Past Concerts

Violin and Piano Sonatas with Monica Ohuchi

Adjudicator

A follow-up to Ombra Musici II, brings the audience inside PSU’s Lincoln Recital Hall to experience live music for solo violin with engaging and minimalistic magical lights effects. 

PSU Violin Professor Tomás Cotik collaborates with PSU School of Music and Theater student, Ronnie Rantis, for this multidisciplinary experience combining modern technology and classical music. The traditional concert experience is expanded through lights, shadows, movement, and optical illusions to bring new life and contemporary relevance to classical music and communicate innovatively with the community. 

In this Concert, acclaimed violinist Tomás Cotik presents works from his new albums of Bach and Telemann, sharing his ongoing exploration into historical performance style. The program will feature Bach’s Partita N. 2 for solo violin, a Bach Cello Suite transcription, and Telemann Fantasias for Solo Violin.

Works by Bach and Telemann

In early February, the Portland Winter Light Festival returns to the city. This time, attendees will be treated to a magical, ephemeral experience of music in a most unexpected location. Visitors to PSU’s Urban Plaza will be able to look up from the street to see (and hear) a giant color video projection of acclaimed violinist Tomás Cotik, professor of violin at the School of Music & Theater, playing selections by Bach, Telemann, Piazzolla, and Tárrega.

The project, which runs Feb. 3-5, is titled “Ombra Musici II” (“musician’s shadow” in Italian), and is the result of a collaboration between Cotik and Dave Colangelo, a professor of digital creation and communication at Ryerson University. The team received a National Endowment for the Arts grant to produce the project, which expands on “Ombra Musici,” presented at the 2019 Portland Winter Light Festival, where moving silhouettes of musicians were projected onto the PSU Library facade.

“Life has been radically altered by the effects of the pandemic,” says Cotik, who notes that, while arts activities in particular were halted during COVID-19, the human need for catharsis, comfort, and entertainment only grew. With this project, Cotik aims to surprise and delight viewers with a performance of classical music that can be experienced alone or in communion with other festival-goers—offering a moment of beauty and solace at the darkest time of winter.

“I am convinced that as musicians, an important responsibility lies in our involvement with our community, passing on our passion, and giving back,” says Cotik. “For him, the project embodies of PSU’s motto—Let knowledge serve the city—by sharing the beauty and healing qualities of music with Portland and its citizens. Feb. 3-5, 2023 at PSU Urban Plaza.

The Fiddler on the Roof

In early February, the Portland Winter Light Festival returns to the city. This time, attendees will be treated to a magical, ephemeral experience of music in a most unexpected location. Visitors to PSU’s Urban Plaza will be able to look up from the street to see (and hear) a giant color video projection of acclaimed violinist Tomás Cotik, professor of violin at the School of Music & Theater, playing selections by Bach, Telemann, Piazzolla, and Tárrega.

The project, which runs Feb. 3-5, is titled “Ombra Musici II” (“musician’s shadow” in Italian), and is the result of a collaboration between Cotik and Dave Colangelo, a professor of digital creation and communication at Ryerson University. The team received a National Endowment for the Arts grant to produce the project, which expands on “Ombra Musici,” presented at the 2019 Portland Winter Light Festival, where moving silhouettes of musicians were projected onto the PSU Library facade.

“Life has been radically altered by the effects of the pandemic,” says Cotik, who notes that, while arts activities in particular were halted during COVID-19, the human need for catharsis, comfort, and entertainment only grew. With this project, Cotik aims to surprise and delight viewers with a performance of classical music that can be experienced alone or in communion with other festival-goers—offering a moment of beauty and solace at the darkest time of winter.

“I am convinced that as musicians, an important responsibility lies in our involvement with our community, passing on our passion, and giving back,” says Cotik. “For him, the project embodies of PSU’s motto—Let knowledge serve the city—by sharing the beauty and healing qualities of music with Portland and its citizens. Feb. 3-5, 2023 at PSU Urban Plaza.

The Fiddler on the Roof

In early February, the Portland Winter Light Festival returns to the city. This time, attendees will be treated to a magical, ephemeral experience of music in a most unexpected location. Visitors to PSU’s Urban Plaza will be able to look up from the street to see (and hear) a giant color video projection of acclaimed violinist Tomás Cotik, professor of violin at the School of Music & Theater, playing selections by Bach, Telemann, Piazzolla, and Tárrega.

The project, which runs Feb. 3-5, is titled “Ombra Musici II” (“musician’s shadow” in Italian), and is the result of a collaboration between Cotik and Dave Colangelo, a professor of digital creation and communication at Ryerson University. The team received a National Endowment for the Arts grant to produce the project, which expands on “Ombra Musici,” presented at the 2019 Portland Winter Light Festival, where moving silhouettes of musicians were projected onto the PSU Library facade.

“Life has been radically altered by the effects of the pandemic,” says Cotik, who notes that, while arts activities in particular were halted during COVID-19, the human need for catharsis, comfort, and entertainment only grew. With this project, Cotik aims to surprise and delight viewers with a performance of classical music that can be experienced alone or in communion with other festival-goers—offering a moment of beauty and solace at the darkest time of winter.

“I am convinced that as musicians, an important responsibility lies in our involvement with our community, passing on our passion, and giving back,” says Cotik. “For him, the project embodies of PSU’s motto—Let knowledge serve the city—by sharing the beauty and healing qualities of music with Portland and its citizens. Feb. 3-5, 2023 at PSU Urban Plaza.

Live on Thursdays at Three with Christa Wessel

Violin Masterclass Open to the public. To play in the masterclass send a request to [email protected]

Barber: Overture to The School for Scandal
Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor
Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Opus 98

Issues of Interpretation in Baroque repertoire: An historically informed approach and the genesis of an individual interpretation

Following my recording of Bach and Telemann’s music for solo violin with a baroque bow and a violin with a modern setup, in this presentation I will discuss the contradictions between the opposing trends and traditions in baroque interpretation, and my personal solutions to them. I will analyze historical writings to try to understand the significance of the symbols and the technical and stylistic issues with the goal of capturing the composer’s intention and affect of the music. At the same, I will discuss performance parameters and examine how thinking in theorized categories of performers turns out to be problematic in understanding the constantly shifting, transforming, and evolving stylistic territories in the interpretation of this music.

Duos, Trios and Quartets by de Falla, Turina and Granados