Historical
Piano Concerts Series
About
the Musicians
Orfeo
Duo
Ishmael Wallace,
piano and Vita Wallace, violin
|
Sister
and brother Vita and Ishmael Wallace are celebrating their twentieth anniversary
as the Orfeo Duo, having
performed
together since they were children. Their repertoire ranges from Bach to
music by present-day young
composers.
Believing all music is an expression of the breath of life, they enjoy
exploring the unique musical and
performance
styles of different periods, countries, and composers. Vita and Ishmael
also view music as a celebration of
community;
they celebrate their own, in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, with an annual
festival involving local
composers
and other artists.
The
Orfeo Duo’s latest CD, on the Spanish label Unacorda, features the Schumann
sonatas on the 1846 Streicher
piano
from the Frederick Collection and Vita’s 1765 Carcassi violin with gut
strings. Canada’s National Post called the
performances
"daring and fresh", singling out the piano's "sweetly singing tone and
noble bass." The Orfeo Duo also has
CDs
of Bruno Walter and Hans Pfitzner on VAI Audio and George Enescu on Marquis
Classics as well as recordings of
new
music on VMM and Tzadik.
Vita
plays baroque violin in Philomel, ARTEK, and Foundling Baroque Orchestra
and Women’s Advocacy Project. She
won
the Felix Salzer Award at the Mannes College of Music, where she studied
with Felix Galimir.
Ishmael,
a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and Mannes College, studied
with Richard Goode. His first solo CD,
of
music by David Loeb, was recorded by Christopher Greenleaf and recently
released by VMM. Ishmael is also a
composer;
his compositions, which include operas to his own libretti, chamber music,
and orchestral works, have won
many
national competitions. His most recent opera, The Stranger, was
produced in May, 2004, by Teatro Corleone in
New
York City.