Image: SB Public Library showing the Faulkner Gallery
On Saturday, February 8 at 3 p.m. the Santa Barbara Music Club will present another program in its popular series of concerts of beautiful Classical music. This afternoon’s program features several performers and composers from or working in Santa Barbara. Pianist Robert Else features three works by Santa Barbara composer Hal Isbitz: Caterina, Dolores, and Tulsey Town Rag. Next, Leslie Hogan will premiere her own new solo piano work. Finally, flutist Tracy Harris and pianist Svetlana Harris feature a collection of varied pieces, including Ronda Larsen’s Be Still My Soul; the world premiere of Dancing Wings by Todd Harris; and Joachim Andersen’s Scherzino. This concert, co-sponsored by the Santa Barbara Public Library, will be held at the Faulkner Gallery of the library, 40 East Anapamu, Santa Barbara. Admission is free.
Program Details
(b. 1931)
- Caterina (1992)
- Dolores (1997)
- Copacabana (1992)
World Premiere
(b. 1964)
- Second Thoughts
- Without Malice
- Flick
- Afraid of the Dark
(1847-1909)
Svetlana Rodikova-Harris, piano
Notes on the Program
Pianist and director emeritus of the Santa Barbara Music Club Robert Else begins the program with the music of another director emeritus, Hal Isbitz. His music presents a refreshingly picturesque blend of classical, rag, and popular idioms. The three works, Caterina, Dolores, and Tulsey Town Rag, all show Isbitz’s predilection for rhythmic ostinatos upon which each piece is built and each derives its energy.
Next, current Santa Barbara Music Club director and pianist Leslie Hogan premieres one of her own compositions. Her compositional style reflects her fascination with the intersection of music and other art forms, particularly in the sense of how music can respond to visual stimuli. Hogan has extensive involvement in the musical life of Santa Barbara, having performed in UCSB’s Ensemble for Contemporary Music, co-founded the Current Sounds concert series, and served as a board member of the Chamber Music Society of Santa Barbara. She currently teaches composition in UCSB’s College of Creative Studies.
Finally, flutist Tracy Harris and pianist Svetlana Harris feature an array of works. The first is Grammy Award winning flutist and composer Ronda Larsen’s Be Still My Soul of 2003, which, like the well-known hymn, refers to Jean Sibelius’s Finlandia. The composition employs extended techniques for the flute and weaves the melody throughout, making for an ethereal and beautiful effect. Next are works by the polymath Todd Harris, a graduate of UC Santa Barbara, husband of Svetlana and brother of Tracy: a duet arrangement of a Schubert Impromptu and the world premiere of his Dancing Wings. In addition to his talents as an arranger and composer, Todd Harris also writes poetry and is a research scientist. He currently is composer and poet in residence at the Wyndfall Conservatory, California. The Harris duo completes its performance with the whimsical and lighthearted Scherzino by Joachim Andersen (1847–1909), the leading Danish flutist and conductor at the turn of the twentieth century.
The Performers
Robert Else, pianist, is active in both the classical and jazz worlds. He earned his BA Degree in Music from Cal Poly Humboldt and pursued graduate studies at USC, studying with Gwendolyn Koldofsky and Brooks Smith; he also received a BA in Jazz Piano from Berklee College of Music in Boston. His activities include solo piano, chamber music, jazz ensembles, singing tenor with the SB Noel Carolers, and composing tracks for film and TV, many of which can be heard at www.robertelse.com. A SBMC Advisory Board member, he also plays acoustic bass in various local Bluegrass and Americana bands.
Svetlana Rudikova-Harris, pianist, was born in Russia and is an internationally renowned solo and collaborative pianist, recording artist, and pedagogue. She earned three Masters Degrees in Performance as well as the Special Award for Excellence in Piano Performance and Instruction at the Russian National Education Competition. Gold Medalist in the Russian National Young Performance competition at age 16, she won the Russian Choral Conducting, National Piano Prize, and Russian Piano Competitions. Svetlana has recorded on the Melodiya label and has performed for over 20 years with sister-in-law Tracy Harris, both in orchestral concerts and in their “Wyndfall Duo.” In addition, she conducts clinics, and lectures and maintains a private piano studio.
Tracy Harris, flutist, is internationally renowned as soloist, chamber musician, teacher, and author, and is a former SBMC scholarship awardee. She earned her BM Degree at UCSB, studying with Jill Felber. Founder/Artistic Director of the popular “Tracy Harris Flute Boot Camps,” which assist over 1,000 underprivileged students annually, she records on the Elite Source label and her latest Wyndfall Duo release is the album Eklectick, with pianist Svetlana Harris. Yamaha Performing Artist and Clinician, Tracy recently premiered works by Todd Harris, which were showcased at Sir James Galway’s International Master Class. Please visit www.TracyHarrisFlute.com and also view her performances on YouTube.
Composer/pianist Leslie A. Hogan received her principal training at the University of Kansas and the University of Michigan. Her music often manifests her longtime fascination with other art forms and with the potential of music to reflect or respond to visual stimuli from the natural world. As a pianist, she has performed with UC Santa Barbara’s Ensemble for Contemporary Music and was a co-founder and frequent performer for the Current Sounds concert series in Santa Barbara. She was on the board of the Chamber Music Society of Santa Barbara for over a decade. She has received awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (Charles Ives Fellowship, 2002; Charles Ives Scholarship, 1993), the Rapido Composition Contest, the American Music Center, ASCAP, and the Chicago Civic Orchestra, among others. Dr. Hogan has taught composition in the College of Creative Studies at the University of California-Santa Barbara since 1995.
This concert is presented in partnership with the Santa Barbara Public Library. Funding support for our 50th Anniversary Season is provided by the City of Santa Barbara's Organizational Development Grant Program and by the Towbes Fund for the Performing Arts, a field of interest fund of the Santa Barbara Foundation.
