St. Petersburg.

And, in preparation for Open Source Music Festival, pianist Joel Fan will “preform” several new pieces by contemporary composers.

The series continues with evening concerts at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center on Monday, November 27th and Monday, March 5th and will conclude with a final matinee concert on Monday, April 23rd.

About the Salon Radio Podcast

This podcast is hosted by Maureen Van Trease, presenting our guests. Salon Radio is rounded out with our Women in The Arts world bulletin highlighting news about women in all The Arts and our Salon Bulletin for upcoming week’s happenings of Salonistas around the world; this week’s editor is IWAS founder Heidi Russell.   This podcast was recorded at our production partner Funkadelic Studios with sound engineer Jade Zabric.