Pulitzer Prize-winning composer to kick off 2021-22 Pipino Performing Arts season
September 17, 2021
A Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, a Grammy Award-winning tenor, a classical guitarist, and a toy piano artist are among the performers who will be featured in the fourth season of the Donald P. Pipino Performing Arts Series, presented by Youngstown State University’s Cliffe College of Creative Arts.
“We’re excited to once again bring live performances to our community and region,” Cliffe College of Creative Arts dean Phyllis Paul said. “The Series highlights the vibrant campus and community life of YSU and our region and brings to Youngstown the types of cultural opportunities usually found only in large metropolitan areas.”
The season will open Wednesday, September 22 at 7:00 PM with a virtual presentation by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang. Lang has been nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award and has been named Musical America’s Composer of the Year. He was appointed as Carnegie Hall’s Debs Composer’s Chair and has been the recipient of the Rome Prize, the BMW Music Theater Prize (Munich), the Bessie Award, and a Grammy Award for best small ensemble performance. His presentation is free and open to the public via YouTube.
Lang’s appearance is the first among six events scheduled for the Pipino series’ 2021-22 season, which will run through March 2022.
“YSU believes that the arts are vital to the university and our community by enriching the quality of life for all of our residents,” Paul said. “The aura of an outstanding performing arts series impacts our region in multiple ways, from providing opportunities for children’s enrichment, to elevating the quality of life, to supporting and contributing to the business and economic climate of our community.”
Following Lang’s presentation, the Pipino series will continue with a production of “The Dragon King” by the Tanglewood Marionettes Saturday, October 9 at 11:00 AM in the YSU Ford Theater of YSU’s Bliss Hall. Tanglewood is a nationally-touring marionette theater that features large, hand-crafted marionettes, colorful sets, and integrated lighting and sound. Tanglewood has been the recipient of two Union Internationale de la Marionette (International Marionette Union) awards, regarded as puppetry’s highest honor.
On Sunday, November 14, classical guitarist René Izquierdo will perform a concert in the North Great Hall of The Butler Institute of American Art at 3:00 PM. Izquierdo has established himself as one of the world’s classical guitar virtuosos, performing to critical acclaim throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia. He has performed on stages such as Carnegie Hall in New York, the Manaus Opera House in Brazil, and the National Recital Hall in Taiwan.
Phyllis Chen, a composer and sound artist, will perform a toy piano concert Saturday, January 29, 2022 at 7:30 PM in the McDonough Museum of Art. Chen began playing piano at the age of five and discovered the toy piano as an adult. She fell in love with the instrument’s possibilities, and the toy piano than became her grounds to develop her personal voice.
On Saturday, February 19, Cuarteto Latinoamericano will perform a concert in the Ford Family Recital Hall of the DeYor Performing Arts Center in downtown Youngstown. Winners of 2012 and 2016 Latin Grammy Awards for best classical recordings, the group is one of the world’s most renowned classical music ensembles. The group has toured extensively throughout the world and has been a recipient of the Mexican Music Critics Association Award and three Chamber Music America/ASCAP’s Most Adventurous Programming awards.
Classical tenor Karim Sulayman will conclude the Pipino season with a performance alongside fortepianist Yi-heng Yang Saturday, March 26 at the Ford Family Recital Hall. Sulayman is a Lebanese-American tenor who won a Grammy Award for best classical solo vocals and continues to earn acclaim for his programming and recording projects. Yang is a faculty member at The Juilliard School, where she teaches piano, fortepiano, chamber music, keyboard skills, and improvisation.