Master violinist Myra Lin joined local pianist Jaya Hoy for an afternoon of "beautiful noise" designed to ward off the winter blahs Sunday at Third Avenue United Church.
American violinist/composer Myra Lin was the special guest in the second of a series of recitals being presented by local musician Hoy and mezzo soprano Lisa Hornung. They've entitled the series Music For the Soul.
"The violin lays on your heart and sings to you," Lin told guests at the performance.
She and Hoy performed classical music by Beethoven, Dvorak and Brahms and a contemporary piece by Arvo Part titled Spiegel im Spiegel (trans. Mirror in the Mirror). Hoy described the contemporary piece, which has been used in numerous movies, as "10 minutes of quiet."
Lin's expertise with the violin enthralled her audience and she and Hoy received hearty thanks and compliments following the performance.
Lin has been performing as a recitalist and chamber musician to audiences throughout the United States, Canada and Europe for over 25 years, at one time serving as a cultural ambassador for the United States.
She holds a masters degree in violin performance from the University of Sothern California in Los Angeles, where her major teachers included Eudice Shapiro and Milton Thomas (viola). She has performed in master classes with violinists including Nathan Milstein, Jospeh Silverstein and Yehudi Menuhin. Several of her compositions have been performed in the United States and an opera is in the works.
During her several days in North Battleford, Lin also coached five local violin students, which she said she enjoyed and hopes to do again. It was her first visit to North Battleford, but probably won't be her last.
She and Hoy have played together frequently in the past, and enjoyed getting together again.
In putting the series together with Hornung, Hoy said, "I haven't spent a winter in Saskatchewan for 40 years, and the only way I could think to keep myself from being overwhelmed by the cold was to invite some of my friends and Lisa's friends to North Battleford to perform."
Responses came from both from the United States and Canada. She adds other friends from Europe and Canada will be coming next year.
Hoy grew up in North Battleford and has recently returned to care for her mother, Dr. Mary McPhail. Her early teachers in Saskatchewan were Doris Green and Lyell Gustin and she went on to study and perform extensively throughout Europe, the United Kingdom and the Untied States as both a soloist and chamber and collaborative musician.
Celloist Chris Grafton of Chicago joined Hoy in the first recital of the series.
In February, Hornung, international oratorio singer, will be joined by baritone Chris Kelly from Saskatoon for a special Valentine's evening.
Kelly studied voice with Dorothy Howard at the U of S and graduated with a double major in voice and piano. In 1996, Kelly earned a master of music in vocal performance from the University of Western Ontario, where he studied under Alvin Reimer.
Kelly has performed as guest soloist in Handel's Messiah and Verdi's Requiem, Haydn's Creation, Mozart's Requiem and Bruckner's Te Deum. He has had numerous lead and chorus roles with the Saskatoon Opera Association. Most recently as Dr. Bartolo in The Barber of Sevelle and Zuniga in Carmen. This June he will perform the role of Dr. Grenville in La Traviata.
Hornung and Kelly will be joined in this recital by Garry Gansuage, dedicated and gifted local accompanist, who currently accompanies a local children's choir and has accompanied music festival vocalists for over 30 years.
Hornung, Hoy and her brother, baritone Hugh McPhail, will combine for another lively afternoon of songs, arias and duets in march and the season will wind up with a duo piano recital by Kelly and Hoy.
