Isabella Lippi, Nazar Druzhyn &Thomas Kasdorf

media release: Cafe Music

Program

JOHANNES BRAHMS | Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, Op. 8 (1854, rev 1889)

JENNIFER HIGDON | Piano Trio (2003)

PAUL SCHOENFIELD | Café Music

Violinist Isabella Lippi, who has been called "A standout, even among virtuosos," began performing in public at the age of 10 when she made her debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She has since performed in numerous recitals and has appeared as guest soloist with orchestras in the United States, Mexico, Europe and the Far East.

In 1989, Isabella Lippi won the St. Louis Symphony Young Artist Competition, so impressing Maestro Leonard Slatkin, that for the first time in the 55-year history of the competition, the winner (Ms. Lippi) was invited to perform with the symphony in subscription concerts under Maestro Slatkin. Of this program, the St. Louis Post Dispatch declared, "Lippi introduced rhythmic subtleties into the music of the like that haven't been heard since the heyday of Heifetz."

In addition to the Chicago Symphony and the St. Louis Symphony, Isabella Lippi has performed with numerous orchestras including the Dallas Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, New Orleans Symphony, Tulsa Philharmonic, the New World Symphony under Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, the Mexico City Philharmonic under Enrique Batiz, the San Diego Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, Vermont Symphony, Columbus Symphony, Orquesta Sinfonica de Bilbao of Spain, and the Moscow Symphony.

Ms. Lippi has won a number of competitions and awards including First Place in the Young Musicians Foundation National Debut Competition, Highest Honors in the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts Talent Search, the Henryk Szerying International Competition, and the Illinois Young Performers Competition where she performed again with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in a live television broadcast under Maestro Hugh Wolff. She was also named a Presidental Scholar in the Arts.

In January 1998, Isabella Lippi made her New York City recital debut at the 92nd Street Y's Tisch Center for the Arts. Other important debuts included recitals at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Chicago's Ravinia Festival and the famous Suntory Hall in Tokyo.

In addition to her work as a soloist, Ms. Lippi has participated in numerous chamber music festivals including those of Santa Fe, La Jolla, Mainly Mozart and the Aspen Music Festival. She was Concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony from 1999-2002 and is currently Concertmaster of the Elgin Symphony.

Ms. Lippi has been a featured artist on a number of radio stations throughout the United States including WQXR in New York, WNIB in Chicago and KFAC in Los Angeles; and in a nationally distributed educational program entitled Encounters. She is featured on a CD on the Koch International label which contains complete works for violin and piano and the solo works by the late composer, Miklos Rozsa.

Born in Chicago, Isabella Lippi's teacher have included Robert Lipsett at the University of Southern California, Dorothy Delay at the Juilliard School and Almita and Roland Vamos in Chicago.

Ukrainian-born Cellist Nazar Dzhuryn has earned global acclaim for captivating performances across diverse repertoire. Mr. Dzhuryn has appeared in concert with many classical music legends such as Itzhak Perlman, Yo – Yo Ma, Pinchas Zukerman, Daniel Barenboim, Mstislav Rostropovich, Georg Solti, Boris Pergamenchikov, Hellmunt Rilling, James Galway. Nazar has performed under the batons of some of the world’s most noted conductors, including George Solti, Mstislav Rostropovich, Daniel Barenboim, and Helmuth Rilling. Additionally, he has performed solo and chamber music with distinguished musicians from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra and distinguished pianists, including Irina Feoktistova, Tatyana Stepanova, and Steinway Artist Susan Merdinger . Mr. Dzhuryn completed the Undergraduate Program from Music School and subsequently earned his Master of Music degree and Postgraduate Assistantship Program at State Conservatory under Prof . Igor Gavrysh . Upon graduation, Nazar taught at the Conservatory as an Assistant Professor before moving to Chicago in 1998. Since then, he has been in high demand as a soloist , chamber and orchestral musician , recording artist and teacher, with a repertoire that is both diverse and comprehensive.

From 2010-2019 he appeared as a soloist with Lviv Philharmonic, Khmelnytsky Philharmonic, National Symphony of Ukraine in Kyiv, Minsk Philharmonic, Ensemble of Soloists Classicus in Zagreb, Sinfonietta Bel Canto IL, Harper Symphony Orchestra IL, Northwest Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Woodstock Mozart Festival Orchestra IL, Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra WI and Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra ND, performing Schumann Concerto, Prokovfiev’s Symphony Concerto as well as Concertos by Barber, Dvorak, Haydn, Shostakovich, Saint-Saens No.1, Brahms Double Concerto and Beethoven Triple Concerto.

Mr. Dzhuryn released his critically acclaimed solo debut CD, “Cello Monologue” in 2008, featuring works by Reger and Kodaly. His next CD “Cello Monologue 2,” was released in 2013, featuring works of Ysaye, Hindemith, Ligeti, Crumb, and Laniuk. Nazar’s solo recitals for Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts and the PianoForte Salon Series have been broadcast live on 98.7 WFMT. He has appeared as a soloist with the Symphony Conservatory Symphony, and Elgin Symphony Orchestra in the prestigious Rush Hour Concerts at St. James Cathedral and as a guest artist with Chicago Chamber Musicians.

Formerly the principal cello of the Symphony and the Conservatory Symphony , Nazar has served as the assistant principal cello of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra since 2000 and as the principal cello of Woodstock Mozart Festival Orchestra since 2004 as well as principal of Chicago Opera Theater since 2018 . He participated in numerous music festivals , including the prestigious Rostropovich Festival in France , Boulder Festival in Colorado, Woodstock Mozartfest in Illinois, “ Virtuosos” and “Contrasts” Festivals in Ukraine.

Nazar served for over ten years on the faculty of Northeastern Illinois University and Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra ( CYSO), teaching private cello students and coaching chamber music groups before changing gears to focus on his performing career. Nazar has given numerous master classes in Ukraine, Croatia, South America, South Korea and the U.S. Nazar ’s students have won prizes in numerous competitions , including the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition , the Walgreens National Concerto Competition , and the Chicago Chamber Music Competition (sponsored by Midwest Young Artists ). Mr . Dzhuryn currently resides in Elgin , IL, with his wife and daughter , where he maintains a private studio for dedicated cello students.

Thomas Kasdorf

is a collaborative pianist inspired by connections through various art forms merging through the piano. Active in the fields of chamber music, art song recital, opera, and musical theatre, he has concertized throughout the US and Canada. He completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in May 2020 at the Mead Witter School of Music at University of Wisconsin-Madison, as a Paul Collins Distinguished Fellow. He currently serves on the faculty as the music director and opera coach for UW Opera’s productions.

Thomas has long held an interest in musical theatre. He has performed in over 200 productions as an actor, pianist, musical director, stage director, and conductor. With a special interest in the works of Stephen Sondheim, he has been called upon to prepare productions or perform in reduced orchestrations in Company, A Little Night Music, Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Putting it Together, Side by Side by Sondheim and Sweeney Todd. 

He is currently Artistic Director of Middleton Players Theatre (MPT) in Middleton, Wisconsin, where he resides. Thomas has performed a piano concerto annually with the Middleton Community Orchestra (MCO) since its inception in 2010, and has also engaged the orchestra to collaborate with MPT in staged productions of Carousel and Sweeney Todd.