Steven Greenman's Fiddle Madness, Akron, OH, 29 Mar 2009
The Akron Symphony's Odyssey Series comes to a close with Fiddle Madness on
Sunday, March 29 at 3 p.m. The concert will explore the history of the
violin from the fiddle to the Stradivarius. Noted klezmer violinist Steven Greenman and 14-year old phenom Chad Hoopes will perform with the orchestra
alongside the Western Reserve Suzuki School under director Marlene Moses.
Akron Symphony Associate conductor Christopher James Lees will conduct the
concert. Steven will be performing his own arrangement for violin and chamber
orchestra of the Hutsul Fantasy (by V. Popadiuk), a suite of folk melodies
from western Ukraine in addition to leading the Western Reserve Suzuki
School with his klezmer string arrangements.
Fiddle Madness will be preceded by activities for kids in the E.J. Thomas Hall lobbies as well as a special silent auction of violins that have been painted and decorated by local student artists transforming them into one of a kind works of art. A preview photo gallery of the violins can be viewed here. Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Akron Youth Orchestras.
To purchase tickets, or for more information, please call the Akron Symphony ticket office at (330) 535-8131 or purchase online at Ticketmaster.com. Single tickets for Fiddle Madness are $15 for adults and $10 for children ages 12 and under.
Internationally recognized as one of the finest practitioners of the East European Jewish klezmer violin, Steven Greenman has been a regular guest soloist with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra performing his own arrangements of traditional East European Gypsy violin and klezmer music. Steven has produced and recorded Stempenyu's Dream which contains his original Jewish and klezmer compositions. Greenman has also performed at the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, Poland and at Toronto's Ashkenaz-A Festival of New Yiddish Culture.
Chad Hoopes, winner of the first prize in the Young Artists Division of the 2008 Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition-earning him the title of "World's Best Young Violinist," will be making his debut with the Akron Symphony. Hoopes has been seen on national television with appearances on CBS' Early Show and PBS' From the Top. Locally, Chad was seen in an Emmy-winning TV commercial for the Cleveland Indians. Later this year, Chad will perform with the Cincinnati Pops for a recording project for Telarc.