CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA’S CONCERT MASTER AND ASHLAND NATIVE PERFORMING GUEST RECITAL AT ASHLAND UNIVERSITY

The Department of Music at Ashland University is proud to announce an encore performance by The Cleveland Orchestra’s concertmaster William Preucil and Ashland native Christine Fessenmeyer-Hill.  The guest artist recital will be held Friday, October 7, 7:30 p.m., in the Elizabeth Pastor Recital Hall located in the Center for the Arts at the corner of College Avenue and Grant Street.  The performance is free and open to the public. 

The performance with violin and piano will open with three movements from Ludwig von Beethoven’s Sonata No. 4 in A Minor followed by Gabriel Fauré’s Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano.  After a brief intermission, the program will conclude with  Johannes Brahms’ Sonata No. 3 in D Minor.       

As concertmaster of The Cleveland Orchestra since 1995,  William Preucil has appeared regularly as a soloist with the Orchestra in concerto performances at both Severance Hall and Blossom Music Center.  Prior to joining The Cleveland Orchestra, Mr. Preu­cil served for seven seasons as first violinist of the Grammy-winning Cleveland Quartet, performing more than 100 concerts each year in the world’s major music capitals.  He began studying violin at the age of five with his mother, Doris Preucil, a pioneer in Suzuki violin instruction in the United States.  At 16, he graduated with honors from the Interlochen Arts Academy and entered Indiana University to study with Josef Gingold (former concertmaster of The Cleveland Orchestra).  He was awarded a performer’s certificate at Indiana University and also studied with Zino Francescatti and György Sebök.  In addition to performing, Mr. Preucil serves as Distinguished Professor of Violin at the Cleveland Institute of Music and Distinguished Visiting Lecturer at Furman University.  He previously taught at the Eastman School of Music and at the University of Georgia.

Christine Fessenmeyer-Hill began her early studies in Ashland, Ohio with Barbara Jones and Elizabeth Pastor.  She holds degrees from the Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music. Ms. Hill is a very sought after collaborative pianist and has made her mark in this specialized area of ensemble performance.  She appears frequently as a soloist, recitalist and chamber music pianist for many venues throughout the country.  Her expertise has attracted many elite talents and her collaboration has assisted many successful careers.  She has won numerous prizes in performance and has earned favorable reviews from critics worldwide and distinguished musicians.  Aside from her extensive appearances, she collaborates with members of many major symphonies, vocalists, and chamber musicians.  A member of the Collaborative Piano Faculty at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Cleveland State University Piano Faculty, she maintains a very active career as a pedagogue.  Also, she is a member of the Accompanying Staff at CIM and the Encore School of Strings. 

For more information about this performance and other Department of Music events, visit the Web site at www.ashland.edu/music or contact Tricia Applegate, coordinator of performing arts publicity and events, at 419-289-5950 or tapplega@ashland.edu.