We are delighted to host the Black Oak Ensemble in a LIVE EVENT scheduled for SATURDAY, December 5 @ 7PM Central Time! You have TWO Ways to attend this FREE EVENT:
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Watch on Facebook (Click Here)
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Watch on Zoom – send message for link.
Click HERE to view a video of the ensemble.
On the back of their last successful European tour, the Black Oak ensemble is happy to present their new project: Undiscovered French String Trios.
While in CorsIca, the ensemble became acquainted with the music of Corsican composer, Henri Tomasi, and are proud to present his string trio as an American premiere at tonight’s event.
The program will be complimented by other French string trios by Jean Cras, Casadesus (another American première) and many more.
All of these pieces were written at the beginning of the 20th century by important French composers who are more famous for their wind or piano music.
Of note, the works were, with only a few exceptions, all dedicated to the Pasquier trio, one of the foremost chamber ensemble of the time.
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The Black Oak Ensemble took root in 2011 when they performed for a standing-room-only audience on Chicago’s prestigious Music in the Loft Series. Since then, the ensemble has performed for the Stradivari Society and appeared at the Ravinia Festival, the Chicago Cultural Center, Art Institute of Chicago, Mayne Stage, WFMT Radio, Windy City Live, Eau Claire University, St. John School for the Arts, and the Latino Music Festival. The ensemble was featured on a Ravinia Festival tour from Barcelona to Monte Carlo, and in summer 2016 and 2017 they toured France, with concerts in Paris, Toulouse, and other cities.
The ensemble was named for the black oak, a beautiful tree native to their home state of Illinois (one stands in the front yard of Desirée Ruhstrat and David Cunliffe).
Desirée Ruhstrat and David Cunliffe are both founding members of the Lincoln Trio, which was nominated for a 2017 GRAMMY Award for best performance by a small ensemble. The third member of the trio, Aurelien Pederzoli, was a founding member of the 2017 GRAMMY nominated Spektral Quartet and the Anaphora ensemble. He has performed extensively in Europe and the U.S., including performances at the Verbier Festival, and under conductors Pierre Boulez, Kent Nagano, Daniel Barenboim, Valery Gergiev, and Lorin Maazel.
Black Oak Ensemble is an NFP 501 c3, and as such, all donations are tax deductible! Click HERE to make a tax deductible donation!
Any gift will go towards the many projects we are working towards, be it our new recording, our forward thinking community involvement or furthering music education in Chicago and beyond.