Explore the unique world of composer-violinists in this four-session course designed for music enthusiasts of all levels. Participants will discover how virtuoso violinists have shaped the repertoire not only as performers but also as composers, creating works that highlight technical brilliance, expressive depth, and personal artistry.

Through guided listening, discussion, and historical context, students will examine iconic figures from the Baroque through the 20th century, including violinist-composers who bridged cultures and musical traditions. The course emphasizes the creative process, exploring how these musicians balanced performance demands with composition, and how their works continue to influence contemporary music.

Students will leave with a deeper appreciation for the artistry of composer-violinists, understanding both the technical challenges and the emotional storytelling embedded in their music.

A concert–lecture collaboration with the Boris Lurie Art Foundation

Join us at the Bertha and Karl Leubsdorf Gallery, Hunter (West Building 132), featuring music by Ilana Zaks Nederlander, a lecture by Stephanie Stebich, and a recorded testimony. The evening will shine a light on the life and legacy of Boris Lurie, who survived the Holocaust and went on to become an artist, activist, and founder of the NO!art movement. 

Featuring violinist Ilana Zaks-Nederlander, this emotionally charged program honors Lurie’s legacy with works by Jewish composers persecuted during the Holocaust, including Hans Krása, Szymon Laks, Dick Kattenburg, Erwin Schulhoff, and Ernest Bloch.

Opening remarks by Stephanie Stebich, Executive Director of the Boris Lurie Art Foundation, and excerpts from the Fortunoff Video Archive at Yale University provide a deeper historical and testimonial context.

Includes Q&A with Zaks-Nederlander and Stebich.

The Boris Lurie Art Foundation preserves and promotes the legacy of Boris Lurie, whose uncompromising art confronts memory, trauma, and injustice. The Foundation supports exhibitions, publications, and educational initiatives that reflect Lurie’s radical vision and commitment to social critique.

Explore the unique world of composer-violinists in this four-session course designed for music enthusiasts of all levels. Participants will discover how virtuoso violinists have shaped the repertoire not only as performers but also as composers, creating works that highlight technical brilliance, expressive depth, and personal artistry.

Through guided listening, discussion, and historical context, students will examine iconic figures from the Baroque through the 20th century, including violinist-composers who bridged cultures and musical traditions. The course emphasizes the creative process, exploring how these musicians balanced performance demands with composition, and how their works continue to influence contemporary music.

Students will leave with a deeper appreciation for the artistry of composer-violinists, understanding both the technical challenges and the emotional storytelling embedded in their music. With a class size of 40 participants, the sessions encourage interactive conversation, questions, and shared discoveries, making this an engaging and immersive exploration of the violin’s rich creative legacy.

Program

Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006 — J.S. Bach Lera

Auerbach- T'filah

A Set of Chinese Folk Songs — Zhou Long

Sonata No. 4 for Solo Violin, Op. 27 — Eugène Ysaÿe

Nocturne — Kaija Saariaho

Recitative and Scherzo — Fritz Kreisler

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

George Gottlieb Institute Yom HaShoah Community Commemorative Program

Orlove Auditorium, David Posnack Jewish Community Center

Dick Kattenburg – Rhapsody No. 1


Franz Krása – Serenade (from Brundibár themes)


Ernest Bloch – Suite No. 2 for Solo Violin


In Dinawirke (Tosia 1945)


Ilse Weber – Wiegala

Erwin Schulhoff – Sonata for Solo Violin


Description  For centuries, the violin has stood at the heart of musical innovation—not only as an expressive instrument, but also as a laboratory for composers who were themselves virtuoso performers. This course explores the fascinating legacy of the composer-violinist, tracing how artists from the Baroque through the Romantic eras used their technical mastery and creative imagination to expand the boundaries of violin playing and composition.

We will study key figures including Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Tartini, and Niccolò Paganini, whose works redefined both virtuosity and musical storytelling. The course will also highlight later masters such as Henryk Wieniawski, Eugène Ysaÿe, and Fritz Kreisler, who built upon this tradition with their own distinctive voices. Through guided listening, discussion, and live violin demonstrations, participants will discover how these musician-composers shaped the repertoire and influenced broader currents in Western classical music.

By the end of the course, students will have gained not only a deeper knowledge of these iconic figures and their historical contexts, but also practical tools for listening that can enrich any concert-going or personal exploration of classical music. Whether you are a lifelong listener or new to this repertoire, this course offers an engaging opportunity to appreciate how performers as creators left a lasting mark on the violin’s artistic legacy.

Group Leadership Style  More lecture than facilitated discussion.
Course Materials Additional materials will be provided on a class website or by email links.

Preparation Time  60-90 mins per class (reading/listening)

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

Description  For centuries, the violin has stood at the heart of musical innovation—not only as an expressive instrument, but also as a laboratory for composers who were themselves virtuoso performers. This course explores the fascinating legacy of the composer-violinist, tracing how artists from the Baroque through the Romantic eras used their technical mastery and creative imagination to expand the boundaries of violin playing and composition.

We will study key figures including Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Tartini, and Niccolò Paganini, whose works redefined both virtuosity and musical storytelling. The course will also highlight later masters such as Henryk Wieniawski, Eugène Ysaÿe, and Fritz Kreisler, who built upon this tradition with their own distinctive voices. Through guided listening, discussion, and live violin demonstrations, participants will discover how these musician-composers shaped the repertoire and influenced broader currents in Western classical music.

By the end of the course, students will have gained not only a deeper knowledge of these iconic figures and their historical contexts, but also practical tools for listening that can enrich any concert-going or personal exploration of classical music. Whether you are a lifelong listener or new to this repertoire, this course offers an engaging opportunity to appreciate how performers as creators left a lasting mark on the violin’s artistic legacy.

Group Leadership Style  More lecture than facilitated discussion.
Course Materials Additional materials will be provided on a class website or by email links.

Preparation Time  60-90 mins per class (reading/listening)

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

ANEIN! Boris Lurie and NO!art

26.04.26 – 07.06.26

On the occasion of its reopening following the completion of accessibility improvements, the Kebbel Villa presents the exhibition NEIN! Boris Lurie and NO!art, in collaboration with the Boris Lurie Art Foundation.

The opening of the exhibition and the reopening of the Kebbel Villa will take place on Sunday, April 26, 2026, at 11 a.m.

Speakers:

• Andreas Feller, Lord Mayor of the City of Schwandorf

• Jürgen Dehm, Director of the Kebbel Villa

• Stephanie Stebich, Executive Director of the Boris Lurie Art Foundation

Following the opening: Performance “Boris Lurie: Echoes of Memory – Music, Art, and the Holocaust” by Ilana Zaks-Nederlander. Introduction by Stephanie Stebich, Executive Director of the Boris Lurie Art Foundation.

Boris Lurie (1924 Leningrad, Soviet Union – 2008 New York, USA) grew up in Riga, Latvia. He survived the Riga ghetto and the concentration camps at Stutthof and Buchenwald. His mother, grandmother, younger sister, and childhood love were murdered during the Rumbula massacre in 1941. In 1946, Lurie emigrated to the United States with his father, settling in New York, where he lived and worked as an artist until his death in 2008. Although he described himself as a 'privileged' survivor and never regarded himself as a victim, his artistic work was shaped by his engagement with violence, abuse of power and collective helplessness.

As a largely self-taught artist, Lurie developed an uncompromising visual language combining collage, painting, photography and assemblage. He frequently juxtaposed images of the Holocaust with motifs from popular culture, resulting in works that were explicitly political and socially provocative. In 1959, he founded the NO!art movement with Sam Goodman and Stanley Fisher. NO!art defined itself as a radical avant-garde anti-art movement, with exhibition titles such as Doom, Involvement and Vulgar, their exhibitions addressed topics including imperialism, racism, sexism, consumerism, war, genocide and nuclear threat. They believed that art should not only have an aesthetic effect but also be understood as an act of social intervention. The group still exists today.

The exhibition at the Kebbel Villa presents key works from various phases of Lurie’s artistic career, beginning with his early War Series from 1946 onward. A group of Lurie’s works in which the German word “NEIN” occupies a central role is being presented to the public for the first time. The presentation is complemented by selected works by his NO!art colleagues Goodman and Fisher.

Lurie's works have been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Germany and abroad, including at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, New York (2022), the Riga Bourse Art Museum (2020), the Jewish Museum Berlin (2016), and Galerie Agnès B., Paris (2003). Following his death, research and exhibition grants, as well as the work of the Boris Lurie Art Foundation, have contributed to the preservation and international recognition of his work.

Description  For centuries, the violin has stood at the heart of musical innovation—not only as an expressive instrument, but also as a laboratory for composers who were themselves virtuoso performers. This course explores the fascinating legacy of the composer-violinist, tracing how artists from the Baroque through the Romantic eras used their technical mastery and creative imagination to expand the boundaries of violin playing and composition.

We will study key figures including Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Tartini, and Niccolò Paganini, whose works redefined both virtuosity and musical storytelling. The course will also highlight later masters such as Henryk Wieniawski, Eugène Ysaÿe, and Fritz Kreisler, who built upon this tradition with their own distinctive voices. Through guided listening, discussion, and live violin demonstrations, participants will discover how these musician-composers shaped the repertoire and influenced broader currents in Western classical music.

By the end of the course, students will have gained not only a deeper knowledge of these iconic figures and their historical contexts, but also practical tools for listening that can enrich any concert-going or personal exploration of classical music. Whether you are a lifelong listener or new to this repertoire, this course offers an engaging opportunity to appreciate how performers as creators left a lasting mark on the violin’s artistic legacy.

Group Leadership Style  More lecture than facilitated discussion.
Course Materials Additional materials will be provided on a class website or by email links.

Preparation Time  60-90 mins per class (reading/listening)

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

Description  For centuries, the violin has stood at the heart of musical innovation—not only as an expressive instrument, but also as a laboratory for composers who were themselves virtuoso performers. This course explores the fascinating legacy of the composer-violinist, tracing how artists from the Baroque through the Romantic eras used their technical mastery and creative imagination to expand the boundaries of violin playing and composition.

We will study key figures including Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Tartini, and Niccolò Paganini, whose works redefined both virtuosity and musical storytelling. The course will also highlight later masters such as Henryk Wieniawski, Eugène Ysaÿe, and Fritz Kreisler, who built upon this tradition with their own distinctive voices. Through guided listening, discussion, and live violin demonstrations, participants will discover how these musician-composers shaped the repertoire and influenced broader currents in Western classical music.

By the end of the course, students will have gained not only a deeper knowledge of these iconic figures and their historical contexts, but also practical tools for listening that can enrich any concert-going or personal exploration of classical music. Whether you are a lifelong listener or new to this repertoire, this course offers an engaging opportunity to appreciate how performers as creators left a lasting mark on the violin’s artistic legacy.

Group Leadership Style  More lecture than facilitated discussion.
Course Materials Additional materials will be provided on a class website or by email links.

Preparation Time  60-90 mins per class (reading/listening)

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

Program

James Lee III The Enduring Crucible (World Premiere)

Beethoven Symphony No. 9

Few pieces transcend the emotional and raw power like Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, a masterpiece that has inspired audiences for generations. From its stirring opening to the triumphant Ode to Joy, this iconic symphony is a true celebration of unity, hope, and the indomitable human spirit. With its soaring choral finale and unforgettable melodies, Beethoven’s Ninth is more than just a concert—it’s an emotional and uplifting journey that speaks to the soul.

Program

James Lee III The Enduring Crucible (World Premiere)

Beethoven Symphony No. 9

Few pieces transcend the emotional and raw power like Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, a masterpiece that has inspired audiences for generations. From its stirring opening to the triumphant Ode to Joy, this iconic symphony is a true celebration of unity, hope, and the indomitable human spirit. With its soaring choral finale and unforgettable melodies, Beethoven’s Ninth is more than just a concert—it’s an emotional and uplifting journey that speaks to the soul.

Description  For centuries, the violin has stood at the heart of musical innovation—not only as an expressive instrument, but also as a laboratory for composers who were themselves virtuoso performers. This course explores the fascinating legacy of the composer-violinist, tracing how artists from the Baroque through the Romantic eras used their technical mastery and creative imagination to expand the boundaries of violin playing and composition.

We will study key figures including Antonio Vivaldi, Giuseppe Tartini, and Niccolò Paganini, whose works redefined both virtuosity and musical storytelling. The course will also highlight later masters such as Henryk Wieniawski, Eugène Ysaÿe, and Fritz Kreisler, who built upon this tradition with their own distinctive voices. Through guided listening, discussion, and live violin demonstrations, participants will discover how these musician-composers shaped the repertoire and influenced broader currents in Western classical music.

By the end of the course, students will have gained not only a deeper knowledge of these iconic figures and their historical contexts, but also practical tools for listening that can enrich any concert-going or personal exploration of classical music. Whether you are a lifelong listener or new to this repertoire, this course offers an engaging opportunity to appreciate how performers as creators left a lasting mark on the violin’s artistic legacy.

Group Leadership Style  More lecture than facilitated discussion.
Course Materials Additional materials will be provided on a class website or by email links.

Preparation Time  60-90 mins per class (reading/listening)

Virtual weekly class (6 weeks)

Join violinist Ilana Zaks for an engaging one-hour session exploring the unique world of composer-violinists—musicians who not only perform but also create their own works. Through live performance, storytelling, and historical context, Ilana will illuminate the artistry, challenges, and inspirations behind some of the violin’s most celebrated repertoire.

Participants will gain insight into how composers who were also performers shaped the music of their time, and how these works continue to inspire audiences and musicians today. This session is perfect for music lovers, performers, and anyone curious about the intersection of creativity and virtuosity on the violin.

Program:

Bach: Sonata in g minor

Prokofiev: Solo Sonata

Corigliano: Red Violin Caprices

Howdy Forrester: Wild Fiddler’s Rag (arr. Augustin Hadelich)

A concert–lecture collaboration with the Boris Lurie Art Foundation

Join us at the North Carolina Museum of Art, featuring music by Ilana Zaks Nederlander, a lecture by Stephanie Stebich, and a recorded testimony. The evening will shine a light on the life and legacy of Boris Lurie, who survived the Holocaust and went on to become an artist, activist, and founder of the NO!art movement. 

Featuring violinist Ilana Zaks-Nederlander, this emotionally charged program honors Lurie’s legacy with works by Jewish composers persecuted during the Holocaust, including Hans Krása, Szymon Laks, Dick Kattenburg, Erwin Schulhoff, and Ernest Bloch.

Opening remarks by Stephanie Stebich, Executive Director of the Boris Lurie Art Foundation, and excerpts from the Fortunoff Video Archive at Yale University provide a deeper historical and testimonial context.

Includes Q&A with Zaks-Nederlander and Stebich.

The Boris Lurie Art Foundation preserves and promotes the legacy of Boris Lurie, whose uncompromising art confronts memory, trauma, and injustice. The Foundation supports exhibitions, publications, and educational initiatives that reflect Lurie’s radical vision and commitment to social critique.

https://syosset.librarycalendar.com/events/month

Program TBD

Program TBD: Part of the Weston Library Music Committee Series