Classics in the Cave – world renowned musicians to perform at Naracoorte
Latest concert continues mission to bring performances of classical music to rural communities in Australia
Violinist Jonathon Glonek and violist Heidi von Bernewitz will present a weekend of classical music at the world heritage Naracoorte Caves on 12 and 13 November 2022.
The candlelit performances will take advantage of the unique acoustics of the caves.
“The dirt floor and contours of the cave ceiling contour combine to create a highly unique acoustic dynamic,” Jonathan says.
“When I first played there I was worried there would be an echo, but there was none. Instead the cave becomes an extension of the instrument and enhances the sound in new, beautiful and unexpected ways.
“It offers endless opportunities to explore the outer limits of the instrument,” Jonathon says.
“The sharp clear focus delivers all the subtle nuance with a level of clarity and projection rarely experienced in formal concert halls.”
Jonathon, an internationally renowned violin virtuoso, and Heidi, a graduate of Yale University and a core member the Baltimore Symphony for 17 years, perform together regularly.
This is their second performance together at Naracoorte.
“The pairing of the violin and the viola with its deeper more mellow voice, can be hauntingly beautiful,” Heidi says.
On Saturday 12 November the pair will present the seldom-performed duos by Ignace Pleyel, the second duet in B flat by Mozart, 12 pieces by Robert Fuchs.
“Fuchs is a recent discovery for us. Each of these short pieces immediately envelops and takes hold of the audience,” Heidi says.
Jonathon will then present a second recital on Sunday, 13 November which consisting of unaccompanied Bach featuring the B minor partita D Minor partita and C major Sonata.
Following the performances at Naracoorte, Jonathon will continue his project to bring Australia’s finest musicians, playing the world’s most important classical music, to rural and regional audiences who otherwise would not have the opportunity to hear it.
“Classical music is a great gift to everyone, but there are not that many opportunities to hear it in the Bush,” says Glonek. “I am trying to change that by bringing work that is not often played even in the cities to rural and regional audiences.”
He will play a series of programs featuring the 24 Caprices of Paganini in Bordertown in South Australia, and the Victorian towns of Nhill, Horsham, Stawell, Kyneton and Heathcote between 15-20 November.
From 23-25 November he will perform a program of unaccompanied Bach in the Gippsland towns of Warragul, Sale, Lakes Entrance.
“Bach and Paganini, diametrically opposed, are the cornerstones of the violin repertoire,” Jonathan says.
“These works were always the source of obsessive focus and attendant angst as students. But they were indispensable and, as I have found in performance, totally engaging entertainment.
“You don’t need to know anything about music to enjoy these pieces”
On 27 November he will present another solo program in Merimbula NSW featuring a recently composed work by Ukranian composer Mikhail Shukh. The fantasy-styled work is a solo adaptation of Rimsky Korsakov’s famous symphonic work Scheherezade.
“I was playing concerts in Kyiv and met Mikhail in 2002. I immediately spotted his masterful style in composing for strings,” Jonathan says.
“I suggested he write this piece for solo violin. As a very fine violinist himself, he really took the ball and ran with it. When I received the score it took quite some years and several attempts before I was able to confidently get around the piece. But it is a highly charged spectacular work that I believe will become firmly entrenched in the reptertoire.”
ABOUT JONATHON GLONEK
Jonathon began touring internationally at the age of 12 and has since developed as a gifted violinist and serious performer. He has presented many challenging and serious programs in solo performances throughout Europe, The United States, Southeast Asia and in Australia.
He has also worked extensively organising and promoting serious classical repertoire to novice audiences in the belief that this can be accessed as a valuable experience by anyone. In particular has been strongly committed in bringing performance of classical music to rural communities in Australia and underprivileged communities in Southeast Asia who would not normally have this opportunity to hear such music.
He has given charity performances to local communities in Thailand and in Vientiane, Laos.
Glonek moved to Los Angeles, aged 17, at the invitation of Russian-born American violinist and teacher Jascha Heifetz, to pursue serious musical studies while at UCLA on scholarship. He went on to study in the US and Europe with Alexander Treger, Tibor Varga, and Raymond Montoni. which gave Glonek a unique perspective encompassing on the philosophies of the great figures in 20th century string playing; Auer, Flesch, Casals and Ysaye.
As a performer Jonathon Glonek enjoys an unusually broad and flexible repertoire. He is recognised for his intense personal style in presenting dramatic and impactful accounts of these works. In the course of his performances he has attracted strong critical acclaim for live performances across the range of this repertoire from J.S. Bach, classical sonatas, the romantic virtuoso medium and 20th century works.
ABOUT HEIDI VON BERNEWITZ
Violist Heidi Von Bernewitz is a native of Arlington Virginia but now based in Adelaide. A graduate of the prestigious Yale University, she studied with some of the great violists of the time including Wolfram Christ, Michael Zaretsky, Atar Arad, Jesse Levine
and Nobuko Imai
Heidi was a core member the highly respected Baltimore Symphony a position she held for 17years. She has also featured as an artist with the Halle and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestras, the London Philharmonic and English ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Opera, as well as at festivals including Glyndebourne, the London Proms, the Edinburgh Festival, Cabrillo, Aspen, Tanglewood, EMF, Schleswig Holstein Music Festival, St. Endellion, and the Rencontres Musicales Internationales des Graves. She has been a historical performer with London Classical Opera, Modern Musick of Washington DC.
Heidi is a frequent chamber musician, and has performed solo recitals in the U.S., U.K., Scandinavia, and Australia, and recorded for Deutsche Grammaphon, Sony Classical, Telarc, EMI, Naxos, and ABC.
