“Up Close with Naha Greenholtz,” September 15

Sunday, September 15, 2 p.m.

Rock Island Public Library – Midtown-Watts Branch, 2715 30th Street, Rock Island IL

Treating guests to a lovely afternoon of classical music in the Rock Island Public Library's Watts-Midtown Branch on September 15, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra's Up Close with Naha Greenholtz will find the QCSO Concertmasters and pianist Marian Lee Naha Greenholtz and pianist Marian Lee leading music lovers on a journey through diverse emotional landscapes and cultural expressions, their repertoire boasting works by Sergei Prokofiev, George Gershwin, and Angel Lam.

Canadian violinist Greenholtz was born in Kyoto, Japan, where she began her musical studies at age three. Since her solo debut at 14, concerto appearances include engagements with the Vancouver, Madison, Quad City, Burnaby, Kelowna, and National Repertory Orchestras in works ranging from Bach to Stravinsky. She has also participated in prominent music festivals throughout the U.S. and Europe, including at Maine's Kneisel Hall, New Mexico's Taos, Italy's Spoleto, Switzerland's Lucerne, and the New York String Orchestra Seminar at Carnegie Hall. Greenholtz has also had an active career as an orchestra musician. In addition to her duties as Concertmaster of both the QCSO and the Madison Symphony Orchestra, her performance highlights include guest concertmaster appearances with the Oregon Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, National Ballet of Canada, Omaha Symphony, and Memphis Symphony, among many others.

An Assistant Professor of Piano at St. Ambrose University who received her Doctor of Musical Arts at Baltimore's Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University, Lee made her New York debut at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall as the 1995 winner of the Artist International Award. She went on to serve as a soloist and chamber performer in Italy, France, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Poland, Russia, Thailand, and Hong Kong, as well as in major cities throughout the United States. Lee has made numerous appearances at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and performed an exclusive recital in the Hermitage Theater at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia, and also played piano in a nationally televised broadcast from Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow. Additionally, Lee helped develop Moscow Nights, a first-time collaboration between the music and Russian-language departments at the University of Delaware, and served as president of the Delaware Music Teachers Association.

In the Up Close with Naha Greenholtz program, Sergei Prokofiev’s powerful Violin Sonata No. 1 features brooding melodies and complex rhythms, highlighting the technical prowess and expressive depth of both Greenholtz and Lee. Jascha Heifetz’s arrangement of selections from George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess captures the essence of this iconic American opera. And Angel Lam’s deeply personal Mist of the Scented Harbour reflects on the composer’s impressions of Hong Kong’s past and present.

The Up Close with Naha Greenholtz performance will take place at the Rock Island Public Library's Watts-Midtown Branch on September 15, admission to the 2 p.m. concert event is $13-31, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)322-0931 and visiting QCSO.org.