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a Classical Concert Honors Van Cliburn

His Mentor Lived, Died In Kew Gdns.

The Lhevinne Classical Concert Series returns to The Center at Maple Grove in Kew Gardens tomorrow night, Friday, Mar. 8-and the first performance will pay tribute to the late classical pianist Van Cliburn, who died last week.

Van Cliburn is pictured with his mentor Rosina Lhevinne at the piano in this photo provided by the Friends of Maple Grove Cemetery. Cliburn, the classical pianist who rose to fame in 1958 when he won the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow, died last Wednesday, Feb. 27. Lhevinne is a former Kew Gardens resident who is buried at Maple Grove Cemetery. The Center at Maple Grove will be sponsoring a concert paying tribute to Cliburn and Lhevinne tomorrow night, Mar. 8.

The Lhevinne Classical Concert Series is named for world-class pianists Josef and Rosina Lhevinne, who are interred at Maple Grove Cemetery. After they immigrated to the U.S. from Russia, they started their celebrated teaching careers in 1924 at The Juilliard School. Some famous pupils included the late Van Cliburn and Oscar-winning composer John Williams.

The Mar. 8 concert is now dedicated to the memory of Cliburn, a pupil of master teachers and Kew Gardens residents Josef and Rosina Lhevinne, who died last Wednesday, Feb. 27 at the age of 78.

Sponsored by the Friends of Maple Grove Cemetery, the evening of tributes will begin at 6:30 p.m. p.m. at The Center at Maple Grove, located 127-15 Kew Gardens Rd. Free parking on premises; handicapped accessible.

At 6:30 p.m. in the center’s community room, there will be a viewing of the 2003 documentary The Legacy of Rosina Lhevinne, which features interviews with Cliburn, williams and other notable names in music. The film offers a portrait of the life and achievements of Rosina Lhevinne, her years of study at the Moscow Conservatory of Music, her marriage to the famous pianist Josef Lhevinne, her devastation and recovery following her husband’s death and her productive life between ages 65 and 96.

Following a wine and cheese receiption outside Celebration Hall at 7:30 p.m., the concert will begin at 8 p.m.

This year’s Lhevinne Classical Concert is a Supernova Production and features the dynamic international ensemble of some of the finest musicians in New York, The Lautreamont String Quartet, formed in 2005 by violinist Steven Zynszajn. The musicians include some of his closest colleagues from The Juilliard School. They have performed over 40 programs throughout the New York area, of the sort one might have encountered in a golden age of classical music.

The hour-long performance, with a 10-minute intermission, features The Lautreamont String Quartet: Francisco Salazar, violin; Steven Zynszajn, violin; Whitney La Grange, viola; Adrian Daurov, cello, performing Brahms’ String Quartet #2 in A Minor and a Bach Concerto with a small ensemble.

The New York Sun praised Lautreamont Concerts for the “quality of its interpreters,” and Time Out NY selected one of its concerts as a Critics’ Pick in February 2010.

Steven Zynszajn, violinist and Artistic Director, was born in Evanston, Ill., and grew up in France. He has performed throughout Europe and the U.S. as a soloist with orchestras in France and the U.S. in concertos by Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Wieniawski and Goldmark. As the founder and director of Lautreamont Concerts. He has appeared at the French Consulate, The New York Historical Society and on WNYC in New York, Radio Classique in France, and Good Morning America on ABC.

Francisco Eloy Salazar started performing as a concert violinist from an early age in his native Venezuela. He has toured North and South America and Europe with The Simon Bolivar Orchestra of Venezuela. He has been guest concertmaster of the Harrisburg and Lancaster Symphonies as well as the Jupiter Symphony and The Juilliard Orchestra and has performed chamber music in many venues including Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie’s Weill Hall and others in New York and Washington, D.C. He currently resides in New York City.

Whitney La Grange, viola, is from Mission, Tex. She received her Bachelor’s of Music degree from The Juilliard School. She also attended Yale University on full scholarship. She recorded the Bartok and Beethoven String Quartets as first violinist of the St. Augustine String Quartet. Her latest recording is Panic by Drew Krause on the CD, Powder, by Innova Records. She currently lives in New York.

Adrian Daurov, cellist, was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and studied at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He made his orchestra debut in 1997 with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra and has appeared as a soloist on the main concert stages of the U.S. In June 2007, Daurov was appointed the Principal Cellist of The Chamber Orchestra of New York. The following June, he was featured in a Gala concert in celebration of Russia’s Independence Day at Carnegie Hall.

There is limited seating available For tickets or more information, call the Friends of Maple Grove Cemetery at 1-347-878-6614 or visit www.friendsofmaplegrove.org.