Saturday, Sep. 26, 2009

Camerata Musica season opens with piano, cello duo

By Herald staff

Raman Ramakrishnan and Byron Schenkman will bring a blend of cello and piano and a selection of classical music to the Tri-Cities on Sept. 26 for the first concert in the Camerata Musica series.

Pianist Schenkman performs as a soloist and with other artists, such as the Mira Trio, which he founded in 2007.

He's a past winner of the Erwin Bodky Award for outstanding achievement from the Cambridge Society for Early Music. Schenkman also has performed solo concerts in Boston, New York, Seattle, Vancouver and Winston-Salem, as well taken part in a Chilean tour sponsored by Partners of the Americas.

Cellist Ramakrishnan is a member of the Daedalus Quartet and has performed in concert halls from New York to Los Angeles.

He's also a member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble and collaborates with musicians from the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra.

Ramakrishnan holds a degree in physics from Harvard University, as well as a music master's degree from the renowned Juilliard School of Music in New York City.