The Centre Symphony Orchestra regulary hosts renowned guest soloists, conductors and ensembles. These are some of the current and past artists who have appeared with the orchestra. We hope you enjoy their performances.Wen Qian
Ms. Wen Qian was hailed by China Daily as “one of China’s most promising young violinists” and in a 2004 Strad magazine review titled “Rare Thrill” featuring Ms. Qian after her Carnegie Hall recital, music critic Dennis Rooney commented “it was performed with enough insight and panache to thrill a listener while at the same time raising the question of why such results are so rarely achieved.”
Ms. Qian has been a first violinist with the Metropolitan Orchestra since 1997, where currently she serves as the Assistant Concertmaster. Ms. Qian has also enjoyed an active career as a soloist, chamber musician and educator throughout China, America and Europe.
A native of Caracas Venezuela, Francisco Salazar began his violin studies at age 6. Making rapid progress he soon made his solo debut with orchestra at age 8. Although quite young, Francisco performed extensively as a concert violinist in his native country and toured the world with the Simon Bolivar Orchestra. While still in Venezuela Francisco had the privilege to perform for legendary violinist Henrik Szeryng, and participated in Master Classes by Olivier Charlier, Augustin Dumay and Yossi Zivoni.
Described by Anthony Tommasini of the New York Times, “… a distinguished artist, the violinist Byung Kook Kwak brought warm, penetrating sound and tasteful expressivity…”.
Acclaimed by the New York Times for her “stylish, committed playing,” Robin Zeh is a New York-based violinist who enjoys a career performing at Carnegie Hall and Caramoor with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the Metropolitan Opera House with the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, where she has recently appeared as Concertmaster. Also a regular in Broadway pit orchestras, Robin was an original member of AN AMERICAN IN PARIS and has frequently performed as Concertmaster of the Tony Awards. She is an advocate for music by living composers and for ten years was the first violinist of the American Modern Ensemble. Robin performs on a 1798 Thomas Dodd violin.
Barbara Allen, 2nd prize winner of the 7th International Harp Competition held in Israel in 1979, has held the Principal Harp position with the American Ballet Theatre at Lincoln Centerfor the past 30 years, and has been performing as a soloist and recording artist throughout the United States. She has appeared with many artists such as Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Collins, and Doc Severinsen, and with Sting she appeared on several televised concerts, at the Apollo Theater, and is featured on his Symphonicities CD. Other recordings include movies such as Tower Heist, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Hunchback of Notre Dame, A Serious Man, A Dog’s Purpose, and very recently performed in the set for The Greatest Showman, and on the set for Netflix’ Jessica Jones.
Cellist Elizabeth Anderson has won the highest praise from critics. Her recordings for RCA Red Seal, Telarc and Nonesuch have been highly acclaimed including her release of premier recordings of Luigi Silva's extraordinary transcriptions. Ms. Anderson is also deeply committed to new music. Many renowned composers have dedicated works to her including Samuel Adler, Michael Rose and Kenneth Frazelle. As a founding member of the celebrated Meliora Quartet, she made numerous appearances on the world's most prestigious chamber music series, including those at New York's Lincoln Center, the Corcoran Gallery and Library of Congress in Washington D.C., and at Jordan Hall in Boston. The Quartet was Grand Prize Winner of The Naumburg Chamber Music Award, The Fischoff Competition, The Coleman Competition and The Cleveland Quartet Competition.
Pianist Kaoru Fukada made her New York debut in 2009 with The Centre Symphony Orchestra at the invitation of Maestro José Alejandro Guzmán, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto in D Minor. She was subsequently invited by conductor Scott Jackson Wiley to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto N. 4 with both the South Shore Symphony of Rockville Centre, New York and the Regina Opera Orchestra of Brooklyn. These performances capped over a decade of activity as a performer and teacher in New York City, and marked the beginning of an ongoing artistic relationship with The Centre Symphony. In 2013 she performed Beethoven’s Piano Concerto N. 1 with the orchestra, again at the invitation of Maestro Guzmán. The success of that engagement led to a performance of Chopin’s Piano Concerto N. 2 in F minor in 2015. A fourth appearance with Centre Symphony is forthcoming in May of 2018, this time with Beethoven's Triple Concerto, under the baton of maestro Wiley and in the prestigious company of Muneko Otani, violinist, and Elizabeth Anderson, cellist, both of the Cassatt Quartet.
While Dr. Fox is a practicing podiatrist, his first and lasting love was music. His father played violin and viola and provided a rich musical environment for him as a child. He studied composition under Earl George at Syracuse University, and although changing his course of study to medicine “for pragmatic reasons,” he continued to compose in his favorite venue, large orchestral works. His music is uncharacteristic of most modern classical music in that its melodic and the harmonic structures are rather basic and established.
Natalia Galebsky is a native of Saint Petersburg, Russia, where she attended the prestigious Saint Petersburg Conservatory and studied with the eminent teacher Nora Veksler. Immediately following her graduation she served five years as a cellist at the Maley Opera House. In 1990 Ms. Galebsky immigrated to Israel, where she was appointed principal cellist of the Raanana Sinfonett. She toured Europe extensively with this orchestra, collaborating with such performers as Ray Charles, Manhattan Transfer, Stevie Wonder, and Maxim Shostakovich. In 1999, Ms. Galebsky arrived in the United States and settled in Brooklyn, New York. She now freelances with several symphonic and opera orchestras, including the Bronx Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, the Westchester Chamber Orchestra, the Centre Symphony Orchestra, the Greenwich Village Orchestra, Regina Opera, and New Rochelle Opera. Ms. Galebsky has recently recorded a CD with jazz musicians Igor Butman, Lenny White, and Eddie Gomez.
Raymond Riccomini, trumpet, joined the Metropolitan Opera orchestra trumpet section in 2004. Prior to this, Raymond held the positions of second trumpet in the New Jersey Symphony and Principal trumpet of the Hudson Valley Philharmonic while enjoying a varied freelance career. He has frequently performed, toured and recorded with the New York Philharmonic, including as guest Principal trumpet. He has also performed as guest Principal trumpet of the American Symphony Orchestra, the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Raymond was a founding member of the Manhattan Brass Quintet and was a winner in the 1993 Fischoff Chamber music competition.
After a twenty-four year career as a full-time orchestra musician, including positions as Associate Concertmaster of the Omaha Symphony and Assistant Concertmaster of the Tulsa Philharmonic, Candida Wiley moved to Indianapolis in 2002 to to dedicate herself to teaching. Fascinated with the pedagogy of the violin, she has studied and taught Alexander Technique, which teaches the least forceful use of the body, and which has decisively shaped her approach to playing and teaching. She also pursued training in Suzuki Institutes for many years. In Indianapolis she maintains a busy private violin studio, and teaches violin at Broad Ripple Magnet High School for the Performing Arts. She is a graduate of Butler University and Indiana University, and is the proud mother of a fifteen-year old daughter.
Stephen Ryan - An actor and director, Stephen has appeared on stage in 40 of the 50 states, Off and Off-Off Broadway, as well as in Ireland and Great Britain. Favorites include the 1st national tour of Sunday in the Park with George and a long run in Jacques Brel is Alive and Well… in Washington D.C. Most recently he appeared in That Lady from Maxim’s at The Pearl Theater(NYMF) - New York Innovative Theater Award nomination, Going Solo at The Hudson Guild Theater and The Web at Theater at St. Clements. He recently directed Prelude to Tomorrow at the Times Square Arts Center and is helping develop the new 9/11 themed musical Operation: Dragon Slayer, planned for late 2016. Stephen studied with The Folger Shakespeare Conservatory, Oscar winner Beatrice Straight, and Yale Drama head Bobby Lewis.
Beth Johanning Conductor of Wagner Treble Concert Choir and Artistic Director of Voyces and Young Voyces. In 2011 Beth Johanning founded the early music vocal ensemble Voyces. With the goal of study and performance of Renaissance and Baroque music, and drawing from the community of professional and semi-professional musicians, she has led the all-volunteer group in concerts, collaborations and musical events in venues on Staten Island. Young Voyces, the youth affiliate of Voyces, was established by Beth in 2013. The young singers perform in Staten Island and Manhattan on independent concerts and concerts with Voyces.
The Wagner Treble Concert Choir (WTCC) is one of the two major choral ensembles at Wagner College, Staten Island. This women’s choir, comprised of 16-25 singers, specialises in repertoire composed for trebles, as well as classics arranged for women’s voices.