Yesterday, the Russian Trio had its debut at the Kennedy Center (Terrace Theater) to a sold-out crowd!  We were so honored to be a part of the Kennedy Center's Conservatory Project, where they invite each major US conservatory to present a concert as part of their Millenium Stage Series.  We were the sole representatives for Peabody this year, so we got to play for the whole recital.  The hall seated 513 people, and they had to turn people away at the door because there wasn't a single seat remaining.  I was totally thrilled that my parents and husband were able to fly out for the event, and a number of good friends either attended or watched online as well.  For those of you out there that still want to see it, a video of the performance will be permanently archived on the Kennedy Center website at <http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/videos/?id=M5348>.

T-minus three weeks till my fifth DMA recital.  This one is a concerto recital, and for rep, I decided on Beethoven's First Piano Concerto and Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.  I played the first movement of the Beethoven a LOT about twelve years ago, but everything else is brand new.  I started learning them immediately after my last DMA recital, which was in the middle of December.  To be honest, learning this amount and degree of difficulty of rep usually takes me at LEAST 4-5 months, but this time, I'm doing it in exactly 2 months.  I go to sleep every night majorly stressed out.  

My plan of attack was to memorize the Beethoven first while learning the second half of the Rhapsody.  To help the pacing, I decided to play the Beethoven in concert on Jan. 20, which meant having finished memorizing it by January 1.  I finished memorizing the Rach on Jan. 19.   This weekend, I'm headed to Baltimore to rehearse them both with my dedicated accompanist, Michael Delfin, and have a lesson with my teacher, Mr. Shtarkman.  I'll show up in Baltimore a week before my recital to finish nailing it down with Michael.  

Needless to say, cutting my record learning-music time in HALF is scary and stressful, but it sure is motivating.  

Meanwhile, my trio has been asked to play at the Kennedy Center!   We are delighted and thrilled!  You are all welcome to watch it online, as it will be broadcast live here <http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium> and will be available for viewing after the fact.  The performance will take place on the Millennium Stage on Feb. 9 at 6:00 p.m.  Admission is free, for those in the Baltimore/D.C. area!  

Hey everyone!  The Russian Trio played at The Friends of Chamber Music of Reading Concert Series last Friday-- our second professional concert together!  I did an interview with a journalist from the Reading Eagle, Susan Pena, and that article came out the week of the concert, and then she graciously gave us a very positive review of the concert itself.  Here are the links to the two articles:

The interview:
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=421669

The review:
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=422360

Hey everybody!  I just added a page about my chamber group, The Russian Trio, to the site.  I'll be uploading recordings soon.  Enjoy!

The Russian Trio's performance from the Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition will be heard on the WSCL radio channel at 11 AM on Wednesday, April 11, EST.  WSCL can be heard thoughout the middle and southern portions of the Delmarva peninsula, or streaming at http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/delmarva/ppr/wscl.m3u .  Tune in!