SAMI MERDINIAN VIOLIN 
YEZU ELIZABETH WOO VIOLIN 
HECTOR DEL CURTO BANDONEON 
|
Rustic Mid-Summer Concert
Tres almas del atardecer featuring Yezu Elizabeth Woo, violin Sami Merdinian, violin Hector Del Curto, bandoneon at McCall Wines 22600 NY-25, Cutchogue, NY 11935 Sunday August 25th, 2024, at 6:00pm Music Program
Gallo Ciego by Agustin Bardi (Trio) Palomita Blanca by Anselmo Aieta & Garcia Gimenez / Hector Del Curto arr. (Trio) Bien Curiosa by Hector Del Curto (Trio) Herencias para 4 cuerdas by Edward Perez (Violin Solo) Che Bandoneon by Anibal Troilo (Bandoneon Solo) Vigilia by Victor Lavallen (Duo) El Choclo by Ángel Villoldo (Duo) Samba Serio by Aleksey Igudesman (Duo) La Cucaracha by Aleksey Igudesman arrangement (Duo) Bruno et Sarah by Astor Piazzolla (Duo) Il Postino by Louis Bacalov (Trio) Libertango by Astor Piazzolla (Trio) This is a production of Rites of Spring Music Festival in collaboration with McCall Vineyard     |
Sami Merdinian, violinist
Hailed for his “beautiful sound and exquisite musicality” (La Nación Newspaper), Argentinian violinist Sami Merdinian has received worldwide recognition for his outstanding performances as a soloist and chamber musician. Mr. Merdinian has appeared as a soloist with the Montevideo Philharmonic, the Argentinian National Symphony, The Charlemagne Orchestre, the Gagneung Philharmonic in South Korea, Philharmonia of the Nations at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Buenos Aires Philharmonic, Rochester and South Carolina Philharmonics, and the Midland and Duluth Symphonies.
Mr. Merdinian has appeared in the prestigious Concerti di Mezzogiorno at Spoleto Festival in Italy, NY in Chuncheon Festival in South Korea, Ravinia, Aspen, Great Lakes and I Palpiti festivals in the US, and has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Seoul Arts Center, among others.
As a chamber musician, Mr. Merdinian received the First Prize and Gold Medal at the New England International Chamber Music Competition in Boston, and the First Prize at the Victor Elmaleh Concert Artist Guild Competition in New York. Mr. Merdinian is one of the violinists of the string quintet Sybarite5, with whom he has performed recently at Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress, Lincoln Center, Apple Store, and toured throughout United States, Canada, Asia and South America. Mr. Merdinian has given recitals in the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, the Lebanon, Australia and Asia.
Mr. Merdinian has been a prize winner in several international competitions including a Gold Medal in the XII International Young Solo Instrumentalists Competition in Argentina, and the New Talent Competition in Slovakia organized by the European Radio. He has also received the Rising Star Award by Tiffany & Co., was named Outstanding Artist of the Year by the Argentinian Press, and has been featured on WQXR in New York, “Spiegenzall” live from the Concertgebouw, Argentinian Classical National Station, America’s NPR, South Korean’s KBS and the BBC.
Also highly sought-after as tango violinist, Mr. Merdinian has performed and recorded with some of the most prominent artists of the genre and has received a Grammy Nomination for "Masters of the Bandoneon" for Best Tango Album. Mr. Merdinian’s discography includes recordings for Universal Records, Canary Classics, CAG Records, Green Parrot Records and Bright Shiny Things.
In 2016, Mr. Merdinian was named Honorary Ambassador for the South Korean’s city of Chuncheon, for promoting and supporting national and international activities in the fields of policy, tourism, culture, and art.
Mr. Merdinian is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the New Docta International Music Festival.
Yezu Elizabeth Woo, violinist
Praised for “her technical quality, beauty of sound, and above all, the projection of an uncommon musical sensibility" (El Norte, Monterrey), Violinist Yezu Elizabeth Woo made her debut at Carnegie Hall at age 16, where she became the youngest performer to play all 24 of Niccolo Paganini’s Caprices for solo violin. Yezu has been invited to perform at the Lincoln Center, United Nations (NY), the Smetana Hall (Prague), Musikverein (Vienna), Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, and the Berlin Philharmonie, and has recorded for EMI Classics, ECM Records, and MOOK Sound. She was the Artistic Director and co-founder of Shattered Glass, a NYC string ensemble, which debuted to great acclaim in 2012. Winner of the Korean national award, "Outstanding International Musician of the Year" by the Arts Critics Association, as well as "Artist of the Year'' by the Gangwon Foundation, Yezu was appointed as Honorary Ambassador of the City of Chuncheon, where she is currently serving as the Artistic Director of New York in Chuncheon Music Festival. Her commitment to Korean traditional and new music has led her to performances at the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) ‘ART FESTA’ as part of the ongoing peace process between the two Koreas, as well as seeing collaborations with the KBS Korean Traditional Orchestra. Born in Freiburg, Germany, Yezu moved to the U.S. from South Korea at age ten to study with Albert Markov. She received her B.M. Degree from the Manhattan School of Music, M.M. Degree at The Juilliard School, Performance Certificate from Bard Conservatory, and her Doctorate Degree at Stony Brook University. Her principal teachers include Albert Markov, Catherine Cho, Laurie Smukler, Arnaud Sussmann and the members of the Emerson Quartet. Yezu is a recipient of Fulbright Scholarship (‘19-20) in Germany, where she was a member of the Ensemble Modern Academy, Frankfurt, and a researcher at the Isang-Yun-Haus in Berlin. She currently splits her time between New York and Berlin.
Hector Del Curto, bandoneonist
Praised by the New York Times as a "splendid player," Grammy-winning musician, composer, recording artist and educator Hector Del Curto is one of the world’s most sought–after bandoneonists. He has performed with many renowned artists across musical genres, and appeared with the world's leading orchestras, including the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Saint Louis Symphony, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.
Mr. Del Curto’s recent engagements include a recorded performance of Piazzolla’s bandoneon concerto Aconcagua with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Maestro Thomas Wilkins, a performance of Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires with the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, and a performance with the Portland Symphony Orchestra, which included Del Curto's composition, Paris to Cannes. His 2022-2023 season highlights include performances with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra with his quintet and his son Santiago and a recording of his commissioned work, Trace of Time with the Apollo Chamber Players.
Buenos Aires-born Del Curto is a fourth generation bandoneonist who won the title "Best Bandoneon Player Under 25” in Argentina at age 17 and was subsequently invited to join the orchestra of the legendary Osvaldo Pugliese, the "Last Giant of Tango”. In 1998, Mr. Del Curto became music director of Forever Tango, a Broadway hit that continues to tour the world. Soon after, he founded the Eternal Tango Orchestra, a ten–piece ensemble that debuted at New York’s Lincoln Center, as well as the Hector Del Curto Tango Quintet. Both are featured on his self-produced albums, Eternal Piazzolla and Eternal Tango, which were profiled by BBC News and Public Radio International.
Mr. Del Curto has appeared on recordings with such artists as Osvaldo Pugliese, Astor Piazzolla, Paquito D'Rivera, Tito Puente, and Plácido Domingo. As part of the Pablo Ziegler Trio, he received a 2018 Grammy award for Jazz Tango.
Dedicated to the education, outreach, and the preservation of tango, Mr. Del Curto co-founded the Stowe Tango Music Festival in 2014, and continues to serve as its artistic director. The premier tango music festival in the United States, it draws the most talented tango musicians and dancers, as well as fans, from all over the globe. He also produced the festival's awarding-winning album: Live at the 2016 Stowe Tango Music Festival.
