Paradise Concerts Concerts 2010 Series

By Popular demand...the Return of The Four Divas, in concert, in Innisfail Saturday, February 13th 2010.

Paradise Concerts is thrilled to take concert audiences to the Opera, in true International style. THE FOUR DIVAS features 2 of the classiest (and beautiful) international singers ever to hit the High Cs, English/Canadian Soprano Joy Power Cleary and Greek Mezzo Soprano Katerini Manolatos, and introduces world-renowned London International prize winning stunning pianist Ambre Hammond to Johnstone Shire Hall's starry concert stage. This is a triumphant concert for Ambre, as she was originally born in Cairns in 1977, taught by her mother from age 3, and now in the midst of a glittering solo career, having recently performed a world premiere Concerto for Jazz Trumpet, Piano and Orchestra in the Sydney Opera House with jazz trumpeter James Morrison, Ambre jubilantly returns to perform with Paradise Concerts! Add the sparkle of violinist Kirtley Leigh Paine, and champagne is in order to toast this DIVine musical combination of sheer Diva-esque proportion!

In a concert filled with exuberance, joy, flair and flamboyance, THE FOUR DIVAS will perform a debut spectacular in the magnificent grandeur of the newly-refurbished Johnstone Shire Hall in Innisfail. Music lovers are in for a special treat, as the concert provides a chance to hear the new Steinway 9 foot Concert Grand piano in all its glory. Opera lovers will be truly satisfied, as many famous and well-loved arias in a selection of vocal solos and duets will be performed, by such composers as Verdi, Puccini, Massenet, Delibes and Rossini, including the Habanera from Carmen, and the Flower Duet from Lakme. As an added treat, International piano sensation Ambre will also perform some piano acrobatics in a selection of bravura keyboard favourites. Violinist Kirtley Leigh Paine completes this stellar diva quartet and provides the "orchestra" at the Opera, (even if she refuses to be banished to the more traditional "Pit"- ) as well as indulging in her own virtuoso gymnastic violin showpieces.

Acts I and II at the FOUR DIVAS show are bursting with music to stir all the emotions, and a very special Grand Finale will set hearts ablaze with the sheer talent and energy - not to mention passion and intrigue - created by these

Born in Cairns, Australia in 1977. Ambre began piano studies with her mother at the age of 3 and gave her first concert in Sydney at age 5. In 1990, at age 12, Ambre achieved a World Record, which she still holds, when she received the Associate and Licentiate Diplomas of music in the same year. At 16 she received the First Prize in her first International Music Competition held in Argentina, South America. The following year Ambre was invited to return to Argentina to perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.3 as her debut performance with the Cordoba Symphony Orchestra. This performance was recorded live and released as a CD, which has been acclaimed by the Rachmaninoff Society of USA as one of the finest recordings ever made of this piece.

At 16, Ambre recorded and released a CD of music by Franz Liszt titled 'Devotion' which was funded by Australian artist Arthur Boyd who was astounded with Ambre's natural ability and also invited her to be first Artist-In Residence at his Shoalhaven Property 'Bundanon', on the South Coast of Australia. Ambre's CD's are available on cdbaby.com Ambre has performed both solo and with Orchestra throughout Switzerland, England, Italy, Spain, Poland, North and South America, New Zealand and China to consistent acclaim from both critics and public alike.

Recently she has continued to perform not only the great classics but showed a flair for jazz and blues by combining talents with James Morrison in a series of concerts displaying a fusion of musical styles. A recent performance was with the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra in New Zealand at which she delighted audiences playing the magical Rachmaninoff 2nd piano concerto as well as teaming up with James Morrison for some blues and other jazz standards.

Renowned Hollywood film writer and composer Lalo Schifrin was recently commissioned to write a unique Double Concerto for Jazz Trumpet, Classical Piano and Symphony Orchestra especially for Ambre and James Morrison. Now completed, Ambre recently returned from Los Angeles where she played the piece to Lalo who has dedicated the Concerto to her.The World Premiere was held in Sydney 2007 at the Opera House to great acclaim. Ambre and James will perform the work throughout Europe and the US.

It is important to Ambre to give back to the community through her ability as much as possible and she has been named Ambassador of the SMILE Foundation, a newly formed Sydney based Medical Research and Philanthropy Company and is also closely involved with the Brain Foundation of Australia. Ambre has newly been appointed Youth Ambassador for the National Trust and will undertake a Tour for the Trust in early 2009.Ambre's latest CD release 'Reverie' (2009) is a compilation of some of the most beautiful compositions for solo piano from Bach to Rachmaninoff, Granados to Scriabin.

Ambre is blessed with not only artistic brilliance and technical prowess of the highest order, but has a physical beauty and presence that leaves her listeners in awe of such a young, energetic and gifted talent. Ambre has the communicative skills to be able to share her passion for the music she plays and delight audiences everywhere from age 1 to 100.

International singer Joy is a lyric soprano who trained in Calgary, Canada under Judith Lebane since 1990. She has taken part in master classes given by Catherine Robbin, mezzo-soprano; Linda Maguire, mezzo-soprano; and Susan Haig, Associate Conductor of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

Professionally, Joy has sung with the Calgary Opera Chorus in Lucia di Lammermoor, 1994, La Traviata, 1995, and La Boheme, 2002.

She has also performed with the opera training company, Debut Opera, singing lead roles with them, such as “Musetta” from La Boheme, “Adele” from Die Fledermaus, and “Casilda” from The Gondoliers, amongst others.

In 1996, Joy gave a recital of Baroque music including Pergolesi’s “Stabat Mater” with mezzo-soprano, Pamela Jonasson.

Joy was born in Canada and grew up there and in the UK. Since moving to Cairns in 2003 she has been singing professionally as a soloist, at weddings and special events and in recital with Paradise Concerts. She last performed with Paradise Concerts in December 2008 in the Baroque Christmas Concert.

This time with Paradise Concerts, she has enjoyed discovering the romance of the Opera repertoire with its delightful marriage of drama and passion. The expressive poetry of the lyrics is equally as relevant as the sparkling music in seducing the listener and performer alike

Mezzo-soprano Katerini Manolatos was born and raised in Brisbane from a young age enjoyed performing. She studied at the Queensland Young Conservatorium in her teenage years and later went on to study at a tertiary level at the prestigious Queensland Conservatorium of Music, earning her Bachelor of Music in Voice in 2000. She then completed her Associate in Music Australia in 2001 and her Masters Degree in Music Therapy in 2005. During these years and those that followed she has enjoyed performing and teaching voice.

Her Greek heritage is very important to her, as is her love of Greek music. She produced a CD of Greek songs while in her early 20’s and was privileged to travel to Greece to help promote the 2000 Olympic games. She has returned to Greece many times to perform in concerts alongside local musicians.

Moving from Brisbane to Cairns three years ago has proved to be an exciting career move for Katerini. She has launched Hummingbird Music Therapy and Singing which encompasses her skills and drive for nurturing young voices and her Master’s qualification in music therapy. Most recently she has joined forces with Gail Rogers (Speech and Language Pathologist specialising in the area of voice) to develop the Vocal Boot Camp series, which educates professional voice users in vocal technique and protection.

Katerini is excited about performing in the Classical Chamber Music world again here in Cairns, and the operatic genre in particular, and looks forward to her future with Paradise Concerts.

  “…enthralling … fine playing, the music echoed with delight “
                                                           Brisbane Sunday Mail, October, 2005
“Kirtley wowed the crowds at her Civic Theatre Recital”The Cairns Post, March, 2004
          “Virtuoso Violin with Panache”        Nelson, N.Z. News, September, 2006
“Kirtley’s violin flirted with the piano of Pascal RogeArts Nexus Magazine, October, 2007
“Her concerto premiere was a match made in Heaven” NZ Mail, September, 2006

American/Australian violinist Leigh has a career that has taken her across the globe, performing as soloist, in chamber concerts, recitals, and orchestras worldwide. Her performances have been celebrated in over 20 countries. Her home is now Australia , where she has lived since relocating from London 5 years ago. A student of the legendary virtuoso Josef Gingold, she holds a B Mus (honours) degree from Indiana University . The U

S honoured her with the prestigious American Federation of Music Prize in New York . As a chamber musician and recitalist, Leigh has appeared in the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, and festivals including Aspen, Point-Counterpoint and Chautauqua (USA), St. Endellion and Classics Live (UK), Klassik Aften, Bergen Festspille, and Oslo (Norway), Amsterdam, Vienna, Pollensa (Spain), and Hong Kong. Leigh was a member of the Hong Kong Philharmonic, and was on the faculty of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. In Europe she held positions as leader in Amsterdam , and in Norway where, as principal second violin of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, she also led her own chamber music series, performed as soloist and recorded for Norwegian radio. Residing in London for 14 years, Leigh’s Duo gave its debut recital at the international Classics Live Festival. Leigh was in the UK ’s finest chamber and symphony orchestras, including principal second violin of the London Chamber Symphony, Assistant Leader of the Midlands Philharmonic, and member of the Academy of London , Oxford and European Union Chamber Orchestras. She was also a chamber musician at the Endellion Festival under conductor Richard Hickox. European engagements included performing for Queen Sophia of Spain as Leader of the Pollensa Chamber Orchestra, and for King Olaf of Norway with the Bergen Philharmonic, as well as tours with Pavarotti and the Oporto Orchestra, Portugal , and with Soprano Kiri te Kanawa in

France

. Leigh was one of the Australian Festival of Chamber Music’s artists in 2005, giving masterclasses and chamber music performances, recording for the ABC, and leading the chamber orchestra. She gave her Australian recital début in 2004, and in 2005 founded, as Artistic Director, Paradise Concerts international chamber music series in Cairns , Queensland . In ’05 Leigh visited Papua New Guinea , giving a command performance for the Prime Minister at Parliament House. She is an appointed touring artist for Queensland Arts Council .For the last 3 years she has performed in recital with the internationally acclaimed pianist Pascal Rogé, and appeared as guest leader and soloist with the Barrier Reef Orchestra under conductor John Hopkins OBE. She also performed as soloist with Opera Queensland in 2006, and toured New Zealand , giving recitals, and the world premiere of a Concerto for Violin and Orchestra by composer, Ross Carey. In 2007 she was soloist at “Opera in the Outback” and leader of the Barrier Reef Orchestra .Leigh appeared as soloist/director in the debut of the Paradise Chamber Orchestra for Festival Cairns in The Eight Seasons, an innovative programme of her creation, juxtaposing Piazzolla and Vivaldi 4 Seasons. She is founder of the Paradise Chamber Orchestra, Cairns ’ first professional orchestra. Leigh continues to vigorously champion classical music in our region. In November, 2007, she was presented a RADF award by Mayor Kevin Byrne in recognition of cultural excellence in the city of Cairns . The Paradise Concerts’ Gala Opening recital of 2008 featured Leigh and international pianist Melvyn Tan in performance together. Leigh was most recently appointed leader of the Cairns Community Orchestra For 2009, engagements included 2 concerto performances in Melbourne in March, and directorship of the Cairns Concert Orchestra. In 2010 she will release a Paradise Concerts CD.

On Sunday, February 14th Paradise Concerts returns for 2010 with a very special afternoon recital set to warm hearts and alight passions, as two acclaimed international performers present Be My Valentine.

Ambre Hammond is an international star, and her piano performances have been heralded across the globe. She was asked only last year to perform at the Inaugeration for US President Obama, and has continued to dazzle audiences wherever her fingers grace the keyboard.

Joining her is well-known violinist and Artistic Director of Paradise Concerts, violinist Kirtley Leigh Paine. Leigh's recent accomplishments include the Australian Premiere performance in 2009 of a new violin concerto in Melbourne, and directorship of the Cairns Concert Orchestra.

These two consummate performers will deliver a violin and piano recital full of beloved gems from the repertoire, by such favourites as Chopin, Kreisler, Brahms, Liszt, Elgar, Debussy, Dvorak and Beethoven. There will be well-loved music full of romantic and inspired classical splendour. The recital will be held in the elegant glass conservatory room at Kewarra Beach Resort, and spaces are limited to this exclusive and special concert, for this most special day of love.

So treat someone you love to the best Valentine's Day of all- a gift of classical music. Come lift your spirits, and soar with us - Be My Valentine!

Tickets Ticketlink www.ticketlink.com.au

Telephone 1-300-855835

A programme including performance of the All-American jazz-inspired classic as well as timeless music and songs of Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Aaron Copland and Ravel.

Paradise Concerts returns for its 6th Anniversary Concert Series in a Gala Launch for 2010 that is all show! Rhapsody in Blue is exactly that- a Rhapsodic concert including the world-famous piano work by Gershwin, as well as jazzy music and songs by his contemporaries.

The American jazz idiom burst onto the world in the 1920's, and music was never the same again. George Gershwin was amongst many classical composers inspired to put pen to manuscript paper, and the rest is history. His Rhapsody in Blue remains one of the great works in the piano repertoire today. Its wild freedom, captivating rhythmic drive, and melodic salute to America took the world by storm .

Come and hear the masterpiece as it was originally written, for solo piano (to gain a publisher, Gershwin had to perform all the orchestral parts on the piano interwoven with his solo line himself)! Here to dazzle us with his interpretation is guest star pianist Benjamin Martin, a Julliard graduate and Musica Viva Touring Artist, recipient of a Queen Elizabeth Grant and first-prize winner in the Hepzibah Menuhin Memorial Awards. Benjamin was described in the book The Art of the Piano as "One of the finest Musical Talents of our generation." The solo-piano concert version of Rhapsody in Blue will be a premiere for Cairns, and a truly electrifying occasion, as Benjamin is one of only a select few pianists worldwide who perform this version, such are its technical demands.

Joining him on the concert stage will be eminent soprano Joy Power Cleary, as well as violinist and Artistic Director of Paradise Concerts, Kirtley Leigh Paine. Joy will sing such classics as "Someone to Watch Over Me", "Summertime", and "My Man is Gone Now". Kirtley offers a violin and piano collaboration with Benjamin to include selections from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess and An American in Paris.

There will be jazz in the air all night, and setting the mood , Paradise Concerts will hold an auction of a specially-crafted piece of "Rhapsody in Blue" jewellery donated by Rowe Design.

This concert will be repeated in Innisfail in the Johnstone Shire Hall on March 27th. Contact Cassowary Council ( 4030 2222) for more information.

Price $40 Adults/ $20 Students $40Adults/$35 Concession/ $20 Students /$95Family

After studying under John Browning at the Juilliard School of Music from 1990-1993, Melbourne born pianist-composer Benjamin Martin has become well known as an artist of the utmost sensibility and subtlety of expression. Possessing enormous versatility and depth, Martin’s wide-ranging experience encompasses performance, composition, conducting, adjudication and pedagogy, while his mastery of the instrument has been recognized via many awards and scholarships. As soloist, Martin has performed concerti with almost every Symphony Orchestra in Australia, as well as with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. His own compositions have been performed by prominent musicians and ensembles including the Absolute Ensemble, John Browning, and the Tankstream Quartet (now the Australian String Quartet). His insight is widely recognized through editorial consultancy and positions on the adjudication and review panels of many prestigious competitions and festivals.
Martin has received numerous awards including the Queen Elizabeth Grant, first prize in the Hepzibah Menuhin Memorial Award, the Marten Bequest Scholarship and two scholarships to the Tanglewood Summer Festival (as pianist in 1987, and as composer in 1988), where he participated in classes with Leon Fleisher and Leonard Bernstein. After Martin studied conducting with Vladimir Verbitsky as well as with his own father, Christopher Martin, he went on to conduct the world premiere of a work by Matthew Herskowitz in New York. He also directed at the Riverina Festival for Strings, and held a position as director of the Queens College Choir in 1998.

Martin has held masterclasses and tutored at Universities, Music Camps and Festivals in Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Launceston. He has also adjudicated on numerous judging panels, including the Hepzibah Menuhin Competition, the Grainger Award and the Mordialloc Eisteddfod, and has served on the Musica Viva artistic review panel. Most recently, in recognition of his exceptional musical and pedagogical insight, Martin was chosen as consultant editor for the Australian Music Examinations Board 2007-2008,. He is the first pianist to simultaneously edit and record (almost in entirety) the curriculum for the AMEB.
Martin has performed throughout Australia and has toured the United States, Europe and Asia. In 2002 he toured Minneapolis, Tennessee, performing Beethoven’s Third and Tchaikovsky’s First Concertos. In 2003, Martin toured Europe to perform four different concerti with the Chamber Strings of Melbourne and, in 2004-2005, he gave concerts at The Frick Gallery in WashingtonDC and the Lincoln Center, NY, with violinist Janice Martin (no relation) which included the premiere of his Blues for violin and piano. In 2006, he was invited to perform in Tokyo with violinist Aiko Goto as part of the Australia/Japan Year of Exchange. In 2009 he toured the United States performing with some of New York's highly acclaimed jazz musicians (Jason Di Matteo, bass, and Greg Gonzales, drums) performing both improvisations and his own music.

Closer to home, Martin has featured as guest artist for most festivals and concert series in Australia including ten Huntington Festivals, Musica Viva, the Sydney Opera House Mostly Mozart Festival, the Melbourne Festival, the Sydney Festival and the Coriole Festival.

He has also performed as soloist with orchestras around Australia, including the Melbourne, Adelaide, Tasmanian and Queensland Youth Symphony Orchestras, as well as numerous appearances with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. As an active chamber musician, Martin has also performed with musicians such as Richard Tognetti, Dimitri Berlinsky, Pekka Kuusisto, Alina Ibragimova, Steven Davislim, Boris Baraz, Eiji Oue and the Utrecht Quartet.

Reflecting his broad experience, Martin is also a devotee of contemporary music, performing works such as Ives’ Concord Sonata, Berio’s Sequenza IV and Ligeti’s Piano Concerto. He has given numerous premieres, including the New York Premiere of Two Pianos by Morton Gould (associate artist M.Herskowitz) and Brett Dean’s Elegy for ‘cello and piano (with Emma-Jane Murphy).

Martin has been widely recorded. His intensive musical collaboration with the German violist Hartmut Lindemann is featured on three highly acclaimed recordings for Tacet Records, Stuttgart. With the Australian Chamber Orchestra, he has recorded music by Astor Piazzolla for Chandos and, in 2004, recorded his second album of Piazzolla’s music with accordionist James Crabb. He has frequently made broadcasts for WQXR NY, Radio Stuttgart and the ABC. A disc with horn virtuoso Lin Jiang for Melba Recordings has just been released, and a debut solo album featuring an all-English program is due for release early in 2010. Upcoming projects include recording the complete Brahms Sonatas for violin and piano with Richard Tognetti.

In 1993, John Browning gave the World Premiere of Martin’s Three Portrait Etudes at The Alice Tully Hall, NY. His Brazil has been recorded by Matthew Herskowitz for the Canadian label Tout Crin. Martin’s own music has also been performed in Europe and the United States, notably by Kristian Jarvi’s Absolute Ensemble, which toured Australia in 2002.
Martin gave the world premiere of his First Sonatine in 2003 for the ABC, and his Third Sonatine in Perth, 2006. His Blues for violin and piano premiered in 2004-2005 in the United States, and in 2007 he performed with violist Paul McMillan to premiere his Serenade for the 35th International Viola Congress, held in Adelaide. Most recently, he premiered his Concertino for Piano and Strings with Corpus Medicorum at the Iwaki Auditorium. He is also becoming widely-known as an arranger, and in December 2009 the Freshwater Trio performed his arrangements of Bach's Et Misercordia and Mendelssohn's Song Without Words Op.53#2.

Martin features in an interview in a film titled 'Memories of John Browning'. He is currently presenting a series of lectures on music for 3MBS titled 'Beyond Measure'. Martin teaches piano at the University of Melbourne, where he has been on staff since 1998.