University of Limerick

Thursday 9th February Ferenc Szücs (cello) Yonit Kosovske (harpsichord) J S Bach Viola da Gamba Sonatas Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, UL. 1.15-2pm.

Free Concert. Ferenc Szücs and Yonit Kosovske perform the Sonata in D major, BWV 1028 and Sonata in G minor, BWV 1029 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750). These pieces form two out of the three sonatas that Bach composed for \\\"Viola da Gamba and Obbligato Harpsichord, " a unique instrumental combination seldom found throughout all of music history. These sonatas are rarely performed on cello, for which this repertoire presents an entirely new set of fingering and bowing challenges particular to the cello versus viola da gamba - the two instruments belonging to completely separate families of string instruments. Multi-dimensional in form and creative in their motivic application, these works reveal three equal voices intertwining in a multitude of ways that include thematic voice exchange, shifting roles of melody versus accompaniment, polyphonic counterpoint contrasted and integrated within ornamental arpeggiation, imitative fugal writing, and suggested dance forms. Expansive melodic gestures abound and interweave with shifting characters, varied textures, contrapuntal dialogue, and chromaticism. Highly dramatic, these sonatas are at once boldly outward and intensely personal, flamboyant and delicate, all the while demanding both technical virtuosity and poetic lyricism. Ferenc Szücs has associations with numerous orchestras, institutes and ensembles worldwide. He studied at the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest and won the prestigious State Award for musical excellence. He joined the Hungarian State Orchestra while still at the Academy and subsequently was appointed as principal cellist of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, London Festival Orchestra, New Queens Hall Orchestra and Oxford Orchestra da Camera. He has performed in several major festivals and has given master classes in Hungary, Austria, Ireland, UK, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Turkey, Canada, China, United States and South America. His recordings are published on ASV, BMG, Arte Nova, Future Classics and Hyperion labels. He is Senior Lecturer and Director of the Master’s programme in Classical String Performance at the Irish World Academy, University of Limerick. He is currently working towards his doctorate with Prof. Susan Melrose at Middlesex University in London, and his research is focusing on questions of creativity and knowledge-transfer in contemporary performance practice. Dr. Yonit Kosovske has performed as a soloist and chamber artist in major cities throughout the United States, Israel, Hong Kong, Spain, Colombia and Ecuador. Holding degrees in both modern and historical keyboard instruments, she performs on harpsichord, modern piano, fortepiano, chamber organ and harmonium. Playing repertoire spanning over five hundred years, her performances have been broadcast on radio stations across the United States and featured on programs such as National Public Radio’s Performance Today, Sunday Baroque and Harmonia. She has given concerts at the prestigious Early Music Festivals in Boston, Berkeley, Bloomington, Chicago, and in Quito, Ecuador, appearing in major concert halls throughout North and South America, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC and Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, amongst other venues. She holds a Doctor of Music degree in Early Music and Historical Keyboards from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. From 2008 to 2010 she taught at Indiana University as an Adjunct Lecturer of Music as well as an Instructor of Piano and Harpsichord in the Pre-College Music Programs. Her most recent recordings include: ¡Ay, España Infelice! Classical and Romantic Songs from Spain with her ensemble Canto Romántico (La Douceur, 2011); La Gracieuse, French chaconnes, passacailles, & preludes for solo harpsichord (La Douceur, 2010); Solo Keyboard Works by Girolamo Frescobaldi (Focus, 2010); Haydn’s Neun kleine frühe Sonaten on fortepiano (2009); Sweelinck’s Secular Pieces (2006); Fitzwilliam Favorites (2006); and À discretion (2000). Her book "Historical Harpsichord Technique, Developing La douceur du toucher" was published in July of 2011 through Indiana University Press.