Founder and Artistic Director Daniel Heifetz brings back to the Staunton stage—for one night only— a “Heifetz Band” of alumni all-stars for a heartwarming celebration of the season on Friday, December 18 at 7:30 at Francis Auditorium on the campus of Mary Baldwin College.
Two decades ago, Daniel Heifetz set out to change the way we experience Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Aided by a fresh new translation of Vivaldi’s accompanying sonnets by poet Daniel Mark Epstein, Daniel and his hand-picked “Heifetz Band” barnstormed across the nation with a fresh, engaging, and vivid Four Seasons that transformed Vivaldi’s familiar work from black-and-white Baroque to a colorful and masterly musical portrayal of the changing seasons. “The storytelling entertained…and the virtuosity impressed,” declared the Los Angeles Times.
Now, on the eve of the 20th Anniversary Season of the Heifetz International Music Institute, Daniel Heifetz has assembled a brand-new “Heifetz Band” – made up of seven alumni all-stars from the summer program and a faculty keyboardist – to present a “Holiday Homecoming concert” of summer that will include the unique Heifetz interpretation of “Winter,” from the Four Seasons, introduced and demonstrated by Daniel Heifetz himself.
A quartet of great violinists headlines this cast of recent Heifetz Institute alumni, including Ji-Won Song, Chloé Kiffer, Rachell Wong, and Nikita Borisevich. Rounding out this brilliant cast of rising stars will be violist Andrew Gonzalez, cellists Nicholas Mariscal and Coleman Itzkoff, joined by Heifetz Institute faculty keyboardist Stefan Petrov, and some surprise special guests!
In addition to the Vivaldi concerto, the program for this jubilant concert will include Baroque masterpieces fit for the festive season, including the beloved Christmas Concerto by Arcangelo Corelli, and J.S. Bach’s delightful Double Concerto, featuring Ji-Won Song and Nikita Borisevich as the violin soloists.
After a round of hot cider and holiday treats, the second half of the program will be filled with seasonal delights….including a charming string arrangement of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker suite, some “Holiday Hootenanny” performances from popular 2015 Heifetz alums Rachell Wong and cellist Nicholas Mariscal, carols, singalongs, stories and more…even including a new violin-and-piano version of the immortal Jascha Heifetz arrangement of White Christmas, played by 2015 Artist-in-Residence Chloé Kiffer. This is an evening the entire family will enjoy!
All proceeds will benefit the Heifetz Institute’s 20th Anniversary Shenandoah Scholarship Campaign, with a goal of raising $200,000 in scholarship to support students attending the 20th Anniversary Heifetz International Music Institute, taking place at Mary Baldwin College from June 30 to August 11, 2016.
TICKET INFORMATION: Tickets are $25 for adults, $15 for students and children 13 and under are free when accompanied with an adult. Tickets can be purchased by visiting the Heifetz Box office located at 107 E. Beverley Street in Staunton, Va., online at: HeifetzInstitute.org or by calling 540-907-4446.