CLASSICAL CROSSROADS, INC.
~ and ~
ROLLING HILLS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
~ present ~
Second Sundays at Two

2024-2025 Concert Series

The Second Sundays at Two concert series, graciously hosted as a gift to the community by Rolling Hills United Methodist Church, sprang to life in January 2009. The near-perfect acoustics and excellent sight lines of the church's sanctuary soon made the series a favorite of aficionados and performing artists alike. Word spread on the classical music scene, and the series now draws leading artists from across the nation and around the world. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the concerts have been streamed over the internet since March 2020, and the series was brought under the nonprofit umbrella of Classical Crossroads, Inc. The concerts will continue to be simultaneously livestreamed even as Covid recedes.

ROLLING HILLS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
26438 Crenshaw Blvd., Rolling Hills Estates CA 90274
For a Google map, click here

For information, call Classical Crossroads at (310) 316-5574 or click here.

Free admission - Donations Appreciated

Click to see "Second Sundays at Two" recent past seasons:
[2020-2021] [2021-2022] [2022-2023] [2023-2024]

Concerts Are Performed in Front of a Live Audience
and Simultaneously Livestreamed at the Scheduled Concert Time

If this is your first time attending a Classical Crossroads concert, kindly request a reservation for yourself and your guests by emailing: [email protected]

Click here at the scheduled concert time to watch the livestream.

With consent of the artists, the concerts may be made available for on-demand streaming from Classical Crossroads' Vimeo Showcase for about a month, beginning a few days following the concert.

Click here to sign up above for e-mail concert reminders.

Sunday, October 13, 2024 at 2:00 p.m.

A pianist of "unerring, warm-toned refinement,
revealing judicious glimmers of power"
~ Los Angeles Times

Pianist
ROBERT THIES

Pianist Robert Thies's solo recitals are highly regarded by aficionados not only for his consummate musicianship and sensitive artistic interpretations, but also for his illuminating observations about the composers and the selections. Thies first captured worldwide attention in 1995 when he won the Gold Medal at the Second International Prokofiev Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia. Robert Thies enjoys a diverse career as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. He has performed over 40 different concerti with orchestras worldwide.

A graduate of USC, Thies's teachers have included Robert Turner and Daniel Pollack, both protégées of the legendary Russian teacher and pianist Madame Rosina Lhévinne and the great pianist Josef Lhévinne. Robert has an avid Southern California following. He is returning to the Palos Verdes Peninsula, where he grew up, for his sixteenth appearance on the Second Sundays At Two series.

Sunday, November 10, 2024 at 2:00 p.m.

TRIO CÉLESTE

                              IRYNA KRECHKOVSKY violin
     KEVIN KWAN LOUCKS piano
ROSS GASWORTH cello                                    

Hailed as "a first-class ensemble" (Orange County Register), "unfailingly stylish" (The Strad), "technically dazzling" (Long Beach Gazette), "flawless" (New York Concert Review), and "the epitome of what chamber musicians should be" (Palm Beach Daily News), Trio Céleste has firmly established itself as one of the most dynamic chamber music ensembles on the classical music scene today. Trio Céleste has performed hundreds of concerts worldwide including at the Chicago Cultural Center, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, New York's Carnegie Hall, and the Seoul Art Center in South Korea. In 2014, the ensemble was selected from over 500 applicants to be Artists-in-Residence at The Grand Canyon National Park.

Watch a Reprise of the Livestream
Stream-on-demand for two months month after the concert. Watch by clicking:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/classicalcrossroads

Sunday, January 12, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

  A Concert Dedicated to African-Americans'
Contributions to Classical Music
in Honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day

FIATO QUARTET

Formed in 2008, the Fiato Quartet is a winner of the 2022 Beverly Hills National Auditions. Its members hold degrees in music performance from the University of Southern California, Rice University, Northwestern University, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The members are spread among the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Pasadena Symphony, Long Beach Symphony, New West Symphony, and Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra. As studio musicians in Los Angeles, they also record music for motion pictures, television and records.

Argentinean-American soprano Camila Lima has performed in Europe, Argentina, and the United States, in venues such as the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and Carnegie Hall. She has starred in traditional, beloved operas such as Gounod’s Romeo and Juliette and Verdi’s La Traviata, among many others; in contemporary operas such as Spanish composer Juan Colomer’s Dulcinea XL world premiere performed at Zipper Hall of the Colburn School. Ms. Lima is a winner of the Beverly Hills National Auditions and alternate First Prize winner of the New York Lyric Opera Competition.

Sunday, February 9, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

Stars of Tomorrow

~ from the ~

USCThornton
School of Music

THE IVORY TRIO

               Clarinetist                                Cellist                                  Pianist
               YAN  LIU                      YUQI WANG              WILLIAM CHIANG

The artists are pursuing advanced degrees in the USC Thornton School of Music graduate program, having completed their earlier studies at some of the nation’s other leading music schools.

For Chinese cellist Yuqi Wang, music is a lifelong journey of discovery and connection. She finds joy in diverse musical collaborations as a soloist, chamber musician, and Early Music specialist. Her dedication to music has earned her recognition in competitions and on international stages, including First Prize at the 2022 Gustav Mahler Cello Competition, the International Music Competition Vienna, and the 2024 Thornton Christine Marie Ofiesh Honors Chamber Competition. Yuqi is currently a doctoral candidate at USC’s Thornton School of Music, studying with Ralph Kirshbaum, after earning her Master’s degree at The Juilliard School under Richard Aaron.

Standout clarinetist Yan Liu has appeared as a soloist with several leading orchestras. In 2022, Liu made his Carnegie Hall debut, playing the Copland Clarinet Concerto with the Juilliard Orchestra under Maestro David Robertson. In 2018, Liu made his solo debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra on its “Bernstein: 100 Years Young” family concert. In the same year, Liu appeared as a soloist with the Tianjin Symphony Orchestra. Liu is currently studying at USC’s Thornton School of Music with renowned clarinet pedagogue Yehuda Gilad after completing his Master’s degree at The Juilliard School and Bachelor’s degree at The Curtis Institute of Music.

Pianist William Chiang completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at Indiana University Bloomington, where he studied under the tutelage of Evelyne Brancart and André Watts. He has received top prizes at the Redlands Bowl, Memphis, Hellam, and Knabe competitions. In addition to his solo activities, William is an avid chamber musician and collaborative pianist and was a fellowship recipient of the Aspen Music Festival in 2024. William is currently pursuing a doctorate in piano with Bernadene Blaha at the University of Southern California, where he is a Studio Teaching Assistant in Keyboard Studies.

Watch a Reprise of the Livestream
With the artists’ approval, a reprise of the livestreamed concert is available to stream-on-demand for a month. Watch by clicking:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/classicalcrossroads

Sunday, March 9, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

Pianist
MARK ROBSON

"one of the great techniques," "an inquiring mind," and a performer capable of evoking an "exquisite engulfing pastel haze" ~  Los Angeles Times

Consummate keyboardist Mark Robson has been lauded by the Los Angeles Times numerous times, singled out as a pianist with “one of the great techniques” and “an inquiring mind.” His career has included performance as a keyboard soloist, chamber artist, composer, conductor, and vocal coach. He was a regular member of the music staff of the Los Angeles Opera from 1991 to 2010 as an assistant conductor and has worked as a musical assistant at the Salzburg and Spoleto (Italy) festivals. As a vocal coach and piano teacher, Mr. Robson has been on the faculties of USC, Cal State Fullerton, Chapman University, and Cal Arts. He is a founding member of the contemporary music consortium Piano Spheres series. As a keyboardist, he frequently assists the Los Angeles Philharmonic as a pianist, organist, harpsichordist, or synth player. Mr. Robson received degrees from the University of Southern California and Oberlin College, while several years of study and residency in Paris embellished his musical training. Large-scale performing projects in Los Angeles include Bach’s Goldberg Variations, the complete Beethoven sonatas and his Diabelli Variations, multiple performances of Messiaen’s great piano cycle Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant-Jésus, and most recently, the complete Chopin Nocturnes in one evening.

Sunday, April 13, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

USC THORNTON CHAMBER VIRTUOSI

 

Sunday, May 11, 2025 at 2:00 p.m.

Acclaimed Canadian Pianists
from the USC Thornton School Faculty

Duo Pianists 
 BERNADENE BLAHA     KEVIN FITZ-GERALD

"Beautifully matched, the duo presented a jewel case version
of this amiable work, the finger work crystalline and pert,
the lyrical moments treated with sensitivity and grace,
and the final movement simple, unbuttoned fun"
~ Calgary Herald

Canadian pianists Bernadene Blaha and Kevin Fitz-Gerald are internationally recognized as gifted recitalists, concerto soloists, and chamber musicians, appearing in leading concert series on world-renowned stages. Collaboration in the four-hand and two-piano repertoire arose from an invitation to tour classical music for the Royal Viking Cruise line shortly after they were married in 1987. These excursions took them to China, Japan, Korea, Hawaii, and the Mediterranean and were so successful that the artists expanded their repertoire to include the major works for four hands and two pianos. Currently based in Los Angeles, both pianists serve as faculty members at the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music.