where music began in Jacksonville

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Friday, March 2, 2012

11 AM & 7:30 PM

MARY L’ENGLE ENSEMBLE

BIOGRAPHIES

Timothy Edwards, violin

Swantje Biernacki, violin

Angelo Goderre, viola

Linda Minke, cello

Originally from Michigan, cellist Linda Minke began her career in Memphis, Tennessee. She created a Suzuki cello program at Rhodes College, played in the Rhodes Piano Trio, and was Assistant Principal cellist with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra under the direction of the late Alan Balter. Minke moved to Jacksonville in 1993 with her infant son Victor, now a cello major at University of Michigan, and his father, violinist Max Huls.

Linda continues to teach and perform most of the year in Jacksonville, but every August she plays with the Peninsula Music Festival Orchestra in Door County, Wisconsin, conducted by Victor Yampolsky. Ms. Minke plays a cello made in 1999 by Karl Roy, a fourth -generation violin maker from Mittenwald, Germany.

Tugci Tari, piano

Despite her young age, Tuğçe Tari (TOO-tchay TAH-ree) already has had a successful performing and teaching career for nearly two decades. Her highly imaginative performing style translates to the stage as distinctly charismatic, vibrant and passionate while her frankness and sincerity creates a deep connection with the audience.

Fazil Say, a world-renowned pianist and composer, after having listened to one of Ms. Tari’s performances, stated: “I've been impressed with the facilities her talent has provided her, with her dedication, love and aesthetics to her art, her charismatic and beautiful personality”. Boris Slutsky, former Piano Department Chair, Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University, described the components of her playing as thoughtful and musical with a wide range of color. In addition, he observed her distinct personality and that she is a passionate performer who communicates her message with conviction and ease.

Ms. Tari has performed in Europe and in the USA in solo and chamber music concerts. Her performances included a solo recital at the 26th Istanbul Music Festival, several command performances at the request of the Turkish Ambassador and his distinguished guests in Washington D.C., a command performance for the Royal Navy and the US Navy at the request of the Queen of England, and an improvisational performance at the Bimhuis Concert Hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Her live performances and interviews were broadcast multiple times in Cologne, Germany, and on Turkish National Television (TRT). She was featured in Turkish National newsletters and magazines such as Cumhuriyet, Milliyet, Şalom and Adalar. In her review, Evin Ilyasoglu (Cumhuriyet – National Turkish Newsletter), praised Ms. Tari’s vibrant sonority and her rich power of imagination.

Ms. Tari participated in numerous international music festivals, winning several awards including the 1st prize in the 26th Istanbul Music Festival Competition. She also won a scholarship as well as grants from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University.

Ms. Tari's community services included fund-raising concerts for the Istanbul Princess Islands Government (raising $15,000) and the Steinway Society (raising $1,500). She also served as a board member at the Steinway Society which provides financial assistance for young artists.

Besides her performing career, Ms. Tari is a dedicated piano teacher who is in high demand. When she was just 14 years old, she built her first private teaching studio. At the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University she was assigned to teach undergraduates a multitude of subjects. Throughout her teaching career, her students have been invited to play at music festivals and have been accepted at schools such as Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and LaVilla School of the Arts and at universities such as Yale, Wesleyan, Auburn and Florida State University (FSU). Her students have been scholarship recipients and winners of competitions such as Greater Jax, FSU summer music camp, Steinway Society Scholarship.

Dr. Carol Prochazka (Co-Chair Piano Department, Chair of Theory Department, Co-Director of Arts for Talented Youth program, Peabody Preparatory of the Johns Hopkins University), after watching Ms. Tari teaching several times, described her as consistently excellent with an incredibly dynamic, energetic, and creative teaching style. Dr. Gerson Yessin (Founding Music Chair and Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of North Florida), after witnessing her in class, pointed to her devotion, patience and her imaginative solutions to problems.

Ms. Tari, who was born in Istanbul, Turkey, started her musical journey shortly after her 5th birthday when she took the entrance exam for the Istanbul University State Conservatory. She was one of only 20 accepted students from among more than 600 applicants. She was the only applicant to get a perfect score on the exam without prior private instructions. At the age of 6, she was performing publicly.

After completing her Bachelor of Music degree under the tutelage of Prof. Tuvana Alton from the Istanbul University State Conservatory in less than two years, Ms. Tari moved to the USA. She attended the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, where she earned her Master of Music degree in piano performance under Boris Slutsky. She pursued her post-graduate performance studies with Huseyin Sermet in Paris, France, at the École Normale de Musique (National School of Music). In addition, she took part in master classes conducted by more than 20 of the world's foremost pianists, including Leon Fleisher, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Vladimir Feltsman, and Alexander Korsantia.

In addition to performing concerts in the United States and abroad, Ms. Tari likes traveling, researching and exercising. She has recently climbed the Gaustatoppen summit - the highest mountain in Norway's Telemark area - and she completed the Gate River Run and the BFAS triathlons. She is also an avid viewer of TED talks.

Ms. Tari, who is fluent in Turkish, English and French, resides in Jacksonville, Florida, where she maintains a piano studio.