Pro Musica of Detroit Presents Sphinx Soloists Unplugged: From Davos to Detroit
The concert stars cellist Sterling Elliott, winner of the 2019 Sphinx Competition Senior Division, and violinist Hannah White, winner of the 2015 Sphinx Competition Junior Division.
DETROIT, Feb. 21, 2019 – Continuing its 91-year tradition of presenting the finest music, Pro Musica of Detroit is proud to announce cellist Sterling Elliot and violinist Hannah White will perform a concert program entitled, “Sphinx Unplugged: From Davos to Detroit” on Friday, March 15 at the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center in Detroit. The concert performance begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube at The Max.
The artists will perform solo works and duets that range from the Baroque to the contemporary eras. Joining the artists in the program is virtuosa pianist Yuki Mack, who will accompany them on “One Foot in the Dark,” a new work by Detroit composer Harriet Steinke among other pieces.
The performance marks the first Pro Musica appearance for Elliott, 1st Prize Laureate of the 2019 Sphinx Competition Senior Division, and White, Laureate of the 2015 Sphinx Competition Junior Division. The pair recently returned to compete in the 2019 Sphinx Competition, held Feb. 2 in Detroit, after a performing at the 2019 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Individual concert tickets are available for $45 for cabaret seating and $25 for theatre seating. Student tickets are free when accompanied by a paying adult.Tickets can be purchased online at promusicadetroit.com as well as by telephone through the Detroit Symphony Orchestra Box Office at (313) 576-5111.
Sterling Elliot was named First Place Laureate of the 22nd annual Sphinx Competition, held earlier this month in Detroit. In addition to the Robert Frederick Smith prize presented to the Senior Division winner, Mr. Elliot received the Audience Choice Award, sponsored by Mercedes-Benz Financial Services. Mr. Elliot is a student at The Juilliard School and has toured with the Sphinx Virtuosi, performed as a soloist with orchestras around the country, and played as a substitute cellist with the New York Philharmonic. He also has soloed with the Cleveland Symphony, Virginia Symphony, the New World Symphony, the Buffalo Philharmonic, the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra and other leading ensembles.
Hannah White is a 1st Place Laureate from the Sphinx Competition 2015 Junior Division. She has been a member of the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra String Orchestra, Philharmonia, and made the rare jump to Senior Symphony at age 11. She currently is a fellow at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy, a pre-college training program for highly gifted musicians. She has performed solo with many orchestras, including the Madison Symphony, Sphinx Symphony, and the Oistrakh Symphony of Chicago.
Joining Sterling and Hannah is Detroit composer Harriet Steinke. She currently organizes the Detroit Composers’ Project, a musical collaboration centered on facilitating performances of new music in the city of Detroit among area-based performers and composers.
In addition to Steinke’s One Foot in the Dark, the evening will include performances by Sterling and Hannah of pieces by J.S. Bach, Spanish cellist Gaspar Cassadó, Norwegian violinist Johann Halvorsen, Belgian violinist Eugène Ysaÿe, and Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály, whose work was performed by Béla Bartók during the very first Pro Musica of Detroit concert on Feb. 19, 1928.
Pro Musica’s Next Concert
Completing the 2018-2019 Pro Musica of Detroit concert season is the Joel Peterson Ensemble on May 10, 2019. A composer, musician, and art facilitator based in Detroit, Joel Peterson has explored and encompassed methods of music-making from traditional and popular forms to experimental and classical works. Mr. Peterson’s compositions have been performed by members of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Michigan Opera Theatre and New Music Detroit, which performed in 2017 for Pro Musica of Detroit. This season’s program features works by Mr. Peterson for classic chamber ensembles, including his 2011 work, Freedom of Assembly.
About Pro Musica of Detroit
Now in its 92nd season, Pro Musica of Detroit is the city’s oldest presenter of chamber music. Past artists have included some of the most well-known names in classical music including: composers Béla Bartók, Maurice Ravel, Aaron Copland, William Bolcom and Michael Daugherty; and musicians Joshua Bell, Jessye Norman, Amit Peled, Benjamin Grosvenor, and Michigan’s own emerging classical star, Ivan Moshchuk.
The Pro Musica experience represents a unique part of Detroit’s cultural heritage connecting audiences directly with musicians since 1928. With the intimate venue of The Cube, audience members are able to sit in cabaret style seating that is in close proximity to the performer. Also unique to Pro Musica is that artists are encouraged to speak directly to the audience about the works and composers they are performing. Afterwards, audience members enjoy the opportunity to mingle with the artists and other audience members at an Afterglow reception. For more information, please visit promusicadetroit.com.