PAGE TWO THE MICHIGAN DAILY SUNDAY, MARCH 18, 1956 PAGE TWO THE MICHIGAN DAIlY SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 1956 VRONSKY-BABIN: Two-Piano Team Play Varied Works Vitya Vronsky and Victor Babin are "the most brilliant two-piano team of our generation," ' - -rd- ing to a national magazine. The artists who will appear in the May 4 May Festival concert have a notable dual musicianship which is now well established. Whether it is as protagonists of an important concert honoring Rachmaninoff or in an exchange of musical' banter with Hildegarde on a radio program, they are equally at home. War Interrupts When the war interrupted their career and Babin joined the Army Air Forces, Mme. Vronsky quickly adapted herself to the new situa- tion by volunteering for duty in a military hospital near her hus- band's station. When they could not play for their traditional pub- lic, they turned to a new audience, the American G.I.'s. They found them hungry for the sparkling music that can be turned out by two Steinways at once and devel- oped an entirely new public. Both artists were born in Rus- sia, but 500 miles apart. They both studied piano from childhood in homes with a musical background and as they grew older, and as their talents were confirmed, went to train in suitable conservatories. When the time came to choose a master to style their talents and direct their careers, they both se- lected Artur Schnable. It was in his studio in Berlin that they met. In addition to piano, Babin studied composition elsewhere and at the same time Miss Vronsky made her debut as a solo pianist. When her career took her to Eng- land, romance ultimately trans- ported her\ back to Berlin. There she and Babin.made two worthy decisions-to marry and to merge their separate careers as duo-pi- anists. London Debut They went to London to make their debut and soon had a wide public throughout the British Isles. Then they played in Paris where Miss Vronsky's mother and pianist brother had settled and went on to Belgium and Holland. They began to make recordings in England, introducing new mu- sid to the two-piano repertoire, much of it composed, by Babin himself. A recording of Rachmaninoff's' Noted Tenor To Appear In Festival Leading tenor of the New York City Opera and popular star of radio, television and concert stage, Rudolf Petrak will appear in the second and fifth May Festival concerts. Known for his exceptional mus- icianship and a warmly personal style of singing, a New York critic remarked that it was Petrak who transformed the "diamond horse- shoe" into the "family circle" and brought opera into the living room, making it familiar entertainment rather than,a hallowed art. His recital programs include a great variety of folk songs and art songs and he has been heard at the New Yor City Center and with other opera companies across the country in major roles of some twenty-five operas in five lang- uages. Began as a Violinist' Born in Czechslovaia of a highly musical family, Petrak began his musical career as a violinist and at thirteen was giving recitals. As a student in the Teachers College in Spisska, Kapitula, he studied piano, organ, harmony and voice. He received the master's degree and fora time taughtssports and academic subjects as well as music. As soloist with the famous, Teachers Chorus of Czechoslovakia he was heard by the director of the National Opera and invited to join the opera in Bratislava. There, while singing the role of Manrico in "Il Trovatore" on Christmas, 1947, Petrak was heard by the director of the New York City Opera, Laszlo Halasz, who signed him up the next day to come to America. Guest Performances During the past seven seasons, Petrak has become a favorite at the New York City Center, every summer in Chicago's Grant Park and in numerous guest perform- ances with opera companies of Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, San Francisco, Cincinnati and San Antonio. Varied Performances He has also appeared with sym- phony orchestras as soloist, in oratorio, radio and television per- formances. COTTON TO OPERA: Winters Recalls Career German Soprano To Sing In First Festival Concert Cotton farming to concert and opera .finging via the musicals comedy stage is the life story of baritone Lawrence Winters, ap- pearing in the May Festival this season. Born in King's Creek, S.C., Winters was the fourth in a fam- ily of six children. His father was a cotton picker and Winters spent his childhood attending Blackburg's one - room school- house. The family moved to East Spen- cer, N.C. where Winters attended high school. Upon graduation from high school he went to Washington, D.C. for a post grad- uate course at Dunbar High Sphool in preparation for a law degree at Howard University.At high school a music teacher discovered his vocal gifts and when he en- rolled at Howard in 1935, he be- came a music major. Financial-Difficulties To pay his tuition and mainte- nance Winters worked as a deliv- went to New York where his per- formance as Dessalines, Emperor of Haiti, stood out in a cast of veterans. Rave notices weren't enough to keep Winters going. He became a singing waiter at the Glass Hat of the Belmont Plaza. The late Ergo Rapee became interested in him and put him on several broad- casts. Finally he auditioned for Stokowski who engaged him as soloist in 1941 for Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the NBC Symphony. "Porgy and Bess" From the Stokowski appearance came an engagement as a soloist in Mahler's "Eighth Symphony," conducted by Rapee and a posi- tion in "Porgy and Bess" as Todd. Duncan's alternate. In 1942 Winters became a pri- vate in the Army and appeared in Washington in 1944 at the President's Birthday Ball. At the time of his discharge he was a lieutenant. After a stretch in Cafe Society, Winters went into "Call Me Mis- ter". All this time he kept up his music studies and in November 1947, he made a notable Town Hall debut. Appears in Mexico After Town Hall, Winterst went to Mexico, where he stayed for double the number of perform- ances originally scheduled. He re- turned there in the spring of 1948, when his stay was again extended. His operatic debut was at the New York City Center in the role of Amonasro in "Aida." It is the title role of Verdi's "Rigoletto" that has brought Winters his greatest fame. His performance of the hapless jester is considered one of the memorable operatic achievements of the present time. In the summer of 1950 Winters visited Europe for his initial con- cert tour and sang twenty-five times in nine cuntries. The next summer he returned to underscore his sensational success in the cit- ies he had previously visited and to make his first concert appear- ances in Venice; Palermo, Paris and other French and Italian cul- tural centers. In addition he con- certized extensively in South America and he has just recently returned from a tour of the West Indies. Appearing in the first concert of the May Festival series, Inge Borkh is the handsome young German soprano whom many crit- ics regard as the most exciting per- sonality to appear in opera in several years. After her first performance as Elektra with the San Francisco Opera in 1953, she was enthus- iastically compared with Flagstad. Miss Borkh was raised in a musi- cal and theatrical family in Mann- heim, where as a girl she partici- pated in New Year's Eve and birth- day variety shows that became nationally famous, though given chiefly for relatives and friends. ' Studied Piano When the family moved to Vienna, Miss Borkh studied piano and dancing at the Vienna Acad- emy and acting at the Reinhardt Seminar. She had a succesful per- iod on the stage in plays of Grill- parzer, Goethe and others before entering opera in Lucerne in 1950. The past few years have includ- ed further music study in Italy and operatic appearances in Bern, Basel, Geneva, the -Munich, Ber- lin and Nayreuth Festivals andI leading opera houses of Italy, Great Britain and Portugal. Miss Bor h has won especially high praise for leading roles in "Fidelio," "Elektra," "Tbsca," "Sa- lome," "Die Walkuee," "Turan- dot," and "The Counsul." Appears in Premieres In 1955 she appeared in two world premieres in La Scalla, Milan and the Salzburg Festival. During the past two seasons Miss Borkh has come to America for' appearances with the San Francisco and New Orleans Op- eras, and with the Montreal and Los Angeles Symphony Orchestras, In concert she has become es- pecially known for her ability to convey the mood of an opera through individual excerpts. Arias sung in concert, she feels, are not to be treated as isolated songs, however beautiful, but rather as opportunities to present in con- centrated form the essence of a character in a dramatic situation. Each aria is therefore sung with an unusually full realization of the music drama from which it is taken. Iii 'Ii VICTOR BABIN AND VITYA VRONSKY "Second Suite" became a best- seller and was released in America where it attracted first attention to the new piano team. The team came to America and made their debut in Town Hall in February, 1937. They were quick- ly established among the top con- cert attractions in the music busi- ness. Babin Composes Fortunately they did not have to rely entirely on transcriptions of other piano works to which two-piano music was largely lim- ited at the time. Babin composed, among other things, a brilliant concerto for two pianos which they had played with the London Philharmonic. This became the music of their debut with the Chi- cago Orchestra and the next sea- son they performed it in their first appearance with the New York Philharmonic Symphony. Now all of the great composers write for two pianos and today Vronsky and Babin have a wide repertoire. They also have annual concert tours, never less than 75 engagements including appear-I ances with all of the leading sym- phonies. Babin's prolific compositions now include works for piano, vio- lin, cello string quartets and songs. Among his best known transcriptions are several works of Rachmaninoff made with the late master's permission and personal interest. Babin takes time out each summer to write music. Retreat to Santa Fe The artists go to their retreat near Santa Fe, a charming ranch house built around two pianos and aptly named Rancho Piano. There on the edge of the desert Vronsky and Babin have started a small music colony which may one day establish Santa Fe as an in- ternational music settlement. They also spend two months each summer at the Aspen Festi- val in Colorado of which Babin is director. TICKET INFORMATION SEASON TICKETS SINGLE CONCERTS - $13.00--Block A. Three Central Stations, limited number available in First BalIcony. $10.00-Block B. Side Sections. Main Floor and First Balcony. $9.00-Block C. First 8 Rows Top Balcony. - $8.00-Block D. 13 Rear Top Balcony. [ $3.50-Main Floor. $3.00-First Balcony. $2.50-Second Balcony, First 8 Rows. $2.00, $1 .50-Second Balcony, Rear. LAWRENCE WINTERS ery boy, an elevator operator, and for three summers toured with the Eva Jessye Choir as soloist.- Dogged by financial difficulties, he finally graduated in June, 1941.1 Three days before commence- ment, Winters received an offer to! appear in Cameron White's op- era, "Ounga," in New York. After receiving his Baccalaureate he1 SAVINGS By buying season tickets a considerable saving is made, and a better seat location secured. TICKETS ARE ON SALE AT THE OFFICES OF THE MUSICAL SOCIETY IN BURTON MEMORIAL TOWER ..n..nn.. ".ni?>:{.vi1:S: Si:S:SS :'x.F:S F>F.:iS. x. :: -:':::..v.v....,v:.:....::..v., :c.,v. :::.nv :::.rr .::: n. :.,:-r................ 1'+')." } n.x.>Fx.nF>x:nFF>:F;.:<:{.r r:'r> ::::..:-::1 :..<:: r: n.: {:..>.: .>:x:,.;;.>_:.. _ .>:.,,:.{..... . y: _ _ _ .' sn. . .: .... .:.::...::.: ..::> ....: .:.o:.:xo :.x x.;.., .: ak>v>i'u:'.a .>x:.:r>:Fw'', .::#":">°{' 9n'C'PY{i ;}LV >aF "A","Y. VIYJ.y.'i4CV.Wl'iZ'k':'X.X. Ia .SL i:aY4..0. r}C...}C. nk.M.FZ'.%.{.IhA.iA.Y..uk:.F..v:.R.Y..E..Y..rr.M.:...1.F.l..n.:.....1u1%If..... F. X..Q .........Y.-... ... v v """":' : ". i .. .u >u':" .:i v . ,:SeF:.F ES"9:ri"; -"F:: - .:.: 'y'. ... -.......YY "' =z .... .nk.,h > '.Ys?-.cc.G. FY3:, 'x'xvv: >s.sx .s.S.R... a": ss +Sa «... ..o .. ._,:... .'" cam, . .. 3,=. - s a.:;. Philadelphia Orchestra Eugene Ormandy Musical Director and Conductor of Philadelphia Orchestra Thor Johnson Conductor, Cincinnati Orchestra Festival Guest Conductor "C . . : P.EP5 rI Lester McCoy Associate Conductor of University Choral Union Marguerite Hood Conductor of Festival Youth Chorus I plus UNIVERSITY CHORAL UNION 1±'.a' I V