Arts & Humanities Campus News

Anthony McGill, Emanuel Ax to play recital for UGA Presents

Clarinetist Anthony McGill, left, and pianist Emanuel Ax, right, will perform on Feb. 2 at 3 p.m. in Hodgson Concert Hall. (Submitted photos)

Two of classical music’s leading instrumentalists have been to Athens before, but never as recital partners.

On Feb. 2 at 3 p.m., clarinetist Anthony McGill and pianist Emanuel Ax will play a varied recital in Hodgson Concert Hall. The program includes pieces by Robert Schumann and Franz Schubert, as well as works by three Black American composers, Florence Price, Jessie Montgomery and James Lee III.

In a solo turn, Ax will play Beethoven’s “Moonlight” Sonata. McGill and Ax will conclude with Leonard Bernstein’s youthful, jazzy Clarinet Sonata.

Anthony McGill

Hailed for his “trademark brilliance, penetrating sound and rich character” (New York Times), McGill enjoys a dynamic international solo and chamber music career and is principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic — the first African American principal player in the organization’s history. He is the recipient of the 2020 Avery Fisher Prize, one of classical music’s most significant awards, and was named Musical America’s 2024 Instrumentalist of the Year.

McGill appears as a soloist with top orchestras, including the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, and Detroit Symphony Orchestras. He performed alongside Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma and Gabriela Montero at the first inauguration of President Barack Obama. “American Stories,” his album with the Pacifica Quartet, was nominated for a Grammy.

Emanuel Ax

Born to Polish parents in what is today Lviv, Ukraine, Ax moved to Winnipeg, Canada, with his family when he was a young boy. Ax made his New York debut in the Young Concert Artists Series, and in 1974 won the first Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition in Tel Aviv. In 1975 he won the Michaels Award of Young Concert Artists, followed four years later by the Avery Fisher Prize.

The 2024-25 season begins with a continuation of the Beethoven For Three touring and recording project with partners Leonidas Kavakos and Yo-Yo Ma, which takes them to European festivals including BBC Proms, Dresden, Hamburg, Vienna and Luxembourg. During the season, he will return to the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras, National, San Diego, Nashville and Pittsburgh symphonies and the Rochester Philharmonic.

This performance is supported by Julia Marlowe Swagler.

Three ways to get tickets

  1. Purchase tickets online at pac.uga.edu.
  2. Call the Performing Arts Center box office at 706-542-4400, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  3. Visit the UGA Performing Arts Center box office, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (five-minute parking is available in the drop off circle at the Performing Arts Center for purchasing or picking up tickets.)

Audience members can create their own series of three or more performances for 10% off. UGA Presents single tickets start at just $25 with promo code PAC25, and UGA student tickets are $10. Parking is free.

To learn more about all UGA Performing Arts Center events, visit pac.uga.edu.