Caspian Music Festival Orchestra

The Caspian Music Festival with conductor Paul McShee begins to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death. Join us for an evening that bridges the structural elegance of the Baroque era with Allesandro Marecello’s Concerto in C Minor featuring Igor Leschishin (oboe) performing in memory of Sir Tom Zajkowski.…and the grand, dramatic innovations of the early Romantic period with:Ludwig van Beethoven’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, featuring Solomiya Ivakhiv (violin) …and culminating in Beethoven’s vibrant, witty, and high-energy masterpiece Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, (note: Ludwig van Beethoven died on March 26, 1827 — 2027 will mark the 200th anniversary of his death) . Program:Allesandro Marcello (1673-1747) Concerto in C minor, S D93 for Oboe, Strings and ContinuoCaspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorIgor Leschishin, oboeII. AdagioLudwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, Op.61Caspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorSolomiya Ivakhiv, violinI. Allegro ma non troppoII. LarghettoIII. Rondo (Allegro) Solomiya Ivakhiv, violinIntermissionLudwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, Op.60Caspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorI. Adagio – Allegro vivaceII. AdagioIII. Allegro vivaceIV. Allegro ma non troppoPaul McShee, conductorDescribed by the Baltimore Sun as both a "lyrical and rhythmically incisive" conductor, Paul McShee, incoming assistant professor of music and artistic director of orchestral studies the University of Connecticut, is known for the "energy and sincere expression" of his performances. At home on the podium and in the opera pit, McShee is sought after as a conductor for opera productions in the U. S. and Europe. He was a staff conductor for the University of Minnesota Opera, guest conductor for La traviata and Madama Butterfly at Paul Hamlyn Hall in London, and music director of the PopUp Opera Program in Edinburgh, Scotland. McShee has conducted the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, the Syracuse Symphony, The Missoula Symphony Orchestra, the London Paradisal Players, L'Orchestre QuiPasseParLè, L'Orchestre Band-Son, the Philharmonie Mihail Jora and the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic. A champion of new music, and works of underrepresented composers, McShee is currently preparing a collected edition of the instrumental works of Margaret Bonds. Additionally, he has worked with composers including Kenneth Fuchs, Avner Dorman, Anna Clyne and Nathan Fletcher. He holds the DMA in conducting from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University and a MM from the University of Connecticut. He has served on the faculties of the University of Minnesota, the University of Connecticut, and Binghamton University. His current researchconcerns the intersections between philosophy and the music of Brahms, Wagner, and Mahler. His dissertation, "Gentle into that Good Night: Rejection of Linear Structural Narratives in Finales by Brahms, Wagner, and Mahler," was recognized by Peabody Conservatory faculty with a commendation. McShee studied conducting under Marin Alsop, Gustav Meier, Harvey Felder, and Markand Thakar. His principal flute teachers were Emmanuel Pahud, Verena Bosshart, and Teresa Bowers, and Monique Dupuis-Léopoldoff. Igor Leschishin, oboeIgor Leschishin has been Principal Oboist of The Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra since 1998. From 1996 until 1998 Mr. Leschishin played in The New World Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas in Miami Beach, Florida. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1995 performing the Vivaldi Oboe Concerto with the New York String Orchestra. Igor graduated from the Manhattan School of Music with a master's degree in orchestral performance as a scholarship student of Joseph Robinson, Principal Oboist of The New York Philharmonic. He participated in the Tanglewood Music Festival, Grant Park Music Festival, Lincoln Center Festival, and Spoleto Festival (USA and Italy) . Igor Leschishin, born in Ukraine, won numerous first prize awards including the Belorussian Woodwind Competition and the International Woodwind Competition. Igor is co-Artistic Director of the Caspian Music Festival in Greensboro, VT. Solomiya Ivakhiv, violinUkrainian-American violinist SOLOMIYA IVAKHIV is a highly celebrated soloist, chamber musician and educator. Named one of the “major artists of our time” (Fanfare Magazine) , she has made solo appearances with major orchestras in the United States, China, Turkey and Ukraine, and has performed at world-renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, CBC Glenn Gould Studio, Philharmonic Hall in Kyiv, and the Concertgebouw. She has been featured at chamber music festivals worldwide, from Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, San Jose Chamber Music Society, Chatter, Tanglewood and Ottawa Chamberfest to Newport and Nevada Chamber Music Festivals and many in between. Dr. Ivakhiv’s discography includes Ukrainian Masters, Ukraine Christmas and Ukraine: Journey to Freedom (NAXOS) , Mendelssohn Concertos (Brilliant Classics) , Haydn and Hummel Concertos and Poems and Rhapsodies (both on Centaur) . Her recordings have topped classical charts and received international acclaim. A champion of new music, she has premiered works by David Ludwig, Oleksandr Schetynsky, David Dzubay, Yevhen Stankovych and Bohdan Kryvopust, among others. Since 2010, Dr. Ivakhiv has served as Artistic Director of Music at the Institute (MATI) Concert Series in New York City, where she presents chamber programs featuring Ukrainian women composers, young Ukrainians, and newly commissioned works. She is co-Artistic Director of the Caspian Music Festival in Greensboro, VT. A dedicated educator, Dr. Ivakhiv has led master classes and coached chamber music at Yale, Columbia, Boston Conservatory, Curtis SummerFest, Oberlin and others, as well as at conservatories in China and Ukraine. She was named Honored (Merited) Artist of Ukraine in 2021, her native country’s highest cultural honor. She holds degrees from Curtis Institute of Music and Stony Brook University and is Professor of Violin and Viola and Head of Strings at University of Connecticut. The Caspian Music Festival with conductor Paul McShee begins to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death. Join us for an evening that bridges the structural elegance of the Baroque era with Allesandro Marecello’s Concerto in C Minor featuring Igor Leschishin (oboe) performing in memory of Sir Tom Zajkowski.…and the grand, dramatic innovations of the early Romantic period with:Ludwig van Beethoven’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, featuring Solomiya Ivakhiv (violin) …and culminating in Beethoven’s vibrant, witty, and high-energy masterpiece Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, (note: Ludwig van Beethoven died on March 26, 1827 — 2027 will mark the 200th anniversary of his death) . Program:Allesandro Marcello (1673-1747) Concerto in C minor, S D93 for Oboe, Strings and ContinuoCaspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorIgor Leschishin, oboeII. AdagioLudwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major, Op.61Caspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorSolomiya Ivakhiv, violinI. Allegro ma non troppoII. LarghettoIII. Rondo (Allegro) Solomiya Ivakhiv, violinIntermissionLudwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, Op.60Caspian Music Festival Orchestra Paul McShee, conductorI. Adagio – Allegro vivaceII. AdagioIII. Allegro vivaceIV. Allegro ma non troppoPaul McShee, conductorDescribed by the Baltimore Sun as both a "lyrical and rhythmically incisive" conductor, Paul McShee, incoming assistant professor of music and artistic director of orchestral studies the University of Connecticut, is known for the "energy and sincere expression" of his performances. At home on the podium and in the opera pit, McShee is sought after as a conductor for opera productions in the U. S. and Europe. He was a staff conductor for the University of Minnesota Opera, guest conductor for La traviata and Madama Butterfly at Paul Hamlyn Hall in London, and music director of the PopUp Opera Program in Edinburgh, Scotland. McShee has conducted the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, the Syracuse Symphony, The Missoula Symphony Orchestra, the London Paradisal Players, L'Orchestre QuiPasseParLè, L'Orchestre Band-Son, the Philharmonie Mihail Jora and the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic. A champion of new music, and works of underrepresented composers, McShee is currently preparing a collected edition of the instrumental works of Margaret Bonds. Additionally, he has worked with composers including Kenneth Fuchs, Avner Dorman, Anna Clyne and Nathan Fletcher. He holds the DMA in conducting from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University and a MM from the University of Connecticut. He has served on the faculties of the University of Minnesota, the University of Connecticut, and Binghamton University. His current researchconcerns the intersections between philosophy and the music of Brahms, Wagner, and Mahler. His dissertation, "Gentle into that Good Night: Rejection of Linear Structural Narratives in Finales by Brahms, Wagner, and Mahler," was recognized by Peabody Conservatory faculty with a commendation. McShee studied conducting under Marin Alsop, Gustav Meier, Harvey Felder, and Markand Thakar. His principal flute teachers were Emmanuel Pahud, Verena Bosshart, and Teresa Bowers, and Monique Dupuis-Léopoldoff. Igor Leschishin, oboeIgor Leschishin has been Principal Oboist of The Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra since 1998. From 1996 until 1998 Mr. Leschishin played in The New World Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas in Miami Beach, Florida. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1995 performing the Vivaldi Oboe Concerto with the New York String Orchestra. Igor graduated from the Manhattan School of Music with a master's degree in orchestral performance as a scholarship student of Joseph Robinson, Principal Oboist of The New York Philharmonic. He participated in the Tanglewood Music Festival, Grant Park Music Festival, Lincoln Center Festival, and Spoleto Festival (USA and Italy) . Igor Leschishin, born in Ukraine, won numerous first prize awards including the Belorussian Woodwind Competition and the International Woodwind Competition. Igor is co-Artistic Director of the Caspian Music Festival in Greensboro, VT. Solomiya Ivakhiv, violinUkrainian-American violinist SOLOMIYA IVAKHIV is a highly celebrated soloist, chamber musician and educator. Named one of the “major artists of our time” (Fanfare Magazine) , she has made solo appearances with major orchestras in the United States, China, Turkey and Ukraine, and has performed at world-renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, CBC Glenn Gould Studio, Philharmonic Hall in Kyiv, and the Concertgebouw. She has been featured at chamber music festivals worldwide, from Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, San Jose Chamber Music Society, Chatter, Tanglewood and Ottawa Chamberfest to Newport and Nevada Chamber Music Festivals and many in between. Dr. Ivakhiv’s discography includes Ukrainian Masters, Ukraine Christmas and Ukraine: Journey to Freedom (NAXOS) , Mendelssohn Concertos (Brilliant Classics) , Haydn and Hummel Concertos and Poems and Rhapsodies (both on Centaur) . Her recordings have topped classical charts and received international acclaim. A champion of new music, she has premiered works by David Ludwig, Oleksandr Schetynsky, David Dzubay, Yevhen Stankovych and Bohdan Kryvopust, among others. Since 2010, Dr. Ivakhiv has served as Artistic Director of Music at the Institute (MATI) Concert Series in New York City, where she presents chamber programs featuring Ukrainian women composers, young Ukrainians, and newly commissioned works. She is co-Artistic Director of the Caspian Music Festival in Greensboro, VT. A dedicated educator, Dr. Ivakhiv has led master classes and coached chamber music at Yale, Columbia, Boston Conservatory, Curtis SummerFest, Oberlin and others, as well as at conservatories in China and Ukraine. She was named Honored (Merited) Artist of Ukraine in 2021, her native country’s highest cultural honor. She holds degrees from Curtis Institute of Music and Stony Brook University and is Professor of Violin and Viola and Head of Strings at University of Connecticut. Show More