Everything Nac

Houston pianist Mary Katherine Schober will present the concert program “Images,” featuring works by Modest Mussorgsky, Felix Mendelssohn and her own original compositions, at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, in Cole Concert Hall on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

The inspiration for the title is Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” “The program is essentially organized to showcase this work, as well as my own compositions,” Schober said. “Every part of the program is evocative of various images, whether literal or abstract.”

She describes Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” as one of the first and very few compositions of its kind. “Each movement is written to showcase an actual painting by Mussorgsky’s artist friend, Viktor Hartmann,” she said. “While not all the paintings still exist today, we can easily fill in the blanks with the evocative writing of this huge work. Images abound that blur the lines between fantastical and real life, from witches, to chicks hatching, to an old castle, to a gigantic gate of an ancient city.”

The program also includes Mendelssohn’s “Songs Without Words,” which have long been a choice staple of the pianist’s repertoire. “They tend to evoke clear themes and tropes, and the two on this program are no exception,” Schober said. Op. 38, No. 6, in A-Flat major is commonly known as “Duetto,” or “Duet,” and the nickname comes from two different melodies having a conversation throughout the piece. Op. 19, No. 6 is titled “Venetian Boat Song,” imitating the beloved songs of Venetian gondoliers in a rocking, emotional style.

Schober’s “Vignettes,” Op. 2, is a new work written in 2022. While the four-movement structure is reminiscent of a classical sonata, the piece is exploratory and modern, she explains, where modes are used more than traditional major and minor in the piece.

Schober enjoys a varied career of teaching, collaborating, creating and performing in the greater Houston area. Schober’s piano students have participated and earned honors in both regional and state events. She holds an adjunct faculty position at Lone Star College-University Park. At LSC, she has taught private lessons and group piano classes, performs regularly at collegiate events, and received an Adjunct Faculty Excellence Award in the spring of 2023. She also serves as organist and pianist at First United Methodist Church, Pearland. She performs regularly with singer-songwriter Catterina, touring in Texas and New York City.

Concert tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. To purchase tickets, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit finearts.sfasu.edu. For additional information, contact the SFA School of Music at (936) 468-4602.

South Korean violinist Jeongwon Claire An will present “Celebration of Beethoven – Complete Violin Sonata Series” when she performs at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20, in Cole Concert Hall on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

She will be accompanied by Dr. Minhae Lee, assistant professor of piano in the SFA School of Music. The program will feature Ludwig van Beethoven’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in D major, Op. 12, No. 1; Sonata for Violin and Piano in F major, Op. 24, No. 5; and Sonata for Violin and Piano in G major, Op. 30, No. 3.

An is a versatile violinist experienced in solo, chamber and orchestra settings who joined the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in September 2023 as a member of the first violin section. As a chamber music enthusiast, she is a founding member of Trio Menil, the Grand Prize and Odyssey Chamber Music Series Award winner of the 2023 Plowman Chamber Music Competition, and she is a recipient of the Peter Salaff Prize in Chamber Music from the Eastman School of Music.

An advocate for community outreach, An was a member of DACAMERA’s Young Artist Program in 2022-23, a fellowship program for emerging professional instrumentalists, vocalists and composers that serves the Houston community. She also served as a mentor of YOLA (Youth Orchestra Los Angeles), the L.A. Philharmonic’s El Sistema music education program, and she is currently a chamber music faculty member at the Hochstein School.

Concert tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. To purchase tickets, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit finearts.sfasu.edu. For additional information, contact the SFA School of Music at (936) 468-4602.