By Matthew Young, RealWV
“Gershwin Meets Brahms,” the second concert of Barbara Nissman’s three-part Music Classic Series, was held at the Culture Center Theatre in Charleston on Thursday. However, unlike the first show’s solo performance, the second concert of the Music Classic Series saw Nissman accompanied on stage by the Montclaire String Quartet.
“It was a different concert than the first one in March,” Nissman said after Thursday’s performance. “The Montclaire String Quartet brought another wonderful element to the music.”
Now in their 33rd. season as West Virginia’s premier string quartet, the Montclaire musicians currently serve as Artists-in-Residence to the Kanawha County School system, as well as the West Virginia Symphony Regional Outreach Program. Previously, they have served as Artists-in-Residence to West Virginia State University and the West Virginia Symphony.
Nissman is, of course, a world renowned concert pianist, who has been hailed as “one of the last pianists in the grand romantic tradition of Liszt, Rachmaninoff, and Rubinstein.” Already chosen as a member of the inaugural class of Steinway Legends, Nissman will be a 2023 inductee into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. Nissman is also the recipient of the Governor’s Distinguished Service to the Arts Award, as well as West Virginia’s Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award.
Nissman, along with the Montclaire String Quartet, will perform at Lewisburg’s Carnegie Hall on Saturday, March 18 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the Carnegie Hall performance are $20 per person. Nissman will next perform at Carnegie Hall on Saturday, May 13.
The final show of the Music Classic Series will be held at the Culture Center in Charleston, on Tuesday, May 16. The performance, “Schubert Goes Fishing,” will feature Nissman, along with the “Trout” Quintet, and will be a musical exploration of Composer Franz Schubert. Admission to performances at the Culture Center is free.
