UPCOMING PERFORMANCES and MASTER CLASSES:

January 14: New England Conservatory Preparatory Department

January 17: Boston University

January18: Youth Symphony of New York City

February 5: Eastman School Recital with Barry Snyder

March 2-4: adjudicate Schadt Competition (Allentown PA)

March 5: University of Western Ontario

March 9: Musical Feast (Buffalo NY)

March 22-24: adjudicate Crescendo Competition (Tulsa OK)

March 25-27: Texas Tech (residency--recital and classes)

March 29: North Texas University

March 31: Nacogdoches TX

April 13: Music Feast (Buffalo NY)

April 21-22: Hong Kong Children's Symphony Orchestra (Tchaikovsky)

April 29: R.I.T. Orchestra (Rochester) (David Amram)

-----

November 22: Mokpo (Korea) Symphony Orchestra (Brahms)

 

recent reviews

A Musical Feast, Burchfield Gallery, Buffalo NY 

Performance Date April 10, 2011        Publish Date April 11,2011

.....Claudia Hoca and Charles Castleman served up a performance of César Franck’s only contribution to the form that reminded everyone just why live concerts can never be replaced by any technology. Seeing the music-making—Castleman’s incredible bow arm, his weaving through the chromatically driven melodic heights; Hoca’s unrelenting thrust and parry, taming the Baldwin and ensuring that the ensemble became a four-handed singular entity—greatly enhanced the constant pleasure of hearing it.

The “Allegretto ben moderato” magnificently set the stage for the road ahead. Beautifully sculpted lines had everyone intrigued and entranced at once; spectacular was the build-up and then gritty execution of the con tutta forza—the emotional gloves were off. Unforgettable from stem to stern was the following “Allegro”—one feared Castleman’s bow wouldn’t just lose a few more hairs but actually burst into flame. The spontaneous “incorrect” applause was greeted with a knowing wink from the artist.

Quite rightly, a vrai standing ovation greeted the final bar. This truly shared experience was the perfect finish to a concert that most successfully dared mix the unfamiliar with instantly accessible art. Can’t wait for  Charles Haupt’s next “feast.” JWR (The James Wegg Review)...International Directory of Fine Arts and Film

http://www.jamesweggreview.org/Articles.aspx?ID=1409

Review:

Dynamic performance closes music series

The highlight of Monday's concert was the Franck sonata, played by violinist Charles Castleman and pianist Doris Stevenson.One of the great violin sonatas of the late 19th century, and one of the very few written by a French composer (although Franck was Belgian by birth, he spent his life in Paris), the A major Sonata is symphonic in scope. Written for Eugene Ysaye, it's an ambitious work, and it delivers quite a punch when played by the right violinist.

And Castleman is certainly the right one. There is hardly anyone better to take this work on and deliver a dynamic performance. And pairing him with Stevenson was a stroke of good fortune. Her rich, sonorous playing matched Castleman's and captured the lushness of the score.

The opening Allegretto is quite langorous, and the duo's seamless playing brought a freedom of expression that gave this movement definition and character. It was wonderfully crafted and executed.The two middle movements are much bolder than the first, and the two played the second movement Allegro broadly but without missing any of the drama and intensity, while the Recitativo-Fantasia was played with dramatic flair that nevertheless didn't ovelook the intimacy of the music with its finely crafted interplay between the two instruments.This interplay carries over into the closing Allegretto, and Castleman and Stevenson brought some delightful lyricism to their account that underscored the expressiveness and fluidity of the music.

DESERET MORNING NEWS (Salt Lake City UT) Edward Reichel