Featuring
Mariko Anraku, associate principal harp, Met Orchestra
“…a manifestation of grace and elegance.” – The Jerusalem Post
“…a masterful artist of intelligence and wit” – The New York Times
Emmanuel Ceysson, principal harp, Met Orchestra
“Ceysson is a rising star of the harp world…Both his technique and his musicianship are virtually flawless…It was an impressive and deeply involving evening.” – The Washington Post
“Mr. Ceysson is one of those rare beings who has a pure and direct connection to the music and is able to transmit it to his audience with consummate skill and grace.” – The New York Concert Review
Leading members of the Met Orchestra
Rafael Figueroa, co-principal cello
Jerry Grossman, co-principal cello
Érik Gratton, principal flute
Composers
Melinda Wagner and Gilad Cohen are award-winning, Ridgewood-based composers.
Melinda Wagner, composer
Melinda Wagner is a Pulitzer Prize winning composer. Her Trombone Concerto was recently premiered by the NY Philharmonic, and she is currently working on a piece for the Chicago Symphony.
“Melinda Wagner’s “Pan Journal” is a work by a top professional who knows how to keep the ears and brains of her listeners engaged.” – Vance R. Koven, Boston Music Intelligencer
Gilad Cohen, composer
Gilad Cohen, a professor at Ramapo College, is a Princeton Ph.D. and the winner of the 2010 Israeli Prime Minister Award for Composers and the 2016 Barlow Endowment.
“In Cohen’s “Trio for a Spry Clarinet, Weeping Cello, and Ruminating Harp,” the acoustic instruments are exceptionally orchestrated in a varied rhythmic and melodic richness. The use of traditional way of playing is combined with unusual sonorities in both combinations within the ensemble and individual instruments.” – Israeli Prime Minister Award committee, 2010
ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE
| Claude Debussy | Danses sacree et profane, L. 103 for harp and strings | Program Notes |
| Maurice Ravel | Ma mere l’oye arranged for two harps | Program Notes |
| Gilad Cohen | Trio for a Spry Clarinet, Weeping Cello and Ruminating Harp | Program Notes |
| Melinda Wagner | Pan Journal for harp and string quartet | Program Notes |
| Claude Debussy | Suite Bergamasque, L. 75 arranged for two harps by Matthieu Martin | Program Notes |
| Maurice Ravel | Introduction and Allegro for harp, flute, clarinet, and string quartet | Program Notes |
On December 18, The Met Orchestra’s exquisite harpists, Mariko Anraku and Emmanuel Ceysson, will join forces with seven principal players of the Met Orchestra for a celestial afternoon of music making. Their alluring program will include duos and ensemble works featuring the harp by Debussy and Ravel and engaging new music by the award-winning, Ridgewood-based composers Melinda Wagner and Gilad Cohen.