JS Bach, Kodály, Michael Brown: Music for Solo Cello Matthew Zalkind

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012:
• 1 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: I. Prelude 04:38
• 2 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: II. Allemande 07:50
• 3 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: III. Courante 03:45
• 4 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: IV. Sarabande 05:10
• 5 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: V. Gavottes 04:17
• 6 Suite No. 6 in D for Solo Cello BWV 1012: VI. Gigue 04:17
• Michael Brown (1920 - 2014): Suite for Solo Cello:
• 7 Suite for Solo Cello: I. Prelude 01:42
• 8 Suite for Solo Cello: II. Improvisational Sarabande 05:50
• 9 Suite for Solo Cello: III. Gigue 02:47
• Zoltán Kodály (1882 - 1967): Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8:
• 10 Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8: I. Allegro maestoso ma appassionato 10:26
• 11 Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8: II. Adagio (con grand’ espressione) 13:09
• 12 Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8: III. Allegro molto vivace 12:04
• Total Runtime 01:15:55

Info for JS Bach, Kodály, Michael Brown: Music for Solo Cello

For his solo debut solo recording, acclaimed American cellist Matthew Zalkind has chosen three works which, he explains, “have an especially strong sense of kinship, each of which explores the vast expressive and technical possibilities of the solo cello.” Johann Sebastian Bach’s cello suites represented such a high level of achievement that until Kodály composed his Sonata nearly 200 years later, barely a single significant work was written for solo cello. The Suite of 2012 by Michael Brown, a close friend and colleague of Zalkind’s, was influenced by both the earlier pieces and provides a perfect bridge between them.

“impressive refinement … eloquent phrasing … singing tone … fine technique” (The New York Times)

“darts around the instrument fearlessly … The sharply etched passagework in the Bach was startling, surpassing that of many world-class cellists.” (Washington Post)

Matthew Zalkind, cello

Matthew Zalkind
Praised for his “impressive refinement, eloquent phrasing, and singing tone” by The New York Times, American cellist Matthew Zalkind has performed throughout the United States and abroad as a recitalist, soloist and chamber musician.

As a soloist, Mr. Zalkind has performed concerti with such organizations as the, the Albany Symphony, the Hongzhou Philharmonic, Musica Viva Moscow Chamber Orchestra, the Utah Symphony, the Tongyeong International Music Festival Orchestra, the Music Academy of the West Festival Orchestra and the Juilliard Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Zalkind has performed concerti with celebrated conductors Ludovic Morlot, Thierry Fischer, Giancarlo Guerrero, and David Alan Miller, among others.

Mr. Zalkind has given recitals at the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI, Gardner Hall in Salt Lake City, UT, the Moscow Conservatory in Moscow, Russia, The Dame Myra Hess series in Chicago, The Juilliard School in New York, the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater in Washington, DC and the Beijing Concert Hall in Beijing, China.

An active chamber musician, Mr. Zalkind has participated in numerous music festivals, including Marlboro and “Musicians from Marlboro” tours, Music from Angel Fire, Olympic Music Festival, Innsbrook Institute, Twickenham Festival, and Ravinia’s “Steans Institute.”

With his partner Alice Yoo, Mr. Zalkind is the Co-Artistic Director of the brand-new Denver Chamber Music Festival. For more information, please go to denverchambermusicfestival.org.

Mr. Zalkind has performed chamber music at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater, New York’s Alice Tully Hall and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a former member of the acclaimed Harlem String Quartet, Mr. Zalkind toured internationally with jazz legends Stanley Clarke, Chick Corea and Gary Burton.

Mr. Zalkind was awarded First Prize in the Washington International Competition, as well as top prizes in the Beijing International Cello Competition, Korea’s Isang Yun Gyeongnam International Competition and the Juilliard School Competition. He also won distinction as one of the eight concerto semi-finalists in the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow.

Mr. Zalkind has a strong interest in teaching and outreach. He was awarded a Gluck Community Service Fellowship at The Juilliard School for four years, performing concerts at treatment facilities throughout the five boroughs of New York City. Mr. Zalkind is now an Assistant Professor at the University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music.

A Salt Lake City native, Mr. Zalkind’s primary mentors included Richard Hoyt, Pegsoon Whang, Timothy Eddy, Richard Aaron, and Hans Jørgen Jensen. Mr. Zalkind has Bachelors and Masters degrees from Juilliard, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan. Mr. Zalkind plays on a rare Italian cello made by Florentine Maker Luigi Piatellini in 1760.

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