Kaua‘i Community College Performing Arts Center
Kaua‘i Community College Performing Arts Center
Saturday, September 7, 2024
7:00 pm
What: KCA celebrates its 50th Anniversary
When: Saturday, September 7, 7 pm
Details: KCA celebrates its 50th Anniversary with a never-been-done-on-Kauai performance of Gustav Holstʻs, The Planets, arranged by George Morton for chamber orchestra. Tax-deductible sponsorship opportunities for this event are here: Please click here.
Join us for this exciting collaboration between professional Kauai and Hawaii Symphony Orchestra musicians.
Proclamation before the show by Mayor Derek Kawakami to commemorate KCA's 50th year.
They will be conducted by the internationally acclaimed conductor, Tito Muñoz.VIP tickets limited to 100 and include a backstage reception with the artists after the show.
Tickets: buy tickets here
VIP $100
General Admission Adult $40
Student General Admission $20
Monday, September 9, 2024
7:00 pm
What: Thunder from Down Under
When: Monday, September 9, 7pm
Tickets: Buy tickets here.
Details: Heralded as the #1 Male Revue in the world, Australia’s Thunder from Down Under has been performing for audiences for over three decades. Their unmatched Australian charm and talent have earned them a dedicated global following, making them one of the most sought-after live shows in the entertainment industry.
This all-Aussie line-up features a production filled with heart-pounding dance numbers, sensational costumes, and interactive audience engagement. With a mix of classic routines and innovative acts, Thunder from Down Under promises a night of excitement and thrill that will leave audiences on the edge of their seats.
All sales are final. There are no refunds or exchanges.
Tuesday, October 15, 2024
What: The Great Race
When: Tuesday, October 15, 2024
Details: By Reiko Ho
Celebrate Chinese New Year and learn how each animal earned its place in the Chinese Zodiac by taking part in The Great Race. Which animals win the race? Why do the Rat and Cat become enemies? This re-telling of one of the most beloved tales in Chinese folklore features traditional Chinese music, Jingju and martial arts.
Features: Traditional folktales, Chinese music and movement Ages 5+
For School Group Inquiries contact Honolulu Theatre for Youth at 808-839-9885 ex 701 and schools@htyweb.org
Thursday, November 7, 2024
6:00 pm
What: Escher String Quartet
When: Thursday, November 7, 2024⋅6:00 pm doors open 7:00 pm
Tickets: Buy tickets here.
Details: The Escher String Quartet has received acclaim for its profound musical insight and rare tonal beauty. A former BBC New Generation Artist and recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, the quartet has performed at the BBC Proms at Cadogan Hall and is a regular guest at Wigmore Hall. In its home town of New York, the ensemble serves as season artists of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.
The 2023-2024 season finds the Escher Quartet embarking upon a major project-performances of the complete cycle of quartets by Bela Bartók, culminating in a single concert performance of all six at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. The first-ever performance of all six Bartók quartets in chronological order was given by the Emerson String Quartet in March 1981, also at Alice Tully Hall, in honor of Bartók’s centenary year.
Beyond Bartók, the Escher’s will return to many of the illustrious music centers and organizations in America, such as the Kennedy Center, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Phoenix Chamber Music Society, Duke University, Coleman Chamber Music Association, and Savannah Music Festival, among others.
The Escher Quartet has made a distinctive impression throughout Europe, with recent debuts including the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Berlin Konzerthaus, London’s Kings Place, Slovenian Philharmonic Hall, Les Grands Interprètes Geneva, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and Auditorium du Louvre. The group has appeared at festivals such as the Heidelberg Spring Festival, Budapest’s Franz Liszt Academy, Dublin’s Great Music in Irish Houses, the Risør Chamber Music Festival in Norway, the Hong Kong International Chamber Music Festival, and the Perth International Arts Festival in Australia. Alongside its growing European profile, the Escher Quartet continues to flourish in its home country, performing at the Aspen Music Festival, Bravo! Vail, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Bowdoin Music Festival, Toronto Summer Music, Chamber Music San Francisco, Music@Menlo, and the Ravinia and Caramoor festivals.
The 2022-2023 season saw the release of two albums - string quartets by Pierre Jalbert and the Escher’s studio recording of the complete Janacek quartets and Pavel Haas quartet no. 2 with multi award winning percussionist Colin Currie (BIS Label). Recordings of the complete Mendelssohn quartets and beloved romantic quartets of Dvorak, Borodin and Tchaikovsky were released on the BIS label in 2015-18 and received with the highest critical acclaim, with comments such as “...eloquent, full-blooded playing... The four players offer a beautiful blend of individuality and accord” (BBC Music Magazine). In 2019, DANCE, an album of quintets with Grammy award winning guitarist Jason Vieaux, was enthusiastically received. In 2021, the Escher’s recording of the complete quartets of Charles Ives and Samuel Barber was met with equal excitement, including “A fascinating snapshot of American quartets, with a recording that is brilliantly detailed, this is a first-rate release all around” (Strad Magazine). The quartet has also recorded the complete Zemlinsky String Quartets in two volumes, released on the Naxos label in 2013 and 2014.
Beyond the concert hall, the Escher Quartet is proud to announce the creation of a not-for-profit organization, ESQYRE (Escher String Quartet Youth Residency Education). ESQYRE’s mission is to provide a comprehensive educational program through music performance and instruction for people of all ages. In addition, the quartet has held faculty positions at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX and the University of Akron, OH.
Within months of its inception in 2005, the ensemble came to the attention of key musical figures worldwide. Championed by the Emerson Quartet, the Escher Quartet was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and Itzhak Perlman to be Quartet in Residence at each artist's summer festival: the Young Artists Program at Canada’s National Arts Centre; and the Perlman Chamber Music Program on Shelter Island, NY.
The Escher Quartet takes its name from the Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher, inspired by Escher’s method of interplay between individual components working together to form a whole.
Saturday, November 23, 2024
6:30 – 8:15pm
What: Mokihana Club Fundraiser
When: Saturday, November 23, 2024⋅6:30 – 8:15 pm
Sunday, December 8, 2024
5:00 pm
What: Talk Story Piano Duo
When: Sunday, December 8, 2024 • 5:00 PM Doors open: 4:00 PM
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Details: Pianist Dr. Jonathan Korth is a faculty at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa’s Music Department. He is a prolific concertizer in Bangkok, Beijing, Brussels, London, Shanghai, Seoul, and Tokyo, and also throughout our islands. Jonathan’s deep appreciation and love for chamber music has led to recent partnerships with musicians such as violinists Martin Beaver, Stefan Jackiw, and Robert McDuffie, and cellists Zuill Bailey and Sung-Won Yang. He is the longtime President of the Honolulu Chamber Music Series, and has attracted a diverse international teaching studio from the US and Asia.
Dr. Korth joins pianist Monica Chung for a 2-piano concert at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 at 5pm. Some works to be expected on the program are Rachmaninoff Fantasie Tableaux Op.5, and a wild duo piano arrangement of Marc-Andre Hamelinʻs Circus Galop. The program will be accompanied by some surprising backstories on how this program and collaboration came to be.
Lineup
Thursday, February 27, 2025
7:00 pm
What: David Sedaris on Kauai
When: Thursday, February 27, 2025 • 7:00 pm Doors open: 6:00 pm
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Details: With sardonic wit and incisive social critiques, David Sedaris has become one of America’s pre-eminent humor writers. The great skill with which he slices through cultural euphemisms and political correctness proves that Sedaris is a master of satire and one of the most observant writers addressing the human condition today.
David Sedaris is the author of Barrel Fever and Holidays on Ice, as well as collections of personal essays, Naked, Me Talk Pretty One Day, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, When You Are Engulfed in Flames, and his most recent book, Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls, each of which became an immediate bestseller. The audio version of Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls is a 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominee for Best Spoken Word Album. He is the author of the NYT-bestselling collection of fables entitled Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary (with illustrations by Ian Falconer). He was also the editor of Children Playing Before a Statue of Hercules: An Anthology of Outstanding Stories. Sedaris’ pieces appear regularly in The New Yorker and have twice been included in “The Best American Essays.” There are over ten million copies of his books in print and they have been translated into 25 languages.
David will read from some of his latest writings for one night only. He also stays after to autograph any existing book purchases or those purchased the night of the event.
Sunday, April 6, 2025
6:00 pm
What: Grammy-Nominated Anat Cohen Quartetinho
When: April 6, 2025 Show time: 6:00 PM Doors open:5:00 PM
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Details: Anat Cohen wins Clarinetist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards!
"Anat does what all authentic musicians do: She tells stories from her own experiences that are so deeply felt that they are very likely to connect listeners to their own dreams, desires and longings." - Nat Hentoff.
Ever charismatic, prolific and inspired, Grammy-nominated clarinetist-saxophonist Anat Cohen has won hearts and minds the world over with her expressive virtuosity and delightful stage presence. The New York Times writes, “Ms. Cohen on the clarinet was a revelation. Using the clarinet’s upper register, she could evoke infectious joy. In the lower register, her playing could conjure a deep, soulful melancholy. On up-tempo numbers, her improvisations weren’t just bebop fast; they had a clarity and deep intelligence that is really quite rare. She made it look effortless, even as she was playing the most technically difficult of all the reed instruments… she took my breath away.”
Tuesday, March 4, 2025
7:00 pm
What: Cliburn Piano Competition Finalist Clayton Stephenson
When: Tuesday, March 4, 2025
Minimum age: All ages Show time: 7:00 PM Doors open: 6:00 PM
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Details: American pianist Clayton Stephenson’s love for music is immediately apparent in his joyous charisma onstage, expressive power, and natural ease at the instrument. Hailed for “extraordinary narrative and poetic gifts” and interpretations that are “fresh, incisive and characterfully alive” (Gramophone), he is committed to making an impact on the world through his music-making.
Growing up in New York City, Clayton started piano lessons at age 7, and the next year was accepted into The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program—a full scholarship program for under-represented students—where he lingered to watch student recitals and fell in love with music. He advanced to Juilliard’s elite Pre-College at age 10—with the help of his teacher at the time, Beth Nam, who gave him countless extra lessons without charge—to study with Matti Raekallio, Hung-Kuang Chen, and Ernest Barretta. Clayton practiced on a synthesizer at home until he found an old upright piano on the street that an elementary school had thrown away; that would become his practice piano for the next six years, until the Lang Lang Foundation donated a new piano to him when he was 17.
He credits the generous support of community programs with providing him musical inspiration and resources along the way. As he describes it, the “Third Street Music School jump-started my music education; the Young People’s Choir taught me phrasing and voicing; Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program introduced me to formal and rigorous piano training, which enabled me to get into Juilliard Pre-College; the Morningside Music Bridge validated my talent and elevated my self-confidence; the Boy’s Club of New York exposed me to jazz; and the Lang Lang Foundation brought me to stages worldwide and transformed me from a piano student to a young artist.”
Clayton graduated from the Harvard-New England Conservatory (NEC) dual degree program in spring 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard and a master’s degree in piano performance from NEC under Wha Kyung Byun. And his accolades along the way have been bountiful: in addition to being the first Black finalist at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2022, he was named 2022 Gilmore Young Artist; 2017 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts; Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist; Gheens Young Artist; and Young Scholar of the Lang Lang International Music Foundation.