Duo Amabile in free concert Wednesday night

Monday, June 18, 2012
Violinist Matvey Lapin and pianist Katya Kramer-Lapin are to perform at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Gobin Memorial United Methodist Church in Greencastle.

Duo Amabile -- the husband-and-wife team of violinist Matvey Lapin and pianist Katya Kramer-Lapin -- will perform Wednesday in the fourth event of the 2012 Greencastle Summer Music Festival at Gobin Memorial United Methodist Church.

The festival presents free concerts every Wednesday evening at 7:30 through Aug. 15, including a pre-fireworks event July 4 with a sing-along of American folk and patriotic songs.

Slated to perform music by Beethoven, Strauss, Prokoviev and Pawel Kochanky and Karol Szymanowski, the Lapins say their music-making is an important part of their marriage.

"The most exciting part about the performance for us is the musical journey that we go on," they say. "Every performance compiles emotions and characters that we discover in the music that we play, transformed into our daily life as a couple. Thus we grow as a family; our musical understanding, along with a concept of chamber music becomes stronger every time we play."

The program begins with multi-movement works by Beethoven and Richard Strauss.

"The two masterpieces by Beethoven and Strauss both represent strong emotional message, each in its unique intimate way. These are challenging both aesthetically and technically," Matvey says.

Shorter works by the Russian composer Prokoviev ("Farewell and Death of Juliette") and Pawel Kochanky and Karol Szymanowski ("The Dawn" and "Wild Danse") will conclude the concert.

"The two pieces by Szymanowski-Kochanski," Katya explains, "represent a unique mixture of styles; each piece is composed by two artists: A pianist and a violinist."

Since its 2003 debut, Duo Amabile has presented violin and piano recitals to audiences throughout the U.S.

Married since 2004, Matvey and Katya Lapin bring to their collaborations virtuosity, enthusiasm and striking passion.

Their repertoire ranges from 18th- to 21st-century music, and includes works by Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Prokofiev, Stravinsky and Bartok, among others.

The Lapins present lecture-performances and workshops in conjunction with their concerts. Currently, Duo Amabile performs extensively throughout the country.

The Summer Music festival continues on Wednesday, June 27 with a performance by pianist Hannah Lee, violinist Allison Guest Edberg and cellist Yeon-Ji Yeon.

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