January 15th: Epiphany Concert Sereis to feature Leaman & Rackers

St. John’s Episcopal Church in Florence will open its Seventh Annual Epiphany Concert Series with a performance by Dr. Clifford Leaman, saxophone, and Dr. Joseph Rackers, piano, on Sunday, January 15 at 6:00 p.m. in the church’s parish hall. 

There is no charge for the concert, but donations are appreciated.  Light refreshments will be provided.  St. John’s is located at 252 S. Dargan Street in Florence.  Parking is available in the lot behind the church.

Above: Dr. Clifford Leaman

Critics have hailed Clifford Leaman as “an artist of the first order…intuitive, exciting, and enthralling.”  (Paul Wagner, The Saxophone Journal)  Professor of Saxophone at the University of South Carolina, Leaman received the Bachelor of Science degree in music education from Lebanon Valley College, and the Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in performance from the University of Michigan where he was a student of Donald Sinta.  He served on the faculties of Furman University, Eastern Michigan University, and The University of Michigan prior to his appointment at the University of South Carolina. 

Leaman is in great demand as a soloist and clinician and has performed and taught throughout the United States, Canada, Italy, Spain, France, Slovenia, and China, where he was a featured guest artist for the 2004, 2005, and 2006 Yantai International Winds Art Festival and the 2005 Xi’an International Arts Festival.  He has performed as a concerto soloist at the XII World Saxophone Congress in Montreal, Canada (2000); the North American Saxophone Alliance’s 2006 Biennial Conference in Iowa City, Iowa; the 2008 International Navy Band Symposium in Washington D.C.; and the XV World Saxophone Congress in July, 2009 in Bangkok, Thailand.  He has given masterclasses at major schools of music and conservatories world-wide, including Northwestern University, Eastman School of Music, Duquesne University, Bowling Green State University, University of Georgia, Penn State University, Conservatorio Superior de Música de Aragón, Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya, Conservatoire de Strasbourg, Beijing Central Conservatory, Shanghai Conservatory, and the Sichuan Conservatory.

Leaman, in collaboration with pianist Derek Parsons, has released three critically acclaimed compact discs on the Equilibrium label.  Leaman is also featured on a variety of recordings of solo and chamber works for Redwood Records, CRS, and the University of Arizona Recordings.  

An avid supporter of contemporary music, Leaman has commissioned and given the world premiere performances of numerous works, including concertos by Pulitzer Prize-winning composers, Leslie Bassett and Michael Colgrass. 

Above: Joseph Rackers 

Praised as “inspiring” (Sulzbach-Rosenberg, Germany), and an “exceptional pianist” possessing “enormous talents” (The State, SC), Joseph Rackers has performed for enthusiastic audiences in major musical centers of the United States, Canada, China, France, Germany, Spain, Bulgaria, and Ukraine. His performances around the world include the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series (Chicago), Shanghai and Sichuan Conservatories of Music and Yantai International Music Festival (China), Central Park of Culture in Kiev and Chernigoff Symphony Orchestra (Ukraine), Burgos International Music Festival (Spain), Banff Centre for the Arts (Canada), Moulin d’Andé Arts Festival (France), Sulzbach-Rosenberg International Music Festival (Germany), Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Society of Composers National Conference and Varna International Masterclasses in Piano (Bulgaria), in addition to performances as soloist with orchestras, on concerts series, or at universities in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Dr. Rackers is a Steinway Artist.  He holds the Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees in piano performance from the Eastman School of Music where he was also awarded the Performer’s Certificate. His primary teachers were Natalya Antonova and Raymond Herbert with additional study or masterclasses with Malcolm Bilson, Misha Dichter, Julian Martin, Eugenie Mogilevski, and Blanca Uribe.

Also known as a chamber musician, Rackers has performed widely as a member of the Lomazov/Rackers Piano Duo.  The duo was awarded Second Prize at the Sixth Ellis Competition for Duo Pianists (2005), the only national duo piano competition in the United States at that time. Their performances have been described as “splendid” (Rochester, NY, WXXI radio), and “simply dazzling” (The State, SC). As advocates of modern repertoire for duo piano, they have given regional or national premieres of numerous works across the United States.

Rackers has taught at the Eastman School of Music and Hochstein Music School. His students have been prizewinners in numerous regional, national, and international piano competitions.  He has given masterclasses throughout the United States, Europe, and China and is in demand as an adjudicator for piano competitions nationally.

The remainder of the series slate is as follows: Fire Pink Trio (harp, viola, flute), January 22; Dr. Julia Harlow (organ), January 29; Dr. Paolo Gualdi and Dr. Danijela Žeželj-Gualdi (piano, violin), February 12; Carolina Brass, February 19.  A downloadable brochure is available at www.stjohnsflorence.org.