OBERLIN, OH. (Top40 Charts/ Environmental Defense Fund) - The most recorded harpist in the world, Yolanda Kondonassis, and the Oberlin Conservatory of
Music are donating a portion of their royalties from their new award-winning recording for Telarc, Air, to Environmental Defense Fund.
A "Best Classical Instrumental of 2008," according to Amazon.com (https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=pe_32080_10798700_amb_link_7733162_1?ie=UTF8&docId=1000302941), Air features performances with flutist Joshua Smith, violist Cynthia Phelps, the music of Claude Debussy (Danses sacree et profanefor Harp and String Orchestra, Syrinxfor Solo Flute, and Sonatafor Flute, Viola, and Harp) and Toru Takemitsu (And Then I Knew 'Twas Windfor Flute, Viola, and Harp; Airfor Solo Flute; and Toward the Sea IIfor Alto Flute, Harp, and String Orchestra). It is available at major record outlets, through www.telarc.com, and iTunes.
"We greatly appreciate and are deeply moved by this generous Thanksgiving gift from Yolanda and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music," said Karen Florini, an Oberlin College alumnus and member of the Oberlin College Board of Trustees who is a senior attorney for the National Climate Campaign at Environmental Defense Fund in Washington, DC. "It's music to our ears in every sense of those words."
Kondonassis, an Oberlin Conservatory of Music faculty member, is a dedicated environmentalist who writes about her commitment to raising public awareness about global warming on her web site, www.yolandaharp.com. She notes that her choice to record Debussy and Takemitsu was motivated in part by the great inspiration both composers took from the earth, saying they "transmuted that inspiration into an impressionist fusion that continues to touch listeners today."
This gift is not the first time that non-profit environmental organizations have benefited from Kondonassis' philanthropy; royalties from her 2000 Telarc release, Music of Hohvaness, support the Rainforest Alliance.
Hailed by The New York Times for her "powerful playing and musicianly energy," Yolanda Kondonassis celebrates her 14th release on the Telarc label with Air. Yolanda has appeared all over the world as a concerto soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician.
Joshua Smith, whom the Cleveland Plain Dealer has noted for his "gorgeous sound," "bracing virtuosity," and "breathtaking lyricism," enjoys a multi-faceted career as a leading soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, teacher, and clinician. Principal Flutist of The Cleveland Orchestra, he is marking his first chamber music release for Telarc with this collaboration. Also making her Telarc debut, violist Cynthia Phelps enjoys a versatile career as an established chamber musician, solo artist, and Principal Violist of The New York Philharmonic, a position to which she was appointed in 1992. Founded in 2008, Oberlin 21 is comprised of an exceptional group of young artists at The Oberlin Conservatory of Music led by Oberlin's Director of Ensemble Programs and Music Director of the Green Bay Symphony Orchestra, Bridget-Michaele Reischl.
Beyond the walls of her teaching studio, Kondonassis' next collaboration with Oberlin students will be a performance of Bright Sheng's harp concerto Never Far Away, the composer's first concerto for harp and orchestra. Composed for Kondonassis, the concerto is underwritten by the San Diego Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, the Grand Rapids Symphony, and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Kondonassis, performing with the San Diego Symphony under the baton of Jahja Ling, presented the world premiere of Never Far Away at Copley Symphony Hall in San Diego on October 24, 2008. A performance of the concerto by the Oberlin Orchestra, with Kondonassis as soloist, is slated for the 2009-10 season. For more information, visit www.yolandaharp.com.
Oberlin College consistently appears on national short lists of environmentally responsible campuses. The Kaplan College Guide 2009, published by Newsweek, named Oberlin one of the nation's top 25 most environmentally responsible schools, and Oberlin is one of only 15 colleges and universities to achieve the highest grade, "A-," on the Sustainable Endowments Institute's 2009 College Sustainability Report Card. Oberlin is also one of the ten "Coolest Schools" in Sierra Magazine's annual Green College Guide.
