10.19.2024 GRD Ramírez Program Notes

Sofía Ramírez, violin

She began to study violin in her natal Coahuila, Mexico. She was a member of local and national youth orchestras before beginning her formal studies in Zacatecas, Mexico. She has participated in multiple festivals, forums, and has received masterclasses from Sergei Gorbenko, Natalia Gvosdetskaya, Cuauhtémoc Rivera, Jorge Risi, as well as the “Cuarteto White”, the “Cuarteto Latinoamericano”, "Amethyst Quartet", among others. She is now a graduate assistant for the string department of West Chester University under the guidance of Professor Carlos Rubio.

Mary Mollichella, harp

Mary Mollichella is a harpist at wells school of music, set to receive her bachelor’s in performance in 2025. She’s studied under harpist such as Gloria Galante and Mindy Cutcher. After graduation, she hopes to continue with orchestral and chamber playing.

Lotus Cheng, piano

Received her Master of Music degree in accompanying/chamber music and piano pedagogy from Temple University, where she studied with Alexander Fiorillo and Lambert Orkis. Ms. Cheng has performed in the master classes of Augustin Anievas, Leon Fleisher, Natalie Hinderas and Russell Sherman. She has given numerous solo and ensemble recitals in the Philadelphia area and Salt Lake City, Paris and Straubing (Germany) and has appeared as soloist with the Wilmington Community Orchestra. Ms. Cheng was a prize winner in the JCC Young Musicians Competition, the Temple University Concerto Competition. Ms. Cheng currently serves as Core Artist Faculty at The Music School of Delaware and as studio accompanist at West Chester University.

Hannah Richards, viola

Studied the violin with Stanley Yoder and Carlos Rubio before making the transition to viola, studying with Shelley Beard and Adriana Linares. She took part in the Young Musicians Community Orchestra of Souderton PA and the Youth Orchestra of Bucks County and attended the Dali Quartet Camp and Festival through out middle and high school. She received a double bachelors degree in Viola performance and Arts Management at the Hartt School of music in CT, studying under Steve Larson and performs with the South Eastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra conducted by Allan R. Scott. She is currently obtaining her Masters degree in Viola performance under Adriana Linares.

Kira Denlinger, violin

Recently graduated from Millersville University with degrees in Mathematics Education and Music. During her undergraduate career, she studied violin with Dr. Vera Volchansky, and served as concertmaster and librarian of the Millersville University Orchestra. Kira has performed in masterclasses for notable musicians including violinist Jassen Todorov, the Harlem String Quartet, and the American String Quartet. She is currently in her first year as a graduate assistant as a Violin Performance major at the Wells School of Music.

Edgar Geovani Venegas Flores, viola

Born in Guanajuato, Mexico, Geovani began his formal studies in 2015 in Escuela Superior de Musica in Mexico City with Professor Alexander Buck. Geovani has attended multiple festivals in cities such as Puebla, Quintana Roo, Oaxaca, Querétaro, Guerrero, and Mexico City He has received lessons from renown violists such as Kathryn Steely, Astrid Lucia, Raúl Munguía, Roberto Díaz, among others. He has played in different orchestras under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel, Enrique Diemecke, Gustavo Rivero, and Rodrigo Macías. He was recently a member of OJUEM, and is now pursuing a Master’s degree on performance with professor Adriana Linares

Lucas Casagrande, cello

Italian-Brazilian cellist Lucas Casagrande is a graduate student at West Chester University, majoring in Cello Performance under the guidance of acclaimed international soloist Dr. Ovidiu Marinescu. He started playing at the age of 15 and achieved his Bachelor's degree at the University of São Paulo, Brazil in 2020, while studying with Dr. Andre Micheletti, and studied in Thibodaux, Louisiana, for one year with Dennis Parker at Nicholls State University. He's been working with chamber music and orchestra for the past years and also worked as a soloist. Paste bio here.

PROGRAM NOTES

Meditation, JulesMassenet(1842 - 1912)

Jules Massenet was a French composer particularly known for his operas. During his career he composed over thirty, of which Manon, and Werther are the most performed. The Meditation was originally an intermezzo from the opera Thaïs. Although the opera is not popular nowadays, this intermezzo is now frequently performed as a standalone piece. In the original opera, this entr’acte follows the moment where the Monk Athanaël persuades the courtesan Thaïs to leave her licentious life behind and join the monastery. The piece reflects the moments of reflection, doubt, inner turmoil, and finally the final decision of Thaïs. By the end of this piece, she has made up her mind: she renounces her life and is ready embrace change and begin a new chapter.

Dumka, RebeccaClarke(1886 - 1979)

Rebecca Clarke was a British composer and violist. Her works reflects her interest on her own instrument, she frequently composed pieces that feature the viola. Dumka is one of such works. It is a duo concertante for violin, viola, and piano. In this work all instruments have a balanced importance, and the texture gives space for conversation between all parts The word Dumka means thought in Ukrainian and Clarke creates an atmosphere that reflects this sentiment. This work in particular was written around 1940, and it reflects her mature style of composition It contains long, melodious lines, rhythmic and folk-like passages, passionate and tormentous sections

SonataaDuo, ManuelM.Ponce(1882 - 1948)

Manuel M. Ponce is one of the most renown Mexican composers of the twentieth century. He was born in Zacatecas, Mexico, and began his musical studies in the Conservatorio Nacional de Música. He eventually travelled to Europe to continue his studies in Italy, Germany, and France. Among the work of Ponce is Estrellita, a song rearranged and championed by Heifetz. But his compositions extend to chamber music, operas, piano pieces, art songs, and he particularly favored the guitar. The sonata a duo was composed for a couple of musicians Carlos Prieto and Cècile Jacqué, grandparents of the cellist Carlos Prieto.

StringquartetinCminor,op.18,no.4,LudwigvanBeethoven(1770 - 1827)

This is the fourth in a set of six quartets Beethoven composed for Prince Joseph Maximilian Lobokowitz, and the only one without sketches or drafts. It is also the only one in the set to use a minor key The use of C minor is particularly interesting, as Beethoven used it for some of his most dramatic compositions such as the Piano Sonata no. 8 “Pathetique”, and Symphony no. 5. The work is in four movements. The first movement is a Sonata form, the second movement comes as a surprise, instead of a slow movement, this is a scherzo with contrapuntal features. The third movement is a menuetto where the accents unbalance the structure, and the trio is also cut short to return to a faster repetition of the menuetto. The last movement is a rondo form where every return of the theme becomes more exciting.