Acclaimed musicians to perform in Apalachicola

The Ilse Newell Fund for the Performing Arts is presenting two outstanding concerts this weekend that you won’t want to miss. 

The weekend kicks off with a concert on Friday, Jan. 28, at 8 p.m. featuring world famous trumpeter Longineu Parsons and internationally acclaimed pianist Joanna Sobkowska.

Parsons and Sobkowska have put together an exceptional performance repertoire that features the evolution of mostly French European composers to the American Jazz style. The concert spans late 19th century music of Debussy and Ravel up to early 20th century America starting with ragtime and early jazz . 

The duo, who are married and both on the faculty at Florida A&M University, are masters at improvisation and their program will showcase their interpretation of popular French composers to American jazz styles. 

Parsons is considered to be one of the leading jazz trumpeters in the world whose style also includes blues, jazz fusion, and classical. He has performed with many of the jazz greats including Branford Marsalis, Sun Ra, Cab Calloway, Herbie, Mann, Nat Adderly, and Doc Severinsen. 

Sobkowska is a Polish-born classical pianist who has performed around the world, including with the Warsaw Philharmonic, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, and The Festival Internacional del Piano in Baucaramanga in South America. 

The weekend continues with a concert on Sunday, Jan. 30 at 4 p.m. featuring concert pianist Dominic Muzzi, a rising star on the international concert circuit whose playing has been hailed for the mastery, precision, and passion he brings to the keyboard. 

He has won over a dozen top prizes and gold medals in both domestic and international piano competitions. He began training in the art of classical piano at the age of 4 and had his first public solo recital at the age of 11. 

Muzzi will be performing a diverse set of music including two Nocturnes, an Impromptu, and the Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, op. 47 by Frederic Chopin. He’ll also be presenting contemporary piano compositions by Pawell Mykietyn, the 40-year-old Polish composer whose works include symphonies, concertos, and film scores. 

Muzzi will end his performance with the Piano Sonata No. 2 by Grazyna Bacewicz, only the second Polish female composer, behind Maria Symanowska, to achieve international recognition for her compositions. During World War II she escaped Warsaw just before the Nazi destruction to continue her career in music. Her Piano Sonata No. 2 premiered in 1953. 

Both concerts will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church, 79 Sixth Street in Apalachicola. Tickets for both concerts are available online at inconcertapalachicola.org. Admission can also be paid in cash at the door. Tickets are $20 per person for the Parsons/Sobkowska performance, $10 per person for Dominic Muzzi. 

Both concerts feature open seating with social distancing. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. for Parsons/Sobkowska and 3:30 p.m. for Dominic Muzzi. 

The concerts are part of the 2022 music season presented by the Ilse Newell Fund for the Performing Arts, with partial funding by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council. The season includes four more concerts scheduled in February and two in April. Information about all concerts is available online at inconcertapalachicola.org