The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra is filled with superstar musicians.They rehearse and perform without conductor, and for the past 40 years the ensemble has been leaving audiences spellbound by the depth of their musical expression. Today we'll find out how they do it and explore the art of deep listening with Orpheus cellist and co-artistic director Jonathan Spitz and world-renowned violin soloist Ryu Goto. Then Carolina Film and Video Festival Director Keith Barber is here. Carolina Film and Video Festival is the state's longest running film festival don't ya know, and Keith chats it up with Eddie Garcia, joined by stop motion animated film director Austin Taylor. The film fun continues Behind the Scenes with film scholar Mary Dalton. She's got an aisle seat just for you and her Oscar picks to share. We wrap up today's show with and interesting arts combo. Renowned composer Kenneth Frazelle and acclaimed pianist Barbara Lister-Sink are also amazing visual artists. They share the joys, perils and parallels of painting and music-making.

The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra

For the past 40 years The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra has been creating internationally renowned music and forcing us to rethink the idea of musical collaboration. The all-star musicians of Orpheus perform without a conductor, rehearse and organize democratically, and along the way they've made more than 70 albums noted by critics for having unparalleled energy. Orpheus frequently collaborates with some of today's leading soloists and last Wednesday's concert in Winston-Salem was no exception. It was part of the Secrest Performance Series at Wake Forest University and their program included Antonio Vivaldi's dynamic Four Seasons, featuring violin soloist Ryu Goto. The New York City native sprang upon the scene in 1995 with his performance of the 3rd movement of Paganini's incredibly challenging Violin Concerto No. 1. 

We're sampling from that live concert recording now. Ryu was seven years old at the time, attending the Pacific Music Festival held in Sapporo, Japan.  The now 25 year old violinist sensation says back then it was all about hitting the right notes in tune. Ryu spoke with David Ford by phone from his home in New York.

At the end of the conversation Ryu shared a distant recollection of having performed once before in Winston-Salem, but he suspected it was 10-12 years ago. It turns out it was actually 19 years ago. According to conductor, educator and former Winston-Salem Symphony conductor Peter Perret, it was back in 1995 that a then seven year old Ryu Goto won first prize in the Junior Division of the WSS Youth Artists Competition! Ryu performed the first movement of Paganini's impossibly difficult Violin Concerto No. 1 and earned a performance of the piece with the orchestra during their Holiday Concert. Thank you, Peter Perret, for filling us in.

On Wednesday, February 26th 2014, Ryu joined the world renowned Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in Wait Chapel on the WFU in a performance of Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. It was part of the school's Secrest Performance Series. Also on the program was Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings. David attended that performance and can tell you that Ryu and Orpheus absolutely rocked!

Orpheus cellist Jonathan Spitz joined the group in the 1980s and has been co-artistic director there since 2008. Jonathan was kind enough to talk shop with me by phone from his home in New York moments after arriving home from an all-night flight from Japan.

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra cellist and co-artistic director Jonathan Spitz. Over the past 40 years, Orpheus has made 70 acclaimed recordings, won Grammy Awards, and pushed the chamber music-making envelope forward more than just about any other ensemble in the world. Earlier this week Orpheus played a concert in Wait Chapel on the Wake Forest University campus as part of the school's Secrest Artist Series. Next up in the series will be acclaimed pianist Xiayin Wang and hera winning combination of superb musicianship and technical brilliance on Thursday, April 10 in Brendle Recital Hall on the Wake campus. 

Carolina Film and Video Festival

The 2014 Carolina Film and Video Festival, which is the state's longest running film festival,  kicks off this Wednesday, Februrary 26th on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. This four day event features plenty of films of the live action and animated variety, and provides attendees with the opportunity for some one-on-one time with visiting & local filmmakers. Eddie Garcia's guests today are Austin Taylor, the director of the stop motion animated film “Death and The Robot”and Carolina Film and Video Festival Director Keith Barber.

Mary Dalton and Behind the Scenes

WFU Professor of Communication, Film Studies and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Mary Dalton takes us Behind the Scenes.

Kenneth Frazelle and Barbara Lister-Sink

Some people have all the talent. Kenneth Frazelle is a renowned composer and UNC School of the Arts composition faculty. Barbara Lister-Sink is an internationally acclaimed pianist and Salem College Director of the School of Music. But it turns out that they're extremely talented visual artists as well. Their fascinating dual exhibit at the Inter_Section Gallery and Art Space in Winston-Salem runs through March 29th. It's titled Seas, Skies and Mountains and features Barbara's large-scale abstract pastel drawings of NC land and seascapes, and Ken's watercolor abstractions of mountain views and skies.

They both stopped by to share their love of visual art, the act of creating it, and the parallels they each find between painting and creating music.

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