Schumann and Romanticism (ABQ)

ALBUQUERQUE, NM - Sehnsucht! It’s the German word for longing, yearning, the desired experience that’s just out of reach … and it perfectly describes the feeling that pervades the music of Robert Schumann. During the program, conductor Oliver Prezant, violist Kim Fredenburgh, and pianist Judith Gordon with introduce you to Schumann's Märchenbilder (Fairytale Pictures) for Viola and Piano. We'll take time with the nuances that make this music so poignant and expressive, and you'll have a chance to share your thoughts and feelings with the performers as we open our ourselves to the heartache and the manic exuberance of early Romanticism. At the end of the evening, we'll hear the music performed in its entirety.

"What I love about these programs is the opportunity to delve into the nuances of the music together with the audience," said conductor and arts educator Oliver Prezant. "It's what we do in rehearsals - starting, stopping, discussing, trying things in different ways, and exploring the kaleidoscopic possibilities for expression. Bringing the listeners into that process, letting everyone experience the weights and balances of different pacing, color, and emphasis heightens the awareness of the music and the feeling in the room. 

"Kim and Judith are marvelous musicians who understand the give and take that this music requires - it lingers, it rushes forward, it ebbs and flows," said Prezant. "A program like this can be special for the performers as well. Rarely do they get a chance to play for an audience that has explored the intimate details of the music in this way.

"Just ... bring your handkerchiefs, that's all I'm saying."

The ALBUQUERQUE program takes place on Friday, November 8, 7-8:30 at Robertson & Sons Violin Shop, 3201 Carlisle Blvd. NE. 

For tickets to Schumann and Romanticism, click on BUY TICKETS at the top of this page. 

Special thanks to Robertson & Sons Violin Shop for hosting this event. 

Thanks to our generous donors: Ruth Burstrom and Niels Chapman; Alice and Bill Fienning; Susan and Steven J. Goldstein; Bernhard Holzapfel, in memory of Barbara Holzapfel; Sherry Parker; Martha Ritchie, and Barbara Servis.

Thanks also to our sponsors: KHFM; KUNM; and Allegra Printing.

Program and artists subject to change. 

This program is presented by Opus OP Arts and Education Projects.

Please support Opus OP Arts and Education Projects with an additional donation at checkout! 

Your charitable donation supports unique programs like this one, as well in-school programs and free workshops for public school teachers. Your donation is tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. 

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Artist biographies follow. 

Photo credits:

Conductor and arts educator Oliver Prezant: Ruthanne Greeley

Violist Kim Fredenburgh: Wes Naman photography

Pianist Judith Gordon: Crystal Tompkins
Oliver Prezant working with Milagro Middle School Band Students: Clarissa Riggins

Artist Biographies:

Violist Kimberly Fredenburgh, originally from New York, was Professor of Viola and the Head of the String area at the University of New Mexico.  Ms. Fredenburgh has been featured as a soloist and chamber musician across the United States, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Brazil, Ecuador, Argentina, Mexico, Canada, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Italy and Monaco. She is the Principal Violist of The Santa Fe Symphony and the Santa Fe Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra and is Assistant Principal with the New Mexico Philharmonic. She has performed many seasons with the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Santa Fe Opera and the Santa Fe Desert Chorale and is a regular performer on the Chatter, Placitas and Albuquerque Chamber Soloist series. She served on the faculty at Arizona State University while also performing as Associate Principal of the Phoenix Symphony for seven years. She was a Principal Violist in the New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas. She has delivered pedagogical papers and performed at several national string conferences and international competitions. Her interest in contemporary music has resulted in the creation of many new works for her instrument.

Pianist Judith Gordon explores diverse repertoire in collaboration with a wide range of instrumentalists and singers. Featured at festivals including Apple Hill, Bard, Charlottesville, Music Mountain, Santa Fe, Spoleto, Tanglewood, and Music from Salem, she was soloist with the Boston Pops, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and others, and a member of the percussion-based ensemble Essential Music. A graduate of New England Conservatory, where she received an Outstanding Alumni Award, Gordon was an associate professor of music at Smith College from 2006-20. Now based in New Mexico, she plays often with Chatter and other groups. 

Conductor and arts educator Oliver Prezant is the executive and artistic director of Opus OP Arts and Education Projects, which provides unique programs for listeners, musicians, and teachers in northern New Mexico. A popular lecturer for The Santa Fe Opera for many years, he has also presented lectures and education programs for arts organizations including the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the National Hispanic Cultural Center, Performance Santa Fe, the Tanglewood Association of Volunteers, Road Scholar, the Guilds of the Santa Fe and San Francisco Opera companies. In addition, he has presented programs on the relationship of art and music for the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, the Albuquerque Museum of Art, the New Mexico Museum of Art, and the Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art. As the music director and conductor of the Santa Fe Community Orchestra for twenty years, he worked with community musicians and choristers, professional soloists, public school music students, composers, creative artists, and community partners from Santa Fe and northern New Mexico to present a wide variety of innovative performances, unique education programs, and community collaborations. His notable compositions include The Butterfly (La Mariposa)for storyteller and orchestra, songs in a variety of genres, and educational pieces for student ensembles. Oliver was one of the founding teaching artists in Partners in Education’s ArtWorks Program, a Lincoln Center-inspired arts education program which provides workshops for Santa Fe Public Schools students and teachers in the areas of music, poetry, visual art, theater, and dance. As the artistic advisor to the program, he trained teaching artists and classroom teachers, and coordinated with area poets, museums, and other arts organizations. He studied at the Mannes College of Music in New York City and the Pierre Monteux School for conductors in Hancock, Maine, and was an Assistant Professor in the Contemporary Music Program at the College of Santa Fe and an instructor at Santa Fe University of Art and Design.