Muse Flashes
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Euphonium
Euphonium player Phil Giampietro will perform with UMass faculty member Nikki Stoia on piano Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. in the Bezanson Recital Hall at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
In 2010, Giampietro placed first at the International Tuba-Euphonium Association's Artist Competition which resulted in a performance at the 2010 ITEA Conference. He has performed solos at the 2011 Northeast Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference and with the Symphonic Band and Concert Band at Ithaca College. He teaches instrumental music in Milford, Conn.
Tickets cost $10; $3 for UMass students; $5 for other students, children and seniors. To reserve, call 545-2511.
Fine Tuning
"Fine Tuning: Zero Balancing & Sustainable Bodies," an exhibit that focuses on the mind-body therapy called Zero Balancing, will open with a reception Feb. 21 from 5 to 7 p.m., and remain on view through March 16 at the Augusta Savage Gallery at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Through artwork and hands-on demonstrations every Friday from 1 to 4 p.m., gallery director Terry Jenoure, artist Alexia Cota and Zero Balancing practitioner Jenny Chapin invite guests to experience what they call "a new way to wellness."
"Energy moves in waves. When it gets stuck, Zero Balancing helps energy come up and let it go. Then, there's space on the inside. And we don't like that empty space so there is a tendency to want to fill it," Chapin explains. "ZB invites us to be okay with that open space."
A session of Zero Balancing usually lasts about 30 to 45 minutes and uses finger pressure and gentle traction on areas of tension on the body to create new points of balance that the body can relax and reorganize around. For information about the exhibit, call 545-5177
'The Annunciation'
"The Annunciation," a new exhibit by internationally acclaimed artist Eija-Liisa Ahtila, will open with a reception Feb. 22 from 5 to 7 p.m. and will remain on view through May 6 at the University Museum of Contemporary Art at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. There will be a panel discussion from 6 to 7 p.m.
Ahtila, who is from Finland, is a pioneer in the development of multi-media art. Her work explores the potential of the film medium, weaving an intricate web of references - between film and theater, painting and poetry, fiction and documentary.
"The Annunciation" is an installation of three projected images in which one of the central motifs of Christian iconography and Renaissance painting is constructed and re-enacted through moving image. In this Annunciation, the events are set in the present.
The installation consists of both material made during the preparation for shooting, as well as an actual reconstruction of the event of the Annunciation.
Ahtila has had solo exhibitions in Paris, Germany; Stockholm and New York City. She is a professor at the department of Time and Space-based Art at the Finnish Academy of Fine Art.
The museum is located in the UMass Fine Arts Center, 151 Presidents Drive in Amherst. Hours are Tuesdays through Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 2 to 5 p.m. Closed Mondays and during spring break (March 17-26). Admission is free.
Jazz magic
The 24th season of the Magic Triangle Jazz Series kicks off on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. in the Bezanson Recital Hall at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The double bill will feature Frank Lacy, Andrew Drury and Kevin Ray and the Ray Anderson Trio.
Trombone player Anderson straddles the fence between avant-garde and mainstream forms. He has played with such free jazz paragons as Henry Threadgill, Oliver Lake and Julius Hemphill, yet can also count Dizzy Gillespie and Abdullah Ibrahim among the prominent leaders for whom he has worked.
The Ray Anderson Trio features Anderson on trombone, Dean Johnson on bass and Eric McPherson on drums. Anderson has been named best trombonist in the Down Beat Critics Poll several times and has been called "the most exciting slide brass player of his generation" (The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD).
Tickets cost $12, $7 for students. To reserve, call the Fine Arts Center box office at 545-2511.
'Flights of Fancy'
The Pioneer Valley Symphony's mid-winter concert, "Flights of Fancy," will be held at Greenfield High School, located on Lenox Street, Feb 18 at 7:30 p.m.
The featured soloist will be Elena Urioste, a violin player who graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music and has been a member of the New York Philharmonic since October. Urioste has been praised for her "expressive poise," "lyrical sensitivity" and "hypnotic delicacy."
She will perform the Beethoven Violin Concerto with PVS Music Director Paul Phillips. The concert also includes Igor Stravinsky's "Four Norwegian Moods," Samuel Barber's "Night Flight" and the Massachusetts premier of Vermont composer Zeke Hecker's 3rd symphony.
Tickets cost $20 adults; $17 seniors/students; and $6 children under 18. To purchase, visit www.pvso.org.
There will be two events catered to violin students before the concert: a workshop on practice techniques at the Northampton Community Music Center with featured soloist Elena Urioste and a chance to attend the concert's dress rehearsal. For information, call 773-3664.
