Yuzefovich, DerHovsepian open PMF Feb Fest concerts

Peninsula Music Festival opens its February Fest three-concert chamber music series with a performance by PMF Orchestra Concertmaster Igor Yuzefovich and principal viola Joan DerHovsepian.

February Fest was begun as a way to bridge the gap between PMF’s traditional August seasons. Musicians from the orchestra return during the offseason to present intimate chamber concerts and experience a time of year in Door County that most of them have never seen. Brief receptions with the musicians follow the concerts.

Yuzefovich was most recently appointed Concertmaster of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, having previously served as Concertmaster with the Hong Kong Philharmonic and Assistant Concertmaster with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

Born in Moscow, Yuzefovich began his violin studies at the age of 5. In 1991, he moved to the U.S. where he continued his studies and later earned advanced degrees from The Peabody Conservatory under the tutelage of world-renowned pedagogue Victor Danchenko.

A winner of numerous competitions, Yuzefovich has performed all around the globe in concerts and recitals. As an active chamber musician, he co-founded the Monument Piano Trio in 2004, which debuted to critical acclaim in Baltimore and has since performed across the U.S.

DerHovsepian has been a member of Peninsula Music Festival since 1992. Previous solo performances with the PMF include Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 6, Berlioz’s “Harold in Italy,” Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, and the Penderecki and Walton viola concertos. She is associate principal viola of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. She is an Artist Teacher of Viola at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music and has given master classes at the New England Conservatory of Music and the New World Symphony.

As a member of the Everest Quartet, DerHovsepian concertized throughout North America and won top prizes in the Banff and Fischoff competitions. She was Principal Viola of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and played in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. DerHovsepian was the second prize recipient of the 1995 William Primrose Memorial Scholarship Competition.

The program for this concert has Mozart’s Duo in G Major, K.423; Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Duo for Violin and Viola, W.463; and Handel’s “Passacaglia.”

In addition to the music, concertgoers can bid on “Golf with the Concertmaster” and “Lunch with the Concertmaster” auctions. Three golfers can join Yuzefovich for an agreed-upon afternoon of golf and carts at The Orchards in Egg Harbor, and three individuals can join him for lunch at Chef’s Hat in Ephraim in the separate auctions.

Igor Yuzefovich and Joan DerHovsepian open the PMF February Fest concert series at 2 p.m. Feb. 13 at Shepherd of the Bay Lutheran Church, 11836 Wisconsin 42, Ellison Bay. Future concerts, all at 2 p.m. at Shepherd of the Bay, have PMF principal oboe Eric Olson, violist Ellen Olson and pianist Judith Jackson on Feb. 20; and PMF violinists Janet Sutter and Karen Nelson, Jackson and local cellist Lori Meyer on Feb. 27.

General admission is $25 for adults, $5 students and children for each concert, $60 for all three. Tickets will not be issued; reservations can be made and names will be put on a guest list. For reservations or more information, call 920-854-4060 or go to www.musicfestival.com.