Folk Tales
◴ Sunday, August 18th • 7PM
⚲ Maybeck Studios, Berkeley
An intimate concert at beautiful Maybeck Studios in Berkeley, presenting music that explores themes of storytelling and the imagination, featuring cellist Coleman Itzkoff and pianist Audrey Vardanega.
Program
Audrey Vardanega
Praised as a “[musically] eloquent” (San Francisco Classical Voice) player “with the kind of freedom, authority, and strength…that one expects from the world’s finest pianists” and a “bewitching musical presence,” American pianist and arts entrepreneur Audrey Vardanega has performed as a solo and collaborative pianist across Europe, China, and the United States.
In response to her passion for bringing artists together for opportunities for performance, the creation of new work, and interdisciplinary collaboration, Audrey founded Musaics of the Bay in 2019.
Coleman Itzkoff
Hailed by Alex Ross in the New Yorker for his “flawless technique and keen musicality,” cellist and performer Coleman Itzkoff stands at the intersection of baroque/classical/new music, contemporary dance, and experimental theater. Whether premiering works by living composers, performing baroque music on historical instruments, acting and dancing and playing in pieces of avant-garde dance theater, composing, arranging, and recording music for films, or simply playing solo Bach for hospital patients in the time of COVID, Coleman continues to push the boundaries of what it means to be a musician of the 21st century, bringing his diverse range of interests and shape-shifting presence to every room and stage he occupies.
Coleman has performed in the great halls and festivals of America and abroad, and is a dedicated member of several ensembles, including the early music ensembles Ruckus and Twelfth Night, and is a founding member of AMOC, the American Modern Opera Company. Coleman holds degrees from Rice University, USC, and The Julliard School.