23 March 2001

Dear colleagues:

I'll be playing in a concert this Sunday afternoon at 3pm. The pieces I'm playing are

[1] Cecilia Kim's "Illusions" (consists of three movements -- Shattered Illusions, Mystic Illusions, and Insanity is Sanity),
[2] Jae Eun Ha's "Quodlibet" (a rhythmic piece for violin and piano incorporating snippets of Korean melodies) and
[3] Donald Sur's "Satori in the Park" (satirical ensemble piece playing on the theme of Tea for Two)

You are cordially invited to attend.

Elaine

The Lehigh University Music Department is pleased to present LUVME (Lehigh University Very Modern Ensemble), directed by Paul Salerni, and special guests in concert on Sunday, March 25, at 3PM, in Baker Hall, Zoellner Arts Center.

This unique concert of Korean contemporary music is being performed in memory of Korean-American composer Donald Sur. Satori on Park Avenue, a witty composition from Sur's New York Sketches, will be performed by Lehigh faculty members Paul Chou, violin; Elaine Chew, piano; and Nancy Bidlack, cello; with guest artists Christine Fish-Moulton, flute; and Sherry Apgar, clarinet. Special guest composer Cecilia Kim's piano composition, Illusions, will be performed by Elaine Chew. Korean composer Jae Eun Ha, a good friend of Sur's, chose his composition for violin and piano entitled Quodlibet especially for this concert to memorialize Donald Sur. Incorporating elements of traditional Korean music with well-known 20th century western compositions, Ha believes the humor and playfulness of this piece delighfully captures Sur's personality. Jin-Hi Kim will perform a piece with the traditional Korean Komungo (a fourth-century fretted-board zither) put through the latest electronic devices.

Composer and pianist Cecilia Heejeong Kim graduated from Yonsei University, Seoul, with a B.A. in musical composition in 1990, and moved to Philadelphia where she studied with Joseph Castaldo and began experimenting with multi-media works at the University of the Arts. She received her M.M. and Ph.D. in music at the University of Pennsylvania where she studied with George Crumb, James Primosch, and Richard Wernick. Currently she is a professor in composition at Sangmyung University in Seoul. Her music has been performed in Korea, France, Hungary, and the U.S., and one of her compositions has been selected as the official title song of the 2002 Asian Olympics.

Composer Jae Eun Ha received a B.A. and M.A. in theory and composition from the University of Tennessee and a D.M.A. from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He began teaching at Mississippi Valley State University in 1970, and in 1979 was invited to teach at Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea, where he currently teaches. His creative works range from solos to large combination of instruments including six orchestral works, chamber music, and numerous vocal and choral works.

Composer Ji Hi Kim is highly acclaimed as both a komungo (a fourth-century fretted-board zither) virtuoso and for her cross-cultural compositions. She has pioneered a wide array of compositions for the komungo in combination, which she has performed with the Kronos Quartet, Xenakis Ensemble, and Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society. She has co-developed the world's only electric komungo with Joseph Yanuziello. Kim has performed extensively throughout the USA, Europe, Canada, South America, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and Russia at many international festivals both as a soloist and with leading improvisers such as Derek Bailey, Eugene Chadbourne, and James Newton.

Composer Donald Sur studied at UCLA with Colin McPhee and at UC/Berkeley with Andrew Imbrie and Seymour Shifrin. At Princeton he worked with Roger Sessions and at Harvard with Earl Kim. He spent four years researching Korean court music before moving permanently to Boston, where he taught at MIT, Harvard, Tufts, and Wellesley. Sur's works have been performed at Lincoln Center; National Theater and Seoul Arts Center; Walker Arts Center; InterArts Hawaii; Tanglewood; on BBC; Radio Cologne; and in many other locations.
Donald Sur's largest work, the Slavery Documents, released in 1990, had a significant impact on the music community. As a composer, he was a perfectionist and ruthlessly self-critical. He spent five years researching the period of slavery and three years writing the 75-minute piece. Sur's friend, composer John Harbison, said, "Donald's work was unpredictable but exquisitely correct at every moment; it is impassioned, heartfelt, and deeply moving in ways that are mysterious to explain."

PRE-CONCERT LECTURE: At 1 p.m. in Zoellner Room 145, Korean composers Cecilia Kim and Jin-Hi Kim will discuss contemporary Korean music. The lecture is FREE and open to the public. No reservations necessary. Sponsored in part by The Korea Society.

Tickets are available for $15 for the Sunday, March 25, 3 p.m. performance; LEHIGH STUDENT TICKETS: ONLY $5! Group, student, LVAIC, and senior discounts are also available. For reservations, please call Zoellner Ticket Services at 610-758-2787.