International flavors blend in Feb. 1 CCS concert

The Cornell Concert Series presents a unique collaboration among Cuban guitar virtuoso Manuel Barrueco, Danish recorder virtuoso Michala Petri and Cornell's own new-music group Ensemble X on Friday, Feb.1, at 8 p.m. in Statler Auditorium. The concert features the Ithaca premiere of Cornell music Professor Steven Stucky's recorder concerto "Etudes," an encore performance of James Matheson's "Falling -- Variations for Violin, Cello and Piano," duos for recorder and guitar by Handel, Castelnuovo-Tedesco and Piazzolla, and solo works for guitar by Copland and Rodrigo.

Tickets for the concert -- $12-$20 for adults and $8-$12 for students of any age attending any institution -- are on sale at the Willard Straight Hall ticket office (Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, noon-5 p.m.; 255-3430) and at the ticket center at Clinton House (116 N. Cayuga St., Ithaca; Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., closed 2-3 p.m. on Saturday; 273-4497 or 1-800-284-8422). Tickets also are available from the Cornell Concert Series web site at www.arts.cornell.edu/ccs . Student rush tickets for $5 will be on sale Jan. 30 and 31.

Born in Copenhagen in 1958, Petri began playing the recorder at the age of 3 and was first heard on Danish Radio when she was 5. Her debut as concerto soloist took place at the Tivoli Concert Hall in 1969. Since then the Danish artist has performed with such musicians as Heinz Holliger, Pinchas Zukerman, James Galway, Salvatore Accardo, Maurice Andrè, Keith Jarrett, Christopher Hogwood and Claudio Abbado, and she has appeared as soloist with many of the world's major chamber orchestras and symphony orchestras.

Petri has received the highest praise for her astonishing virtuosity in a repertoire ranging from the early baroque to contemporary works, many of them written especially for her.

Stucky, the Given Foundation Professor of Composition at Cornell, is one of a number of composers who were unprepared for the force of Petri's artistry. "I knew Ms. Petri's reputation, of course, but I knew little about the instrument," he said, "and I imagined that its small range of expression, dynamics and technique would be too limiting. Eventually, though, Ms. Petri played with the Buffalo Philharmonic, close enough to home that my wife and I could satisfy our curiosity with a short drive to western New York. We were instant converts; here was playing of imagination, heart and brilliance that made the recorder seem like a 'big' instrument, not a little one."

Stucky has taught at Cornell since 1980. Currently he is also a visiting professor of composition at the Eastman School of Music. Widely recognized as one of the leading American composers of his generation, he has written commissioned works for many of the major American orchestras, including Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and Philadelphia, as well as for Chanticleer, the Boston Musica Viva, Carnegie Hall and the BBC.

Stucky is also active as a conductor. This season his acclaimed new-music band, Ensemble X, has made its New York City debuts in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and in Merkin Hall. He will record an all-Judith Weir disc with Ensemble X for Albany Records.

Guitarist Barrueco's artistry has been described as that of a superb instrumentalist and an elegant musician, possessing a seductive sound and uncommon lyrical gifts. His most recent recording, "Cuba!" was called "an extraordinary musical achievement" by the San Francisco Chronicle, while his recording of Joaquin Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, with conductor/tenor Placido Domingo and the Philharmonia Orchestra, was called the best recording of that piece in Classic CD Magazine. His latest release, "Nylon & Steel," is a collection of duos with guitar greats Al Di Meola, Steve Morse (Deep Purple) and Andy Summers (The Police), further demonstrating his outstanding versatility and imaginative programming.

His commitment to contemporary music and to the expansion of the guitar repertoire has led him to collaborations with many distinguished composers, such as Toru Takemitsu, Roberto Sierra and Arvo Pärt.

Ensemble X was founded in 1997 by a group of faculty performers at Ithaca College and Cornell who share a passionate commitment to new music. The ensemble's mission is to perform both very new music of the "classical" tradition -- typically music written within the past five to 10 years -- and established works from earlier in the 20th century. In addition to touring and recording, the group performs a series of concerts each season in Ithaca.