Faculty/Guest Recital: Peter Takács, piano and Robert deMaine, cello

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A Conservatory faculty and guest recital by Peter Takács, piano and Robert deMaine, cello. This recital is the second of a two-part survey of the complete works for cello and piano by Ludwig van Beethoven.

The Complete Works of Beethoven for Cello and Piano: Part II

Twelve Variations on “See the conqu’ring hero comes” from Handel’s Judas Maccabäus, WoO 45

Sonata in G Minor, Op. 5, No. 2

Seven Variations on “Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen” from Mozart’s opera Die Zauberflöte, WoO 46

Sonata in D Major, Op. 102, No. 2

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Hailed by the New York Times as “a marvelous pianist,” Peter Takács has performed widely, receiving critical and audience acclaim for his penetrating and communicative musical interpretations.Mr. Takács was born in Bucuresti, Romania and started his musical studies before his fourth birthday. After his debut recital at age seven, he was a frequent recitalist in his native city until his parents’ request for emigration to the West, at which point all his studies and performances were banned. He continued studying clandestinely with his piano teacher until his family was finally allowed to emigrate to France, where, at age fourteen, he was admitted to the Conservatoire National de Paris.

Upon his arrival in the United States, his outstanding musical talents continued to be recognized with full scholarships to Northwestern University and the University of Illinois, and a three-year fellowship for doctoral studies at the Peabody Conservatory, where he completed his artistic training with renowned pianist Leon Fleisher.

Mr. Takács has received numerous prizes and awards for his performances, including First Prize in the William Kapell International Competition, the C.D. Jackson Award for Excellence in Chamber Music at the Tanglewood Music Center, and a Solo Recitalist Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. His performances have been hailed by audiences and the press for their penetrating intellectual insight as well as for emotional urgency and communicativeness.

Mr. Takács has performed as guest soloist with major orchestras in the U.S. and abroad, as well as at important summer festivals such as Tanglewood, Music Mountain, Chautauqua Institution, ARIA International, Schlern Music Festival in the Italian Alps, Tel Hai International Master Classes in Israel, and Sweden’s Helsingborg Festival. Since 2008, he has been a member of the faculty at the Montecito Summer Music Festival in Santa Barbara, CA. He has performed and recorded the cycle of thirty-two Beethoven Piano Sonatas, which were release on the CAMBRIA label to critical acclaim in 2011.

Mr. Takács’ success as a teacher is attested to by his students’ accomplishments, who have won top prizes in competitions in the United States, Canada, Europe, and South Africa. They have been accepted at major graduate schools such as the Curtis Institute, Juilliard School, and Peabody Conservatory, among many others. Mr. Takács has given master classes in the U.S., Europe and Asia, and has been a jury member at prestigious national and international competitions such as San Antonio International Keyboard Competition (twice), Canadian National Competition (three times), Cleveland International Piano Competition, and Hilton Head International Piano Competition. Mr. Takács is Professor of Piano at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he has been teaching since 1976.

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Praised by The New York Times as "An artist who makes one hang on every note," American virtuoso cellist Robert deMaine has distinguished himself as one of the finest and versatile musicians of his generation, having performed worldwide to critical acclaim from Carnegie Hall to the Teatro Colon.

A first-prizewinner in many national and international competitions, Mr. deMaine became, in 1990, the first cellist ever to win the Grand Prize at San Francisco's Irving M. Klein International Competition for Strings. As soloist, he has collaborated with conductors Neeme Jarvi, Peter Oundjian, Joseph Silverstein, and Leonard Slatkin, among many others, and has performed virtually all of the major cello concerto repertoire with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, where he has been Principal Cellist since 2002. Mr. deMaine has also served as a guest principal in the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony, and the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra.

Robert deMaine counts among his chamber-music partners violinists James Ehnes, Hilary Hahn, Gil Shaham, Ani and Ida Kavafian, pianists Emanuel Ax, Andrew Armstrong, Orion Weiss, William Wolfram, and Yefim Bronfman, and has appeared at many international music festivals, including those of Marlboro, Aspen, Heidelberg, San Miguel de Allende, Montreal, and Seattle. He is also the cellist of four newly-established chamber groups: The Chroma Piano Trio, Trio21, Icarus (Flute, Cello, Piano), and the Ehnes Quartet.

A dedicated teacher, Mr. deMaine has presented masterclasses throughout the U.S. and abroad, and is a regular guest of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach and the National Orchestral Institute at the University of Maryland. He has also taught at the Eastman School of Music and the University of Michigan.

Also a composer, Robert deMaine has written many works for the cello, including Twelve Etudes-Caprices, which he performs regularly. Several important composers have written large-scale works for him, including Chris Theofanidis, Joel Eric Suben, and Jeffrey Mumford.

Soon to be released are two recordings by deMaine on Dorian/Sono Luminus: a recital disc featuring works by Rachmaninov, Faure, and Grieg with the pianist Andrew Armstrong, and the Haydn Cello Concertos with the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra.

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