Clark Potter, viola, and Sergio Ruiz, piano, will present a joint faculty recital, “¡Bailemos!,” at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 15 in Westbrook Recital Hall, Room 119.
Translated as “Let’s Dance,” the concert is free and open to the public. The concert will also be live webcast.
“Sergio Ruiz shed his administrative cloak and has settled into new roles within the Glenn Korff School of Music, and I would call this his piano ‘re-debut’ in Nebraska,” Potter said. “And what a pianist. The program will feature the music of Latin American composers for viola and piano. Two composers, José Pablo Moncayo and José L. Elizonda, are from Mexico. The third composer is a woman from Venezuela, Modesta Bor. Sergio is helping me to learn the sounds and feel of the lands so distant from my own background.”
The program begins with Moncayo’s “Sonata,” composed in 1934. It also includes Bor’s “Sonata para Viola y Piano” and Elizondo’s “Danzas Latinoamericanas,” which is inspired by the dances from Argentino (tango), Brazil (bossa nova) and Mexico (jarabe). The program concludes with Elizondo’s “La Alborada de la Esperanza (The Dawn of Hope).”
“La Alborado de la Esperanza” had its world premiere in November 2018 in Paris to assist with marking the 100th anniversary of the Armistice of World War I.
“The piece has since become an anthem of hope in the midst of the pandemic and other turmoils, having been performed by musicians and ensembles of all types in the hope of more peaceful times,” Potter writes in the program notes.
Ruiz is excited to emphasize the remarkable music of Latinx composers in this recital, and he’s excited to perform with Potter.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to be performing with Professor Clark Potter,” Ruiz said. “Discovering the wonderful viola repertoire with such a gifted musician is a privilege.”
Potter is professor of music in viola in the Glenn Korff School of Music, where he is also on the conducting faculty. He is the director of NEBratsche (the NU viola ensemble), and he is an active performer as a solo recitalist and chamber musician. He has conducted the Lincoln Youth Symphony since 2007. He is also a member of three chamber ensembles: the Nebraska Chamber Players, The Trans-Nebraska Players and the newly formed Nebraska U faculty ensemble Una Corda. Learn more about Potter.
Ruiz is professor of music in piano in the Glenn Korff School of Music. An international Steinway artist, Ruiz has performed throughout the world. Most recently, he has performed concerts in Mexico, Belgium, Germany, Colombia, Czech Republic, Bolivia and Ecuador. He has also judged several piano competitions and festivals in the U.S. and South America. Ruiz was the creator and artistic director of a Latin American Arts and Humanities Festival, Festival de Inspiracion. Learn more about Ruiz.
