Miriam Kessler
harp
Eric Rutherford
cabaret piano
May 19, 1:30pm
Program:
Eric Rutherford
“Come Sunday”
Duke Ellington (Jazz Spiritual)
“A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square”
Manning Sherwin (Jazz Standard)
“Come Rain Or Come Shine”
Harold Arlen (Jazz Standard)
“Get Lost In Time”
Eric Rutherford (Original)
“Rocket Man”
Eric Rutherford (Original)
“Mona Lisa”
Jay Livingston & Ray Evans (Jazz Standard)
“When You Wish Upon a Star”
Leigh Harline (Classic Cinema Standard)
Miriam Kessler
Sonate for Flute
I Mässig Schnell,
II: Lebhaft,
III: Sehr Langsam
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
Deux Arabesques L.66
I. Andante con motto
2. Allegretto scherzando
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Concerto in B-flat major Op. 4 #6
Movement 1
G. F. Handel (1685-1759)
About the Musicians
Eric Rutherford
Eric Rutherford is a vibrant young artist based in Chicago whose style pulls heavily from jazz, gospel, and classic soul. He names Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, Cory Henry, John Legend and Nat King Cole among his influences.
Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Rutherford is a gifted singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and recording artist. His nostalgic yet original sound is created by weaving together his extensive training in jazz, gospel, and pop styles.
Performing professionally since age 19, Rutherford has had the pleasure to share his work on many stages throughout the Midwest and internationally, and has performed with Grammy award-winning artists Paula Cole, Diane Warren, and Cory Henry. One of the brightest up-and-coming sons of Motown, Rutherford offers an authoritative voice for the R&B and Soul music of tomorrow.
Miriam Kessler
An accomplished harpist, pianist, and composer, Miriam enjoys playing solo, orchestral, and chamber music. This past winter, she won both the Midwest Young Artists (senior) division of the Walgreens Concerto Competition and NIU’s Community School of the Arts Sinfonia Concerto Competition. She has been selected as a participant in the American Harp Society’s Young Composers Project and was a finalist in ASCAP’s Morton Gould Young Composer Awards in 2020 and 2022. Miriam placed first in the Greater Chicago Chapter of the American Harp Society’s scholarship competition (junior division) in 2020.
In the summers, she has participated in various enrichment camps such as the Illinois Summer Harp Class, where she was a featured young talent (2022); Boston University’s Tanglewood Institute (2021, virtual); Young Artist’s Harp Seminar; and OPUS chamber music camp.
Miriam is especially thankful to all those who have helped her develop musically, including: her harp teacher, Dr. Erin Freund; her orchestra director, Dr. Allan Dennis; her composition instructor, Dr. Jonathon Kirk; her piano collaborator and music coach, Sooka Wang; her church music director, Jonathan Gilley; and her late piano teacher, Constance Hughes. Miriam is looking forward to beginning collegiate harp studies in the fall.