Eliesha Nelson » Concerts Worth Attending

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Eliesha — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 19:04:55 +0000

I’ve been busy with baby care and preparing for a full recital, which I didn’t realize would be so all consuming. Whoever said that one could get a lot done with babies because they sleep a lot lied to me! Anyhow, I thought I’d report the concerts I’ve played and the recital I have coming up just in case there is some interest.

The recital is at Lorain County Community College on March 10, 2010 at 7:30 pm as part of their Signature Series. I will be performing with Shanelle Cook on piano. I did an interview on the Cleveland NPR show Around Noon about the concert and the Porter album. It went well, and I had never done a live radio interview before.

On February 28, I performed Jeffrey Mumford’s piece wending on the Cleveland Composer’s Guild. I will also perform it on my recital in LCCC March 10.

I performed the debut of Leslie Adams’ viola piece L’extase d’Amour for his Cleveland based fan club on February 15. Channel 3 was there taking footage, and a very nice piece was presented about him.

Upcoming Chamber Music Concerts

Eliesha — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:06:54 +0000

This week is busy with two chamber music programs. The first is a free concert at the Music Settlement in University Circle, 11125 Magnolia Drive, Thursday, May 14 at 7 p.m. I’m playing in a faculty recital with Sae Shiragami, Chul-In Park and Ida Mercer, and we are doing two quartets by Mozart and Ravel. It’s been fun working with these ladies, as they are very professional and easy to work with.

The second concert is Monday, May 18 at 7:30 p.m. at Lyndhurst Community Presbyterian Church (in the Sanctuary), 5312 Mayfield Road. This concert is hosted by the Chamber Music Guild, which is a group of avid music lovers which holds performances by local musicians. There is a guest fee of $8.00 at the door, and an RSVP is requested to Rich and Judy Fired at 216-291-8692 or richjudy00@aol.com. This concert is mostly wind music, with a flute and oboe piece by Thea Musgrave and a quintet by John Steinmetz. I will perform in the Prokofiev quintet for oboe, clarinet, violin, viola and bass. Betty Camus is the fantastic oboe player who is featured in this concert, and the other musicians are members of the Cleveland Orchestra and Oberlin Conservatory faculty.

The Cleveland Orchestra in Miami

Eliesha — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:30:49 +0000

For those interesting in the whereabouts of the Cleveland Orchestra after their fabulous production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, we will be in Miami completing the third and final week of our Miami residency. The Orchestra plays a couple of concerts and provides educational outreach to schools and local organizations. If you are in the Miami area, you can catch a concert at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts April 3 and 4, 2009.

Benefit Concert for the Cleveland School of the Arts

Eliesha — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 01:39:02 +0000

For those in Cleveland who would like to support a good cause, there is a fund raiser for the Cleveland School of the Arts Lower Campus Saturday, January 17, 2009 at 3 p.m. It will be held at Plymouth Church of Shaker Heights (2806 Coventry Rd., Cleveland, OH 44120), and there will be students from the school performing on the first half hour of the program. I will also be performing, along with teacher/artists Dianna White-Gould and Dennis Reynolds, plus singer Norris Kelly and my good friend conductor/violinist John McLaughlin Williams.

I began my affiliation with the Cleveland School of the Arts last September when I was asked by the Cleveland Music School Settlement to teach viola for the fourth and fifth graders. I was not interested at first, because I felt that seeing students once a week when there is no parental involvement was not enough for deep learning. However, they agreed that I could come twice a week for an hour long lesson each time, so I agreed. I teach a group lesson the first day and then “private” lessons the following, which means seeing two students at a time so I can give more individual attention.

The students I teach are and inspiration to me and a healthy challenge. They thirst for learning and are eager to play the viola. What more could a teacher want? Well, maybe teaching in a real classroom and not a stairwell, but I’m more interested in motivated students right now!

csa-benefit-postcard