The 2016 Roundtop Music Festival is going into its second week, and has something for everyone. Tickets are available online at www.festivalhill.org/calendar or by phone at (979) 249-3129.
A Young Persons’ Concert will be held at the Festival Concert Hall on June 14, from 11:00am to 12:00pm. The program includes the 1886 Carnival of the Animals and the 1946 Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, Op. 34. Admission is free, and Emilio Colon is the conductor.
From 1:30pm to 3:00pm on June 15, renowned musician Stefan Milenkovich will host a free violin master class. It will be held at the Edythe Bates Old Chapel, and no reservations will be necessary. Stefan Milenkovich is a unique artist with an extraordinary productive longevity, professionalism, and creativity. Mr. Milenkovich is a violinist who is recognized internationally for both exceptional artistry and his lifelong commitment to humanitarianism.
On June 16, from 1:30pm to 3:00pm at the Edythe Bates Old Chapel there will be a bass master class led by James VanDemark. Acclaimed as one of the leading performers on the double bass, James VanDemark has performed as soloist with the New York Philharmonic, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Grant Park Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and many other orchestras throughout the world. Professor of double bass at the Eastman School of Music since 1976, VanDemark's students hold positions in many of the world's great orchestras and teaching appointments at major music schools. There is no admission cost, and no reservations are necessary.
The next event held at the Edythe Bates Old Chapel will be on June 18, from 1:30pm to 2:40pm. The title of the concert is “Woodwinds Galore!” The program includes Wind Quintet in g (1876), Woodwind Quartet (1933), and Summer Music (1956.) Admission is $25 for adults and $10 for students.
From 3:30pm to 5:00pm on June 18, at the Festival Concert Hall, the Chamber Music Concert will be held. The program includes Serenade (1968), Phantasy Quartet, Op. 2 (1932), and Trio No. 4 for Violin, Cello, and Piano, Op. 90. Admission is $25 for adults and $10 for students.
From 7:30pm to 9:30pm on June 18, at the Festival Concert Hall, the Texas Festival Orchestra will be held. The program will include Sensamaya, Concerto for Viola and Orchestra (2011-12), and Symphony No. 8, Op. 88. Linus Lerner will conduct. Admission is $30 for adults and $10 for students.
This year’s festival also marks the return of renowned viola soloist and Houston native Brett Deubner, who will perform in the orchestra on the June 18. Violist Deubner graduated from Houston's very own High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and is a former student of the Round Top Festival Institute, one of this country's top music festivals where the top conservatory students from around the world come for six weeks to study and perform. As a concerto soloist on the viola, Deubner has had 30 concertos written and dedicated to him by such legendary composers as Lalo Schifrin, Richard Danielpour, and Samuel Adler. In constant demand as a soloist worldwide, Deubner also maintains a busy teaching schedule giving master classes as well as directing his own chamber music series in the New York metropolitan area where he lives with his wife and four children.
