Brahms & Tchaikovsky: The Great Adversaries
featuring pianist Kazimierz Brzozowski, violinist Marian Tanau,
and cellist Jeremy Crosmer
Sunday, April 10th @ 2:00 PM
This concert is made possible with generous support from Salon Series Genre Underwriters,
Maurice & Linda Binkow.
KCH’s Salon Series celebrates classical music in an intimate setting that is reminiscent of the 19th century style salon or parlour concerts – a concert style which would have been entirely familiar to composers like Schubert, Schumann, Chopin and Liszt, and which offers audiences an opportunity to experience world-class chamber music in a living room setting.
This program features two great piano trios by these late 19th century composers: Tchaikovsky’s Trio in A Minor, Op. 50 and Brahms’ Trio in C Minor, Op. 101. Although Brahms and Tchaikovsky shared a birthday on May 7th (Brahms being seven years older, born in 1833), they stand on opposite poles of the composing spectrum. Brahms was the great classicist, building his works with intricate musical logic; Tchaikovsky was the heart-on-his-sleeve emotionalist, as colorful as Brahms was sober.
Can’t join us inside the House? Click the button below to watch the free livestream of this performance at showtime. (Free livestreams are only available this season during the actual showtime.)
COVID-19 Safety Policy for Indoor Concerts
- Moving forward, all patrons and artists who wish to attend or present performances indoors at KCH must provide a valid, complete COVID-19 vaccination card OR proof of a negative COVID-19 test performed by a third party within the previous 72 hours prior to entry. Such proof must be presented at concert check-in, may be displayed on a smartphone OR presented as a physical copy, and must also be accompanied by a matching, valid ID for verification.**
- Additionally, according to current CDC recommendations, masks are required for audiences inside the House and can only be removed when seated with a beverage (when available). When performing, artists may wear a mask, or not, at their own discretion.
**Proof of vaccination exceptions will be made for children under 5. These guests must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within the previous 72 hours prior to entry.
After his concerto debut at the age of fourteen, Kazimierz Brzozowski frequently performed as a soloist with the Lublin Philharmonic Orchestra and he gave series of concerts in Hungary. As a student in Warsaw, he often appeared in recitals at the Academy of Music, Chopin Society, Warsaw Musical Society, National Philharmonic Hall, and at Zelazowa Wola – Chopin’s birthplace. He has made recordings for the Polish Radio and Television, recorded compact discs with music by Bach, Mozart, Chopin, Szymanowski, Liszt and Bartok. His recordings are also included in popular CD sets “Living with the Classics”.
Mr. Brzozowski’s performance highlights include a New York Carnegie Hall debut, performances in Warsaw with the Polish National Radio Orchestra, recorded live for the Public Radio and TV, concerts at the Mozart Festival and the Chopin Festival in Warsaw, recitals for the Chopin Foundation in Florida, and concerts in Japan.
Kazimierz Brzozowski currently resides in Michigan, where he has frequently performed in recitals, and as a soloist with symphony orchestras including the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He performs in his native Poland as well, in recitals and as a soloist with Philharmonic orchestras.
He is a graduate of the Warsaw Chopin Academy of Music (M.M.) and University of Michigan (DMA). He has received awards from the Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw, Ann Arbor Musical Society in Michigan, University of Michigan and Kosciuszko Foundation in New York. He is a prize winner at the Polish National Piano Festival and Chopin Society Competition in Warsaw. Mr. Brzozowski is a Steinway artist. In July 2016 at the 20th International Piano Festival in Nałęczów he was decorated with the Medal of Merit for the Polish Culture awarded by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland in recognition of his artistic and pedagogical achievements. At the same time he received Appreciation Awards from the Mayor of the City of Nałęczów and from the Lublin Voivodeship Marshal for his cultural contribution to the city and the region.
Dr. Brzozowski is the founder and director of the International Music Festival, held annually in Naleczow, Poland. This event, now in its 24th year, attracts international high school and college students for intensive study and performances, both solo and with a chamber orchestra. Faculty and guest artists come from Poland, United States, Russia, and Japan.
Romanian-born violinist Marian Tănău first picked up the violin at the age of 4 and began his musical education in his hometown of Timisoara, Romania. He graduated from Liceul de Muzica “Ion Vidu” where he studied violin with Maria Cleşiu. He then left for the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca and the Conservatorul de Muzica “G. Dima,” where he earned an Artists Diploma. In the United States, he earned a graduate degree from Bowling Green State University. Marian joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1995.
Marian has appeared as a soloist with Romanian orchestras as well as with the Chautauqua Symphony and Bowling Green Philarmonia in the United States. He is an active chamber musician. Some of his recent projects are the recording of Paul Paray violin sonata, and string quartet for Grotto Productions Co. Critics in the prestigious Strad, Gramophone and Fanfare magazines praised his recording of the violin sonata. Marian is the organizer of the American Romanian Music Festival that took place with great success in Romania and the United States in March and April of 2005. Marian resides in Ann Arbor with his wife and two children.
Jeremy Crosmer is a remarkable young artist—both as a cellist and a composer. He completed multiple graduate degrees from the University of Michigan in cello, composition and theory pedagogy, and received his D.M.A. in 2012 at age 24. From 2012 to 2017 he served as the Assistant Principal cellist in the Grand Rapids Symphony, and joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in May of 2017.
Jeremy is the composer and arranger for the GRS Music for Health Initiative, which pairs symphonic musicians with music therapists to bring classical music to hospitals. In March of 2017 the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital launched a music channel that runs continuously, using four hours of meditative music composed by Jeremy and performed by musicians of the GRS.
Jeremy is a founding member of the modern music ensemble Latitude 49. He is also a current member of the band ESME—a duo that aims to broaden the education of classical music by bringing crossovers and mashups of pop and classical music to schools throughout Michigan. ESME released its first CD in December of 2016.
In April of 2013 Jeremy toured London with the Grand Valley State University Chamber Orchestra, performing the Boccherini G Major Concerto, No. 7. He performed the Vivaldi Double Concerto with Alicia Eppinga and the GRS in March of 2016. While still in school, Jeremy was awarded the prestigious Theodore Presser Graduate Music Award to publish, record and perform his Crosmer-Popper duets. He recorded the duets with Julie Albers, and both sheet music and CD recordings are available online.
Jeremy has taught music theory, pre-calculus and cello at universities across Michigan. He draws mazes, writes science fiction and plays good old country fiddle in his spare time.
