Image: Natasha Kislenko, pianist
On SATURDAY, March 11 at 3 p.m. the SANTA BARBARA MUSIC CLUB will present another program in its popular series of concerts of beautiful Classical music. This concert will be held at the Faulkner Gallery of the Santa Barbara Public Library, 40 E. Anapamu Street. Admission is free.
One of the highlights of Santa Barbara Music Club’s concerts is the opportunity for audiences to hear great music from a variety of historical periods, with a diversity of musical forms, performed by excellent artists. In this concert, pianist Natasha Kislenko will take the audience on a world tour…and back in time about 100 years, to the time of World War I. The program will include works by Albéniz, Bartók, Debussy, Gershwin, Rachmaninoff, and Villa-Lobos.
Program Details
(1873-1943)
- Prelude in C-sharp minor
- Elegy
- Polichinelle
(1860-1909)
- Préludio
- Tango
- Malagueña
(1881-1945)
- Bot tánc/Jocul cu bâtă (Stick Dance)
- Brâul (Sash Dance)
- Topogó /Pe loc (In One Spot)
- Bucsumí tánc/Buciumeana (Dance from Buciumi)
- Román polka/Poarga Românească (Romanian Polka)
- Aprózó/Măruntel (Fast Dance)
(1887-1959)
- Idílio na rede (Summer Idyll)
- Uma camponeza cantadeira (A Singing Country Girl)
- Alegria na horte (Joy in the Garden)
(1898-1937)
- Allegro ben ritmato e deciso
- Andante con moto
- Agitato
Notes on the Program
Pianist Natasha Kislenko has concertized extensively in Russia and the former USSR, Germany, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Brazil, Paraguay and across the United States. A versatile artist with a broad range of experience, Ms. Kislenko is frequently heard in solo and collaborative recitals, chamber music concerts, and as a featured soloist with orchestras throughout the world. Recent solo engagements include the Eskisehir Greater Municipality Symphony Orchestra, Turkey (2015), the Orquesta Sinfónica del Congreso Nacional, Asunción, Paraguay (2013), and the Varna Chamber Orchestra, Bulgaria (2013). Since 2010, Natasha has held a principal keyboard position with the Santa Barbara Symphony. With this orchestra, she has been a featured soloist in concertos by Shostakovich, Grieg, and, most recently, Clara Schumann.
In addition to a successful performing career, Ms. Kislenko has been a dedicated educator and mentor to the younger generations of aspiring musicians. A collaborative faculty member at the Music Academy of the West, Santa Barbara, CA since 2004, she joined the faculty at University of California, Santa Barbara in 2007 after serving at California State University, Fresno for five years.
The Performer
Natasha Kislenko, pianist, was born in Moscow and has concertized extensively as soloist and collaborative pianist in Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Paraguay, Russia, Spain, Turkey, and across the United States. In 1996 she made her Carnegie Hall solo recital debut, and has appeared in recital and chamber music performances with numerous distinguished soloists, including James Buswell, Sarah Chang, Theodore Kuchar, Zvi Zeitlin, and Donald Weilerstein. She has received top prizes in international piano competitions in Germany, France, Portugal, and the Slovak Republic, and holds graduate degrees from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory and Southern Methodist University (TX), earning her DMA Degree from Stony Brook University (NY). Her primary teachers include Anatoly Vedernikov, Yuri Slesarev, Joaquín Achúcarro, and Gilbert Kalish.
Recent solo engagements include the Eskisehir Greater Municipality Symphony Orchestra, Turkey (2015), the Orquesta Sinfónica del Congreso Nacional, Asunción, Paraguay (2013), and the Varna Chamber Orchestra, Bulgaria (2013). In 2011 she and violinist Chavdar Parashkevov released a CD, “Russian Sonatas,” available on spotify.com, itunes, and other websites. Since 2010 she has been Principal Keyboard with the Santa Barbara Symphony and has been a featured soloist with the orchestra in concertos by Grieg, Clara Schumann, and Shostakovich.
In addition to a successful performing career, Dr. Kislenko has been a dedicated educator and mentor to the younger generations of aspiring musicians. She has recently appeared in performances and master classes at the University of Maryland College Park, University of Colorado Boulder, University of Houston Moores School of Music (TX), Morgan State University (MD), Tulane University (LA), Fort Hays State University (KS), Ankara University (Turkey), Scuola Musicale di Sesto Fiorentino (Italy) and Würzburg Musikhochschule (Germany), in addition to numerous adjudications for MTNA and MTAC.
An alumna of the Music Academy of the West (2001), Natasha has been a collaborative faculty member there since 2004. After serving on the faculty at California State University, Fresno, for five years, she joined the faculty at UCSB in 2007, where she is currently a Lecturer.
This project is funded in part by the Community Arts Grant Program using funds provided by the City of Santa Barbara in partnership with the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission.
