Newport's
33rd Season

n July, Newport Music Festival 2001 once again transformed Newport, RI and its grand "summer cottages" into an idyllic seaside paradise for classical music lovers. Seventy-one artists from 17 countries performed 63 concerts and 778 pieces of music, which filled eight elegant mansions, as well as the Vista Jubilee cruising Narragansett Bay. It's no wonder Newport ranks among one of the only music festivals listed in "The Ultimate List of 1,000 Best Things in America" (Cadogan Publications).

Dr. Mark P. Malkovich, III marked his 27th season as General Director by uncovering music for the annual retrospective of a major composer. For the "Dvorakiads," 288 individual works of Czech composer Antonín Dvorak were presented featuring his complete chamber music output. "Some of the string quartets had been out of print for 75 years," Malkovich notes, "but we found them in Prague."

Argentine pianist Nelson Goerner at The Breakers

Yamaha artist Frederic Chiu, Dr. Mark P. Malkovich III, and Yamaha Senior Vice President Terry Lewis

Seventeen Newport debuts, five of them North American debuts, distinguished the 16-day Festival. Alexei Skavronsky, a 70-year old Russian pianist; Italian brothers Sandro and Carlo Torlontano, a guitarist and French hornist/Alphorn player respectively; Alexei Grynyuk, a 22-year old Ukrainian pianist and winner of the first Horowitz Competition in Kiev; and French pianist Lydia Jardon joined more than 125 artists who have made their American debuts at Newport. And, three returning pianists, Yamaha artist Frederic Chiu, Piers Lane (England), and Nelson Goerner (Argentina), teamed up to perform a midnight concert at The Breakers of Liapunov's "Twelve Transcendental Etudes" on two Yamaha CFIIIS concert grand pianos.

Yamaha, the official piano of the Newport Festival, also contributed 25 grand and upright pianos. "For more than 15 years, we've used Yamaha pianos exclusively, and it's made all the difference in the world," says Malkovich. "It has put us on the international map."

Malkovich offered a touching musical tribute to the late Victor Borge, a close friend and frequent Newport performer, in closing the Scandinavian Evening with "Lullaby," by Danish composer Fini Henriques. "It was among the last pieces Victor played for me," Malkovich says. "His mother had played it for him; with all the fantastic pianists preceding me, I wasn't about to drop a note. Victor meant so much to Newport in the last ten years."

“This was certainly one of our most successful years," he continues, "with spectacular artists, strong box office sales, and because everything went flawlessly according to plan. We have a beautiful collaboration with Yamaha, and we were especially pleased to have had Senior Vice President Terry Lewis attend." Visit the site www.newportmusic.org for more details.