Rite of Spring Celebration
A duo celebratory concert series with the pianist, Dr. Gerald Evans which centered around the Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” performance, marking the 100 year anniversary of its’ premier. The concerts were held at the Stocker Arts Center, Lorain; Brenneman Ohl Concert Hall, Tiffin; Glick Recital Hall, Cleveland; and Ludwig hall in Kent State University.
All received rave reviews with a Cleveland Music critic calling their performance “ breathtakingly beautiful”, while an American composer Jeffery Mumford hailed it as a “refreshing fidelity to the composer's intentions“.
This celebration included a pre-concert lecture that connected the three elements of music, dance, and story together. In addition, the final concert was staged in the dark, with a mystical candle lit circle around the two pianos. A costume was made in a Slavic taste, which yet again, emphasized the importance of the mystic circle.
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Music of the Holocaust
Piano Sonata by Gideon Klein was discovered in 1990s in an old house hidden by Klein’s girlfriend after World War II. The Sonata consists of three movement and features unique compositional components.
Dr. Denenburg has performed Klein Sonata on several occasions, most recently in Lichtman-Behm Genocide Lecture Series at Heidelberg University, Tiffin, Ohio. The lecture included a monologue on the life of Gideon Klein and a performance of the second movement of his piano sonata. Interestingly, the sonata was performed on an upright piano to imitate the original instrument that Klein had access to during his time in the concentration camp.