Parry Karp & Eli Kalman

UW Mead Witter School of Music Faculty Artist Series.

media release: $20 general admission; students free (ticket required).

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Parry Karp, violoncello

Eli Kalman, piano

Cellist Parry Karp is Artist-in Residence, and the Robert and Linda Graebner Professor of Chamber Music and Cello, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he is director of the string chamber music program. He has been cellist of the Pro Arte Quartet for the past 48 years, the longest tenure of any member in the quartet’s over 100 year history.

Parry Karp is an active solo artist, performing numerous recitals annually in the United States with pianists Howard and Frances Karp, and Eli Kalman. Mr. Karp has played concerti throughout the United States and gave the first performance in Romania of Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo with the National Radio Orchestra in Bucharest in 2002. He is active as a performer of new music and has performed in the premieres of dozens of works, many of which were written for him, including concerti, sonatas and chamber music. As a solo recording artist, he has recorded the solo cello works of Ernest Bloch, and works of Frank Bridge, Nils Bultmann, Rebecca Clarke, Ernest Chausson, Edward Collins, Georges Enesco, Joel Hoffman, John Ireland, Alberic Magnard, Eric Nathan, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Miklos Rosza, and Richard Strauss. Unearthing and performing unjustly neglected repertoire for cello is a passion of Mr. Karp’s. In recent years he has transcribed for cello many masterpieces written for other instruments. This project has included performances of all of the Duo Sonatas of Brahms, all but one of the Duo Sonatas of Beethoven, as well as compositions of Bach, Dvorak, Hindemith, Schumann, Strauss, Stravinsky and Szymanowski. In July of 2024 he recorded a Concerto CD with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (BBC NOW) which included both Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo and his Suite for Viola and Orchestra of 1919. It will be released by Signum Records in 2025. Parry Karp performs annually in summer music festivals throughout the United States.

As cellist of the Pro Arte Quartet he has performed over 1,000 concerts throughout North, Central and South America, Europe, and Japan. His discography with the group has been extensive and includes the complete string quartets of Ernest Bloch, Miklos Rosza, and Karol Szymanowski . Many of these recordings received awards from Fanfare and High Fidelity Magazines. Other composers whose string quartets or string quintets the Pro Arte Quartet has recorded during his tenure include: Beethoven, William Bolcom, Luís de Freitas Branco, Martin Boykan, Tamar Diesendruck, Dvorak, Brian Fennelly, John Harbison, Andrew Imbrie, Pierre Jalbert, Fred Lerdahl, Walter Mays, Benoit Mernier, Mendelssohn, Karol Rathaus, Samuel Rhodes, Roger Sessions, and Ralph Shapey. As a member of the Pro Arte Quartet he has recorded the Piano Quintets of Ernest Bloch, Johannes Brahms and Armando José Fernandes with pianist Howard Karp. Guest artists with the Pro Arte during his years have included: the Emerson Quartet, Denes Koromzay, Leon Fleischer, Sidney Harth, Nobuko Imai, Gunnar Johansen, Gilbert Kalish, Jerome Lowenthal, Robert Mann, Paul Schoenfield, Samuel Rhodes, Robert Silverman, Christopher Taylor, Laszlo Varga and Tamas Vasary. Gunther Schuller conducted the group in the premiere of his String Quartet Concerto which he wrote for the Pro Arte Quartet. The Pro Arte Quartet was one of five finalists (the others were the Juilliard, Tokyo, and Emerson Quartets, and the Beaux Arts Trio) for the First Annual Arturo Toscanini Award in the Chamber Music Category

Parry Karp’s chamber music discography outside of the Pro Arte Quartet includes the three piano trios of Joel Hoffman, as well as works of Britten, Fauré, Martinu, Mozart and Pierné. Mr. Karp had a visiting professorship at the University of British Columbia, and has been a visiting fellow at Princeton University. Former students of Mr. Karp’s are members of professional string quartets, major orchestras, and teachers in the United States. In 2012 he was a recipient of the Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In the spring of 2016, Parry Karp was named a fellow of the Wisconsin Academy.

Mr. Karp received early training in Vienna, Austria and studied cello with Lee Duckles, David Kadarauch, Peter Farrell, Gabriel Magyar and Gabor Rejto. Inspirational chamber music teachers included Gabriel Magyar, Howard Karp, Lorand Fenyves, and Zoltan Szekely.

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Pianist Eli Kalman has captivated audiences with his exceptional performances. His musical journey has taken him through Romania, Israel, Germany, Hungary, Japan, the United States, and Canada. With an unwavering devotion to chamber music, his artistry has been presented on prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall in New York, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, and renowned series like “San Francisco Performances,” the “Tuesday Evening Concert Series” in Virginia, the Sylvia Adalman Artist Recital Series at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore, the Emmanuel Music-Schumann Chamber Series in Boston, and the Connoisseur Series at Wichita State University, among others.

Eli Kalman’s presence extended within his repertoire, as he has also shone as a soloist with the Manitowoc Symphony Orchestra, Water City Chamber Orchestra and in numerous live broadcast recitals, including “Sunday Afternoon Live from the Chazen” on WPR and WFMT Chicago. As a recording artist, he has contributed to the world of classical music with notable albums. These include collaborations such as “Erwin Junger: Works for Solo Piano and Cello” (2001), Schumann’s expressive “Sonatas for Violin and Piano” with violinist Rose Mary Harbison (2006), and the evocative “The Jewish Soul” alongside cellist Amit Peled from the Peabody Institute (Centaur 2009). His solo endeavors feature “Homo Ludens” (Centaur 2016), which celebrates the contemporary piano compositions of Russian-American composer-pianist Lera Auerbach. Moreover, his exploration of Italian chamber music culminated in the resonant “Nebbie” album (Centaur 2018) alongside violinist Jameson Cooper, showcasing his profound insights.

In 2020, Eli embarked on a visionary project centered around new music for horn, violin, and piano. This creative endeavor reached its zenith with the release of the album “Advenio” (Centaur 2020), featuring the Advenio Trio—a collaboration with hornist Bruce Atwell and violinist Yuliya Smead. The trio served as the resident ensemble at UW Oshkosh.

Beyond his performances, Dr. Kalman stands as a scholar with an enduring commitment to uncovering hidden treasures within the musical realm. His scholarly pursuits encompass a fascination with overlooked compositions for strings and piano, the works of Romanian pianist Dinu Lipatti, the compositions of Romanian-Israeli composer Erwin Junger, and previously unpublished chamber pieces by Ottorino Respighi. His groundbreaking research resulted in the world premiere publication of Respighi’s inaugural Sonata for violin and piano (1897), made available through AR Editions/Special Publications in 2011. In recognition of his contributions to Respighi’s chamber music’s research, recording, and performance, Dr. Kalman was honored with an invitation to perform in Bologna, Italy, by the International Museum and Library of Music.

Prior to his tenure at UW-Oshkosh, which began in 2006, he had imparted his musical wisdom as a member of the piano faculty at the Center of Arts, Mizra in Israel, and the Lyceum of Arts, Baia Mare in Romania. Through his profound artistry, scholarship, and pedagogical endeavors, Eli Kalman continues to shape his corner in the world of classical music and inspire audiences and musicians alike.