Tchaikovsky, Renzi and Biniker Combine at TSO
Tchaikovsky, Renzi and Biniker Combine for a Weekend of “Powerful Pairings” at the TSO
TOLEDO, OH – On October 15th and 16th, nationally renowned pianist and local legend, Frances Renzi, joins forces with her rising-star student and Toledo native, Samantha Biniker for an evening of Barber, Mozart and Tchaikovsky.
“Powerful Pairings,” the TSO’s second classics concert of the year, features Samuel Barber’s moving “Essay No. 2” followed by the Mozart Concerto for Two Pianos in E-flat Major. Tchaikovsky’s fateful and emotional Symphony No. 4 caps off the evening. Julian Kuerti conducts.
Two pianos will be on stage to accommodate the rare “Double Concerto.” Toledo audiences will recognize both Renzi and Biniker from previous engagements with the Symphony. Biographies of these two leading ladies of the piano are below.
What: Toledo Symphony Presents “Powerful Pairings” on the Classics Series
When: October 15 & 16, 8PM
Where: Peristyle at the Toledo Museum of Art
Tickets: Start at $15. Call 419-246-8000 or purchase online at www.toledosymphony.com.
Frances Renzi, pianist??
“Frances Renzi has a way of making music come alive” wrote Boris Nelson of the Toledo Blade. Whether in recital, as orchestral soloist, or as chamber musician, her artistry remains apparent. She consistently enthralls critics and audiences alike.??
Pianist Frances Renzi has appeared as soloist with many orchestras including those of Dallas, Houston, Toledo, and the New Hampshire Music Festival. She has performed throughout North America, Taiwan, and China, giving recitals in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York, on the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series in Chicago, at the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., the National Concert Hall in Taipei and the China Conservatory in Beijing. ??
An extraordinary chamber player, she frequently collaborates with distinguished artists, and is much in demand as a chamber music performer. She appears regularly as a featured guest artist on the Toledo Symphony Chamber Series and also performs each summer at the New Hampshire Music Festival. She was a founding member of the Toledo Trio at the University of Toledo and performed with them for 27 years.??
She has recorded solo and chamber music for Centaur, Educo, Koch International, Musical Heritage Society, Azica, Audite, and Decca/Argo. Her numerous recordings have won critical acclaim and many awards in Europe and the United States. Her recording of 20th century etudes by American composers Ned Rorem, Vincent Persichetti, and George Perle received enthusiastic reviews. Fanfare Magazine described her playing as "...absolutely superb...crystal-like articulation, impeccable rhythmic precision, unflagging energy, and a truly remarkable understanding of these pieces..." Her recording of chamber music of Paul Schoenfield was nominated for a Grammy. Her performances as a soloist and chamber musician have been broadcast on radio and television across the nation including a presentation on National Public Radio's Performance Today.??
She was a solo pianist for the New York City Ballet performing Stravinsky's Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra and Brahms Liebeslieder Waltzes and participated in the Stravinsky Festival at Lincoln Center.?? A native of Texas, she received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of North Texas and her Master’s degree from the Juilliard School where she was a scholarship student of Rosina Lhevinne and Beveridge Webster. An experienced teacher as well as performer, she is Professor Emerita at the University of Toledo. In 2000 she received a commendation from the Ohio Senate honoring her outstanding university career of 27 years.
Samantha Biniker, pianist
Samantha Biniker is a 2010 graduate of the Artist and Scholar Honors Program at the University Of Michigan School Of Music, where she received her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance degree and also studied Collaborative Piano. Her primary teachers at the University were Logan Skelton and Martin Katz. She began her piano studies at age six and her former teachers were Barbara Foote and Frances Renzi. Samantha was also a former percussion student of the TSO’s Robert Bell.
She has performed concertos with the Toledo Youth Orchestra, the Masterworks Festival Orchestra, and the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. Most recently she performed the first movement of the Ravel Piano Concerto in G Major on the TSO’s 60th anniversary concert. In 2005, Samantha attended the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina and during the summer was selected to perform on the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center.
At the University of Michigan, Samantha was the keyboardist for the Symphony Band directed by Michael Haithcock. During her two years in that position, she premiered and recorded William Bolcom’s 1st Symphony for Band. In her senior year she was the accompanist for the School of Music’s University Choir under the direction of Dr. Paul Rardin. As the accompanist of the Women’s Glee Club directed by Dr. Julie Skadsem, she toured in Vienna, Austria performing with the choir as part of the International Haydn Festival in the summer of 2009.
Samantha’s piano trio from the University of Michigan competed in the MTNA chamber music competition and made it to the national round held in Albuquerque, New Mexico this past spring. One of the works they performed was Café Music, which they coached frequently with the composer, Paul Schoenfield.
She attended the Masterworks Festival as a student for three summers and as a staff accompanist in 2009 and 2010. This summer she was also a piano teacher and musical theater pianist at Belvoir Terrace, a fine and performing arts camp for girls in Lenox, Massachusetts.
Samantha is currently a first year Masters student at The Cleveland Institute of Music studying piano accompanying with Anita Pontremoli and is also a staff pianist at Case Western Reserve University.
In 2006 Samantha Biniker was selected to receive the first educational award from the Young Musicians Fund, established to honor the memory of Marie Celeste Stranahan by providing musical and financial support for a resident of northwest Ohio who holds promise as an outstanding performer in the area of classical music.
Press Release Contact Name: Kristen Celek
Press Release Contact Email: [email protected]
Organization Name: Toledo Symphony