Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia Performing Arts Center will present miXt, an exciting new classical music ensemble, Nov. 13 at 8 p.m. in Ramsey Concert Hall. The trio of rising young stars features clarinetist Jose Franch-Ballester, violinist Bella Hristova and pianist Ran Dank.
Formed in 2011, miXt is a versatile chamber group comprised of award-winning instrumentalists on the Young Concert Artists roster. While the performers have already enjoyed internationally acclaimed careers as soloists, this is their inaugural season touring as an ensemble.
Spanish clarinetist Franch-Ballester is a musician who has been praised for his “technical wizardry” by The New York Times. In 2010, he was awarded the Cannes MIDEM/IAMA Prize for Outstanding Young Artist, and he was the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2008. As a graduate of Lincoln Center’s CMS Two program, he regularly performs with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, in addition to making frequent appearances at Chamber Music Northwest, the Cartagena Festival Internacional de Música and the Young Concert Artists Festival at Nexus Hall in Tokyo.
Hristova is a violinist with “commanding stage presence” (The Strad), “impressive power and control” (The Washington Post), and “expressive nuance” (The New York Times). Born in Pleven, Bulgaria, Hristova was awarded first prize in the 2008 Young Concert Artists International Auditions. Prior to receiving the YCA honor, she won the 2007 Michael Hill International Competition in New Zealand and the 2006 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis.
Dank has performed as a soloist with orchestras across the country and in recitals at Washington’s Kennedy Center and New York’s Morgan Library and Museum. A native of Israel, Dank earned his bachelor’s degree from the Rubin Academy of Music at Tel Aviv University and his master’s degree from the Juilliard School where he worked with Emanuel Ax. He currently is pursuing his doctoral degree in musical arts at the City University of New York.
The miXt concert will be recorded for broadcast on American Public Media’s Performance Today, which is heard by more than 1.3 million listeners across the country.
Tickets for the miXt concert are $27 and are free for UGA students with a valid UGA ID card. Tickets can be purchased online at pac.uga.edu or by calling the Performing Arts Center box office at 706/542-4400 or toll free at 888/289-8497.
Lars Ljundahl, in memory of Despy Karlas, is the underwriter for the concert
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