Trio to hold concert at YSU’s Bliss

the vindicator

YOUNGSTOWN — The New Amici Trio, a revival of a classical music ensemble formed more than 30 years ago, will perform music by Haydn, Beethoven and Shostakovich at Youngstown State University on Sunday. The 3 p.m. concert recital at Bliss Recital Hall on Wick Avenue is free to the public.

The trio includes Hristo Popov, violin; Michael Gelfand, cello; and Dror Biran, piano, each of whom is on the Dana School of Music faculty. It is an outgrowth of the Amici Duo, which began in 1976 with Gelfand and pianist Roman Rudnytsky.

After performing together for a number of years, John Wilcox joined the Dana faculty and was invited to join in 1980 with the new name of Amici Trio. The Trio performed hundreds of concerts for more than 25 years until the members could no longer fit it into their schedules. The Trio, while not disbanded, was put on hold.

Popov is teaching at Dana as a sabbatical replacement for Wilcox. Biran joined the Dana faculty as a sabbatical replacement for Caroline Oltmanns. “Since we are all teaching at Dana, I thought this was a terrific opportunity to resurrect the Amici Trio with new friends, Hristo Popov and Dror Biran, who are fabulous performers,” said Gelfand. “You could say that this is truly an international trio, because Hristo was born in Bulgaria, Dror in Israel, and I in New York City. I am glad that we all speak English, because if we didn’t, can you imagine the wild gesturing that would be necessary for communication.”

Popov is a founding member of the New York Empire Trio, exclusively presented by Bulgarian virtuosi artists, and a winner of the Kozian International Violin Competition and many other awards.

Gelfand is the former director of orchestra, opera and musical theater productions at Dana, and is principal cellist of the Youngstown Symphony and Warren Chamber orchestras. He is also a member of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and is a former member of the Cleveland Orchestra.

Biran is one of Israel’s most admired and gifted pianists. He won top prizes at the M.K Ciurlionis International Piano Competition, the Cleveland International Piano Competition and others.