April 28, 2018, Saturday - Pulse of the 20th Century Concert at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist

Time: 7:30pm

Location: The Art Gallery, Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, 511 Groveland Avenue

Cellist Scott Lykins and pianist Matthew McCright will perform three of the 20th century's masterworks for cello and piano—Astor Piazzolla’s rhythmic Le Grande Tango and the monumental sonatas of Samuel Barber and Dmitri Shostakovich.

General admission tickets are $20 and are available in advance at brownpapertickets.com. Tickets also will be available at the door. College students (with ID) will receive free admission.

Scott Lykins' career uniquely blends artistic performance as a cellist and pianist with administrative creativity as founding artistic & executive director of the Lakes Area Music Festival in Brainerd, Minn. Primarily a cellist, he enjoys a busy schedule performing throughout the Midwest. A current member of the South Dakota Symphony, he has served as principal cellist for the National Orchestra Institute, National Repertory Orchestras, Classical Symphony of Chicago, and Eastman Philharmonic Orchestra, and has played regularly with the Duluth, Syracuse, and New World Symphonies. As a soloist, recent concerto appearances include the Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra, Heartland Symphony, Northeast Orchestra, and the Lakes Area Music Festival. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in cello performance from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Steven Doane and Alan Harris, respectively. Also a collaborative pianist, he has performed in recitals and concerts throughout the United States and Europe.

American pianist Matthew McCright has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, and the South Pacific as piano soloist and chamber musician. He has thrilled audiences and critics alike with imaginative programming that places the greatest piano repertoire alongside the music of today’s most innovative composers. A native of Pennsylvania, McCright now resides in Minneapolis and is a member of the piano faculty of Carleton College. An accomplished recording artist, McCright has released five solo recordings: three albums on innova Records (Second Childhood, A Waltz through the Vapor, and Blender), a 2011 release of the piano works of Gene Gutchë on Centaur Records and a 2015 release on Albany Records of the piano music of Olivier Messiaen. His solo touring shows include Evening Preludes, The People’s Music, Contemplations: the Music of Messiaen, Connecting Flights, and Endurance.