Program
The program will be announced soon.
About the Artists
Matthew Cohen
Ukrainian-American violist Matthew Cohen is a dynamic and versatile artist whose captivating performances have made him one of the most sought-after violists of his generation. Recently appointed as the violist of the Formosa Quartet and a founding member of Ensemble Elatós, he was a special prize winner at the prestigious Primrose International Viola Competition as well as garnering top prizes at the Citta di Cremona International Viola Competition in Italy, Vivo International Music Competition and the Art of Duo International Competition. Particularly interested in advocating for the viola as a unique voice, he is challenging the misconception that the viola has a limited repertoire by bringing attention to lesser-known gems as well as arrangements of other masterworks.
Recent solo engagements include his Lincoln Center debut performing Bartok’s Viola Concerto with the Juilliard Orchestra in Alice Tully Hall, Hummel’s Potpourri with the Gstaad Festival Orchestra, Bartok’s Viola Concerto with I Virtuosi Italiani in Cremona, Italy, and presenting the world premiere of Garry Schyman’s viola concerto “Zingaro” with the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony. Upcoming appearances include performances at Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Irvine Philharmonic Society, Music Mondays - Toronto, the University of Houston, and recitals for the Performing Arts Consortium in Hilton Head, South Carolina and Core Memory Music in Wakefield, Rhode Island.
Cohen is a graduate of the Juilliard School’s Master of Music program where he was the proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship. He has served as a member of the chamber music faculty at the National Youth Orchestra of Canada and the Heifetz Institute and is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Opus 71 Concerts, a multidisciplinary concert series near New York’s Lincoln Center. His recording of York Bowen’s Phantasy for viola and piano with acclaimed pianist Vivian Fan is available on the Soundset label.
In addition to his musical activities, he enjoys public speaking and has acted in a number of plays including various works of Shakespeare, Peter Pan, Auntie Mame, and the musical Bugsy Malone.
Guillermo Laporta
Guillermo Laporta is a flutist, composer, designer, multimedia creator, and arts entrepreneur based in New York City. He is the founder and executive director of the arts organization CreArtBox, a resident artist at CultureLabLIC, Queens, and president of ADAMR-Art development in rural Spain.
Laporta’s artistic work focuses on the development and visual expansion of classical music. Since 2006 he has created hundreds of productions highlighting the opera-ballet Two Roads (2020), the visual concert Awave (2018), the play/concert Visuality (2014/16), the opera Noctum (2011), the musical London The show (2009), and CreArt Project I (2006).
His work has been recommended by The New Yorker, Broadway World, El Pais, or Time Out and awarded by the Queens Council on the Arts, the Amphion Foundation, Ditson Fund, New York Foundation for the Arts, NY State Council on the Arts and Spain Culture.
Guillermo was co-principal flute player of the Oviedo Filarmonia in Spain. He has worked with multiple world-class musicians and orchestras such as the BBC Orchestra, recording with Warner Music and Naxos and performing at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Tokyo Monten Hall, and most of the major concert halls in Spain.
His discography expands the flute repertoire releasing transcriptions of violin sonatas by Debussy, Respighi, or Janacek, commissioned pieces to living-composers, and recordings of his own composition.
Guillermo studied at the Royal College of Music of London with flutist and conductor Jaime Martín.
Josefina Urraca
Spanish pianist Josefina Urraca is a meticulous artist, pupil of legendary piano teacher Dmitri Bashkirov. Ms Urraca’s teachers and mentors included Maria Joao Pires, Ferenc Rados, Rita Wagner, Patrin Garcia Barredo, Joaquín Achúcarro, Kennedy Moretti, Marta Gulyas, Frank Wibaut, Claudio Martinez-Menher, Josep Colom, Marc Silverman, Eva Gigosos, Eldar Nebolsin, Guigla Katsarava, and Antonio Baciero at the Salamanca Conservatory, Alcalá de Henares University, École Normale de Musique de Paris, Prussia Cove Music Seminar, Escuela Reina Sofia and Manhattan School of Music.
Josefina was born in Palencia, in an environment of professional musicians.
With a strong focus on chamber music, she performs audiences in renowned concert halls like Carnegie Hall, Salzburg Mozarteum, Bohemian Concert Hall, Ryogoku Monten Hall, Auditorio Sony, and Alfred Cortot in Paris, presenting classical and new music by both emerging and established living composers.
Since 2013, Josefina has served as the co-director of CreArtBox, a New York-based music organization dedicated to presenting classical and new music accompanied by a carefully crafted visual aesthetic. CreArtBox has been celebrated by The New Yorker as one of its “art and music top picks”, and by Time Out as an “ensemble devoted to multidisciplinary events”. Through thoughtfully designed programs, CreArtBox strives to cultivate an appreciation for the arts in today’s society. Additionally, Josefina is the founder of a platform dedicated to developing the arts in rural areas of Spain, and the ADAMR Festival.
Throughout her career, Josefina has garnered numerous prizes and accolades across Europe and the United States. These include recognition from organizations such as Savvy Musicians in Action, INJUVE, Montehermoso Contemporary Creation, Ciudad de Carlet, Rotary Club, the New York State Council on the Arts, the Asturias government, Queens Council on the Arts, the Spanish Embassy, Manhattan School of Music, Caja Madrid, Luis Galvé, Amphion Foundation, Alice M. Ditson, and Albéniz Foundations.
Her musicianship can also be appreciated on CD recordings featuring collaborations with flutist Guillermo Laporta, CreArtBox, and the Mendelssohn string quartet. In addition to her performances, Josefina is an esteemed educator and pedagogue. She teaches a select small number of students at Third Street Music School, serves as a piano teacher and Artistic Coordinator at the Reina Sofia Summer Camp, and has created and performed interactive experiences for diverse audiences throughout New York City.
About the Concert
This performance begins at 2:00 pm. One hour before the performance, join us for a discussion about the music on the program. After the performance concludes, you’ll have an opportunity to meet the artist(s) and learn about their background, interests, and career plans.
The address of the venue is 103 North Road, Wakefield, Rhode Island 02879. Driving time from Providence, Newport, Westerly, and southeastern Connecticut is under an hour, and Amtrak’s Kingston Station is only five miles away.
Reservations
If you’d like to attend this concert, send an email to craig@corememorymusic.com with the name of each person in your party. If seating is still available, we’ll confirm your reservation.
All guests are asked to make a financial contribution at the door. The suggested contribution is $40 per person. We accept cash, personal checks, and credit cards.