Hopkinson Smith

Hopkinson Smith will perform both Renaissance and Baroque pieces on a variety of instruments this Friday.

Classical music comes to campus this weekend with a visit from one of the world’s great lutenists and a memorial concert honoring an inspiring educator.

Hopkinson Smith is known for his mastery of the lute and other early plucked instruments, including the vihuela, a guitar-shaped instrument with six doubled strings, and the theorbo, a lute with an extended neck. On Friday at 8 p.m. in the Jonsson Performance Hall, Smith will perform both Renaissance and Baroque pieces on a variety of instruments.

Smith, who studied musicology at Harvard University, was involved in the founding of the ensemble Hespèrion XX, but has recently focused on solo music for early plucked instruments. With his recitals and series of more than 20 solo recordings, he continues to rediscover and bring to life works that are among the most expressive and intimate in the entire domain of early music.

Internationally recognized as a leading personality in the field of early music, Smith gives concerts and master classes throughout Europe and in North and South America. He currently lives in Basel, Switzerland, where he teaches at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis.

Arkady Fomin

The life of Arkady Fomin (above) will be celebrated during a memorial concert to be presented by Clavier Trio members David Korevaar and Jesús Castro-Balbi on Saturday.

Clavier Trio Members to Celebrate Arkady Fomin

On Saturday at 8 p.m. in the Jonsson Performance Hall, Clavier Trio members David Korevaar and Jesús Castro-Balbi will present a memorial concert celebrating the life of Arkady Fomin, a gifted violinist and inspiring educator who was the founder of the New Conservatory of Music, a long-time member of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and member of the UT Dallas faculty. 

Fomin, who passed away in May of this year, was born in Riga, Latvia, where he studied at the Latvian State Conservatory. He played with the Latvian State Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Latvian Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. In 1975, he joined the Dallas Symphony Orchestra to play in the first violin section — a role he kept for nearly four decades.

Fomin founded the New Conservatory of Music in 1979 as a summer workshop at UT Dallas; it has since become an internationally known program that provides music education and performing opportunities for young musicians. Fomin also co-founded the Clavier Trio, which serves as ensemble in residence at UT Dallas.

The concert will include: Beethoven’s Sonata No. 5 for Cello and Piano in D major, op. 102, no. 2; Tchaikovsky’s Pezzo Capriccioso, op. 62; and Rachmaninoff’s Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor, op. 19.

Tickets for each concert are $15 for general admission, $10 for non-UT Dallas students and free for UT Dallas staff, faculty and students with a valid Comet Card.