Fall break is coming up on campus, but there is a whole lot going on at the Touhill, with a great chance to hear what talented student musicians are doing, plus an opportunity to sample hot Argentinean dance, Beethoven quartets and opera.
Sisters Lindsay and Laura Garritson visit the Touhill on Monday, Nov. 12 to show off their amazing talents on piano and violin in a concert at 7:30 p.m. Laura became an award-winning pianist at the early age of 8 and Lindsay, who also plays violin, has been a touring musician since age 4.
Laura has appeared at Carnegie Hall, the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis and in concerts in more than 10 other countries. Lindsay has performed as a pianist and violinist with several local orchestras and has been concertmaster of the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra.
The Garritson sisters will perform works by Francis Poulenc, Maurice Ravel, Samuel Barber, Franz Liszt, Sergei Prokofiev and Johannes Brahms. The concert is free to UM-St. Louis students.
UM-St. Louis' own Jazz Ensemble hits the stage Tuesday, Nov.13 from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and features guest vocalist and UM-St. Louis music lecturer Brian Owens.
The ensemble will perform an assortment of jazz compositions, with Owens performing with the ensemble. Among the selections are "Summer Wind," "Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'," and "Georgia on My Mind." The concert is free and open to all.
The UMSL Percussion and Afro-Cuba Ensembles will get their chance to perform Thursday in a performance hosted by the UM-St. Louis music department.
The free concert is directed by music lecturer Matt Henry and the bands' musicians are students at UM-St. Louis. Music selections will include "A Night in Tunisia" by Dizzy Gillespie and "Picadillo" by Tito Puente.
Tango Buenos Aires visits the Touhill for three performances, Friday, Nov. 16 at 8 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 17 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Presented by Dance St. Louis, the Tango Buenos Aires company will be visiting St. Louis for the first time.
Conceived from an Argentinean cabaret, this world-renowned dance and musical act tells the story of a young couple who go from living in the slums to bigger and better things using tango as their refuge.
Ticket prices vary from $28 to $50 depending on the seats. There will be a pre-show talk 45 minutes before every performance, and there is an opening night after-party on Nov. 16 at 10 p.m., with DJs, cast members, Argentinean wines and appetizers, all for $5.
On Sunday, Nov. 18, at 7 p.m., the Czech Opera Prague presents "The Merry Widow" at the Touhill. This comic and romantic musical production follows the life of a very wealthy widow in a story of love and despair.
Franz Lehar's operetta has energetic dancing and lovely music. Martin Otava directs and the production is hosted by KFUO Classic 99 FM radio. Ticket prices range from $26 to $50.
The Arianna String Quartet, UM-St. Louis' artists-in-residence, continue their project to perform all of the Beethoven Quartets with a stop at the Touhill on Sunday, Nov. 18.
The upcoming performance is the second of two performances of the quartet's Concert 5 in its "Beethoven: The Complete String Quartet" series, with the first performance on Saturday night at the Sheldon Concert Hall.
The ASQ members are violinists John McGrosso and David Gillham, violist Robert Meyer and cellist Kurt Baldwin.
This concert will feature Beethoven's String Quartet in D Major, Op. 18, No. 3 (1798); String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 74 "Harp" (1809); and String Quartet in C Major, Op. 59, No. 3 "Rasumovsky" (1806).
Tickets are free for students, $20 for adults and $15 for seniors. For more information about ASQ, visit the quartet's Web site at http://www.ariannaquartet.com.
All of these offerings should give art lovers plenty of chances to check out a variety of music and dance, all without even leaving campus. For further information, call the Touhill at (314)-516-4949 or go to http://www.touhill.org.
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