Saturday, May 6, 2017

Accordion Meets Jazz, Classical, World Music at Simone Baron's Album Preview Concerts at Strathmore

Simone Baron visits Strathmore, May 10th & 24th (Photo: Jonathan Timmes)

From our friends at Strathmore...

Strathmore Presents Artist in Residence Simone Baron

Intrepid multi-instrumentalist merges classical, jazz, world music as she teases debut album, Simonescapades, in Mansion concerts

Nothing is too far a reach for Simone Baron. The multi-instrumentalist merges her classical piano training with an unlikely partner, the accordion. Her performances meld classical, jazz, and world music, and she freely collaborates with dancers, actors, puppeteers, and visual artists in her genre-defying concerts. The intrepid Strathmore Artist in Residence teases the release of her forthcoming debut album, Simonescapades, during her residency concerts in the Mansion at Strathmore on Wednesdays, May 10 & 24, 2017 at 7:30 PM. Her performances are sponsored by Strathmore Board Chair Dale Rosenthal. For more information, please call (301) 581-5100 or visit www.strathmore.org.

Trained at Tel Aviv University’s Buchmann Mehta School of Music and the Oberlin Conservatory, and embarking soon for graduate studies at the University of Toronto, Simone has performed throughout Europe, Israel, and North America in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Hirshhorn Museum. While finishing her formal studies in piano and conducting at Oberlin, she fell in love with the vibrant sounds and pulsing bellows of the accordion, opening the door to collaborations in jazz, world music, and cross-disciplinary projects with other artists in an array of mediums. Her re-imagination of the accordion’s possibilities is showcased in Arco Belo, her hybrid chamber jazz ensemble with strings and percussion that features original compositions and arrangements.


Simone’s Artist in Residence concerts will feature music from her debut album, Simonescapades, and the world premiere of her Strathmore commission, Nayiri, a violin sonata dedicated to a recently-departed mentor, violinist Nayiri Poochikian. Simonescapades is a compilation of original arrangements and compositions for piano, accordion, bass, percussion, and strings that reflects the diversity of her musical experience. The song Passive Puppeteer, from her forthcoming album and inspired by a surrealist play by Louis Aragon, is a bridge between the two concerts, the second of which explores the idea of loss and memory through dreams, a theme central to her new commission, Nayiri.

Strathmore Presents
Artist in Residence
Simone Baron
Wednesdays, May 10 & 24, 2017
7:30 PM

Tickets $17

Mansion at Strathmore
10701 Rockville Pike
North Bethesda, MD 20852

For additional information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.strathmore.org or call (301) 581-5100.

About the Strathmore Artist in Residence Program:
Founded in 2005, the Strathmore Artist in Residence program was created to support the transition from amateur performer to career artist. The program has mentored more than 60 young musicians, ages 16-32. Each year through a competitive selection process, a class of six is chosen and benefits greatly from the support of participating mentors and musicians, 30 hours of professional development seminars, and extensive performance opportunities offered throughout the 10-month program. The Artist in Residence program is part of Strathmore’s Institute for Artistic and Professional Development.

About Strathmore:
Strathmore presents and produces exemplary visual and performing arts programs for diverse audiences; creates dynamic arts education experiences; and nurtures creative ideas and conversations that advance the future of the arts. The organization’s hallmark is the Music Center at Strathmore, with a 1,976-seat concert hall and education complex. Its core campus also includes the historic Mansion at Strathmore, which features an intimate Music Room and art galleries. Most recently, Strathmore opened AMP, a 250-seat cabaret-style venue located just up Rockville Pike from the core campus in the burgeoning Pike District of Montgomery County. Strathmore’s signature education, mission-driven programs include the Strathmore Student Concerts and the Artist in Residence program.