Florida State University College of Music presents: The Dohnányi Chamber Players

Name: Florida State University College of Music presents: The Dohnányi Chamber Players
Start: 2025-09-26T20:00:00-04:00
End: 2025-09-26T21:30:00-04:00
Location: 460 E. New England Ave., Winter Park, FL, United States, Florida 32789

Schedule

Fri Sep 26 2025 at 08:00 pm to 09:30 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

460 E. New England Ave., Winter Park, FL, United States, Florida 32789 | Winter Park, FL

Join faculty members from the Florida State University College of Music’s premier chamber ensemble as they present an evening of exhilarating music celebrating the program’s rich 125-year history. These brilliant artists, who perform worldwide at prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Moscow Conservatory, make their Orlando debut at the Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts.
Founded in 2019 by pianist Ian Hobson, the Dohnányi Chamber Players performs a wide range of classical masterworks including the music of Ernst von Dohnányi, the legendary Hungarian composer who was part of the FSU faculty from 1949-1960. This performance will feature:
Jonathan Holden, Clarinet
Shannon Thomas, Violin
Kathryn Votapek, Viola
Greg Sauer, Cello
Read Gainsford, Piano
British born clarinetist Jonathan Holden received his training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and is currently on the performance faculty for the College of Music at Florida State University. An experienced orchestral clarinetist, Dr. Holden has performed with the Grand Rapids, Baton Rouge, Mobile symphonies and the Louisiana, Fort Wayne, and Orlando philharmonic orchestras. A proponent of new music, his work with the Argot Trio is one of many projects that produce new works and recordings featuring the clarinet.
A Tennessee native, violinist Shannon Thomas has garnered a reputation for exciting and thoughtful performances as a chamber musician, soloist, and in recital throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia. Recent engagements have taken her to the Kennedy Center, Spoleto Festival USA, Carnegie Hall Stern Auditorium, Bolivia’s Centro Sinfonico in La Paz, and The Banff Center in Canada. A graduate of the Cleveland Institute, Yale University, and Vanderbilt University Dr. Thomas teaches as performance faculty at Florida State University.
A member of the Chester String Quartet for 15 years, violinist and violist Kathryn Votapek now maintains an active career as a soloist and guest artist at chamber music festivals throughout the US, Canada, and Europe. She is currently on the faculty at the University of Michigan following an earlier faculty appointment as an artist-in-residence at Indiana University. A graduate of Indiana University and The Julliard School, she can be heard on recordings of the Chester Quartet on the Koch International Classics and New Albion labels.
A native of Davenport, Iowa, Gregory Sauer has been a member of the performance faculty at Florida State University since 2006. Praised for his versatility, Dr. Sauer performs often as a soloist, chamber musician and member of orchestras across the nation. He has been a member of the Carpe Diem and Fidelio string quartets with prizes in the London International String Quartet Competition and performances in the UK, Italy, Germany and the Tanglewood and Aspen Music festivals. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and the New England Conservatory.
Pianist Read Gainsford was recently described in the press as the possessor of “finger-numbing virtuosity and delicately chiseled precision” yet he is driven to pursue connection beyond the merely pianistic. Born in New Zealand, Dr. Gainsford currently serves on the music faculty at Florida State University. He has performed widely in the USA, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa as a solo recitalist, concert soloist, and chamber musician including appearances at the Kennedy Center, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and Queen Elizabeth Hall.
Tonight the Dohnanyi Chamber Players will perform:
Trio in E-flat Major, K. 498 “Kegelstatt” Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
for clarinet, viola, piano
Supposedly written during a game of skittles (Kegelstatt means “skittle alley” – nowadays, “bowling alley”) this is the first piece written for this combination of instruments, and Mozart came up with a gem of the repertoire that set the standard for all future composers.
Serenade in C Major, Op. 10 Ernst von Dohnányi
for violin, viola, cello
Inspired by Mozart and Beethoven, Ernst Dohnányi’s Serenade for String Trio brings together the strength of tradition with hints of his native Hungary in a delightful suite of movements.
Trio in A Minor, Op 114 Johannes Brahms
for clarinet, cello, piano
The clarinet trio of Brahms is one of his greatest late period masterpieces of chamber music, bringing together songlike writing of passion, serene beauty, and elegance, and ending with a fiery dance.