Ukrainian Cultural Center of New England

Rotary Concert for the Health of Ukraine's Children

When

Saturday, August 24th, 2024    
All Day

Event Type

August 24, 2024 — Katowice, Poland

With this concert, the New England-based 501c3 Common Man for Ukraine honors the 10th anniversary of the Rotary program ‘Children of Ukraine Health Retreat’, which since 2014 has provided trauma counseling and a healing experience to children whose parents died as soldiers a result of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine. All proceeds from the concert will fund the monthly ‘Children of Ukraine Health Retreat.’ (commonmanforukraine.org)

Artists

Magdalena Pawlisz, Conductor
Claire McCahan, Mezzo-Soprano
The Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra

Repertoire

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Overture to Don Giovanni, K. 527
Hector Berlioz, Les nuits d’été (Summer Nights), Op. 7
Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93

Concert Description

On August 24, 2024, on the 33rd anniversary of Ukraine’s independence, we invite you to a charity concert organized by the nonprofit Common Man for Ukraine, Rotary Club of Zamość Ordynacki and District 2231 Rotary International, with the support of Rotary Club of Katowice.

With this concert, we honor the 10th anniversary of the Rotary program ‘Children of Ukraine Health Retreat’, which since 2014 has provided trauma counseling and a healing experience to children whose parents died as soldiers as a result of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine. All proceeds from the concert will fund the monthly ‘Children of Ukraine Health Retreat’.

Music evoking a wave of emotions – contrasting the cheerful highs with solemn elements of contemplation – will be heard this evening, performed by the Symphony Orchestra of the Silesian Philharmonic conducted by Magdalena Pawlisz, and featuring American mezzo-soprano Claire McCahan. The first bars of the overture from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni will set a dramatic mood that yields to an optimistic tone befitting an evening of celebration and humanitarianism. Motifs of longing and hope will appear in four songs from Hector Berlioz’s Summer Nights cycle. The evening’s finale will feature Ludwig van Beethoven’s masterful symphonic music, namely his Eighth Symphony – a light-hearted, albeit not carefree work, filled with an array of musical surprises.

Surprises during the concert will also appear outside the artistic program, as the concert will draw guests from Poland, the United States and various European countries – including children from Ukraine, who will participate in the August ‘Children of Ukraine Health Retreat’.

Magdalena Pawlisz

Holding a Doctorate in Musical Arts and an Executive Master in Art Administration, Magdalena Pawlisz (she/her) is developing a successful career in Poland and abroad. She studied conducting at the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Krakow, the Berlin University of the Arts and the Italian Swiss Conservatory in Lugano. She has worked with opera houses in Würzburg and Gothenburg, philharmonics in Neubrandenburg and Czestochowa, and festivals in Salzburg and Lviv, among others. In the archives of the Minorite monastery in Vienna, Magdalena Pawlisz discovered Franciszek Lessel’s Mass in C Major, which she premiered as part of her doctoral dissertation. Thanks to Rotary, she took part in a youth exchange for musicians in San Diego – she has been pursuing the musical path ever since, while supporting Rotarian projects for children.

Claire McCahan

Noted for her genuine and engaging stage presence, mezzo-soprano Claire McCahan (she/her) thrives on musical storytelling in genres including oratorio, art song, opera, folk and jazz. An award-winning recitalist, she made her debut recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in 2023 and actively pursues work with living composers to continue the art song tradition. Recent highlights include solo performances with the Boulder Bach Festival, Colorado Bach Ensemble, American Bach Soloists Academy, Opera Saratoga, the New Hampshire Music Festival and the Tanglewood Music Festival. She looks forward to returning to Berlioz’s masterpiece ‘Summer Nights’ at the Silesian Philharmonic.

Tickets Now Available

https://filharmonia-slaska.eu/production/koncert-rotary-dla-zdrowia-dzieci-ukrainy-mozart-berlioz-beethoven-pawlisz-mccahan-koncert-charytatywny/

Can’t make the concert? Show your support with the purchase of a “Virtual Ticket” donation at commonmanforukraine.org/events!