This Spring, Cellist Joshua Roman Opens TED 2017, Plays New York’s Crypt Sessions Series, Sheen Center and National Sawdust

Cellist Joshua Roman – “a masterful player who brings curiosity and electrical energy to every note” (Cleveland Plain Dealer) – plays three performances in New York this spring: recitals with the Crypt Sessions series and as part of the new classical music series at performing and visual arts venue The Sheen Center, and a performance of Messiaen’s haunting Quartet for the End of Time at Brooklyn’s cutting-edge venue, National Sawdust. A Senior TED Fellow, Roman also performs at the opening of the TED 2017 conference, which will be recorded live in Vancouver, BC and screened in theaters around the world.

In New York in May, Roman plays three very different performances in three venues, beginning with an unaccompanied solo recital in the Crypt Sessions series, now in its second season. Held in the crypt of the Church of the Intercession in Harlem, the series is, according to Berkshire Fine Arts, “exactly what classical music needs to survive and thrive. A special performer in an intimate and exotic venue etches an unforgettable moment in the imagination.” Roman’s adventurous program ranges from his own composition Riding Light to Bach’s Second Cello Suite and sonatas by Ligeti and Crumb. Next, the cellist is joined by young Grammy-nominated Lithuanian pianist Andrius Žlabys for a recital of Beethoven, Debussy, Messiaen, Janáček, Pärt and Piazzolla, as well as a special collaborative improvisation titled Only Once, as part of the new classical music series at SoHo performing and visual arts venue The Sheen Center. Žlabys also joins Roman for his recital in early April at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.  Finally the cellist stops by Brooklyn’s celebrated new music venue, National Sawdust, to take part in a performance of Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, with composer Derek Bermel, known for his eclectic blend of world music, funk, jazz and classical styles, on clarinet. Also joining them is violinist Karen Kim, along with celebrated contemporary music pianist Conor Hanick, who was recently featured in the New York Philharmonic BIENNIAL performance of Ligeti’s Piano Concerto under the direction of Alan Gilbert.

Last May, the multi-faceted cellist, who was named a TED Fellow in 2011 and a Senior TED Fellow in 2015, curated an outdoor amphitheater performance at the TED Summit at Banff in the Canadian Rockies, which included a new composition by him based on poetry of Nigerian-American poet and recording artist Iyeoka. This spring he performs in Vancouver for the opening of TED 2017, which will be recorded live and screened in movie theaters worldwide. The creator of the “Everyday Bach” YouTube series (performed in variety of spaces around the U.S. and the world), Roman was also recently featured in a “Live from TED HQ” video on Facebook Live that was viewed more than 1.7 million times, playing the complete Bach cello suites. He will play an additional “Bach Lunch” concert at the upcoming TED conference. The “switched-on, tuned-in classical musician of the early 21st century” (Chicago Tribune) also has a new “Weekly Musical Response” on Facebook Live, which can be accessed here. Click here for Roman’s recent TED video.

Since his time with the Seattle Symphony, Roman has maintained a strong presence in the Pacific Northwest. He is currently in his tenth season as Artistic Director of Seattle’s TownMusic series and his third as the inaugural Artistic Director of that city’s contemporary music streaming channel, Second Inversion. He returns to the region this spring to join Bellingham, Washington’s Whatcom Symphony Orchestra, led by its Music Director, the Israeli conductor Yaniv Attar, for Elgar’s Cello Concerto.

High-resolution photos can be downloaded here.

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Joshua Roman: spring engagements

April 1
Richmond, VA
Virginia Commonwealth University
Recital
With Andrius Žlabys, piano

April 4
Brookfield, WI
Wisconsin Philharmonic / Alexander Platt
Dvořák: Cello Concerto

May 3
New York, NY
The Crypt Sessions
Solo recital
Bach: Suite No 2 in D minor
Ligeti: Sonata
Crumb: Sonata
Roman: Riding Light

May 6
New York, NY
The Sheen Center
Debussy: Sonata
Beethoven: Sonata in A major
Roman/ Žlabys: Only Once: An Improvisation
Messiaen: Louange à l’éternité de Jésus
Janáček: Pohádka
Pärt: Fratres
Piazzolla: Grand Tango
Andrius Žlabys, piano

May 13
New York, NY
National Sawdust
Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time
With Derek Bermel, clarinet; Conor Hanick, piano; Karen Kim, violin

May 21
Bellingham, WA
Whatcom Symphony Orchestra / Yaniv Attar
Elgar: Cello Concerto

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© 21C Media Group, April 2017