USA

January 28, 2007

Tatiana and her internationally award winning piano partner Anna Polusmiak made a return engagement to The Cathedral Concert Series at St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption.

Here is a review from that performance.

Duo's beautiful music warms basilica crowd Concert review
By Mary Ellyn Hutton, Cincinnati Post music writer

Violinist Tatiana Berman and pianist Anna Polusmiak might as well give in. They are a publicist's dream.
It's not just their names, Tanya and Anya, which are likely to stick. Nor their twentysomething youth, drop-dead good looks and similar cultural backgrounds. (Berman is from Russia, Polusmiak from neighboring Ukraine. Russian is their common language.)
They simply make beautiful music together.
Berman and Polusmiak, who made their ensemble debut at Covington's Cathedral Basilica in November 2005, paid a return visit Sunday afternoon.
It was bitterly cold outside - 18 degrees and windy with flurries - but the rows of poinsettias left over from Christmas and the light filtering through the lofty stained glass windows made it warm and inviting inside. So did the program, which spanned Mozart, Brahms and Messiaen to the present.
The opener, "Reverie," written for Berman by the young English composer Michael Csanyi-Wills (a U.S. premiere), made a soft-edged, angular ascent from low on the violin's G string to the highest reaches of the instrument with pinpoint accuracy. It was a treacherous way to begin a concert, but Berman's precision seemed to obviate any need to "warm up."
The work's meditative beginning and ending enclosed a gentle but more agitated middle, where Polusmiak's touch matched the lightness of the violin.
She and Berman made music with a capital M in Mozart's Sonata in E-flat Major, K.380, a collaboration marked by taste, nuance and an unforced, classic sound. Their smallest ritards meshed congenially, and Berman applied her vibrato like a sculptress, shaping exquisite lines in the soulful Andante and highlighting pertinent details. Heard in the crowd during the cheerful Rondo were a few soft "Mom's" from Lea Järvi, Berman and husband Paavo Järvi's three-year-old daughter.
A highlight of the recital was Messiaen's Theme and Variations, an early work (1932) somewhat in the spirit of his famous "Quartet for the End of Time." Ten minutes long, it combines the composer's innovative impulse with his steadfast Roman Catholic faith. The theme is unconventionally shaped, with a timeless, unresolved feel, and the variations are capped by an exalted finish that seems to touch heaven. Polusmiak made some real fireworks in the third variation, which merged with the fourth into a thrilling transition to the final "Tres lent," where Berman soared over pealing chords by Polusmiak.
Brahms' D-Minor Sonata, Op. 108, got a lovely reading that could have used a bit more fire in the first movement. Berman is a meticulous player, exquisitely musical with technique in spades, and can afford to take risks. She and Polusmiak put real personality in the third movement (a scherzo), and it was good to hear them "let go" in the Presto finale, where a lightning quick page turn near the end did not deter Berman in the least.

November 4, 2006.

Tatiana made her debut, playing the Bruch Violin Concerto, with The Spartanburg (South Carolina) Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of conductor Sarah Ioannides.

Writer David Berry of the Spartanburg Herald-Journal wrote: "Russian violinist Tatiana Berman gave a nearly flawless performance of the famous and popular Bruch concerto. With an assured technique, she seemed to effortlessly toss off the many chords and roulades, yet comfortably slipped into sweet lyricism when called for -- especially in the gorgeous second movement. She had a big enough sound to be heard over the orchestra. Orchestras tend to under-rehearse concerto accompaniments and play them perfunctorily. I really enjoy the way conductor Sarah Ioannides gives her soloist full reign with the solo part and then energizes the orchestra in the tutti sections with brisk tempos, a full sound and attention to dynamic details."

Estonia

July 10, 2006

Tatiana performed Romances for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 40 and 50, by Beethoven with Pärnu City orchestra in the David Oistrach Festival.

Quote from an article about this performance.

"Soloist in the Beethoven was Tatiana Berman, a sporting collaborator in rehearsals and an exquisite performer in concert."

USA

May 14, 2006.

The Linton Chamber Music Series at the First Unitarian Church, 536 Linton Street, Cincinnati, featured Tatiana and members of the Cincinnati and Indianapolis Symphony Orchestras in a recreation of an 18th century house music concert.

On the program: Haydn's Symphony in D major Hob 1:104 (arranged as Quintets by J.P. Salomon); excerpts from Mozart's opera "The Magic Flute"; Beethoven's Symphony # 2, Op 36 (arranged for piano trio by Beethoven); and Mozart's Piano Concerto #12 in A major, K414. Other members of the ensemble were Randolph Bowman, flute; Michael Chertock, piano; Lei Weng, piano; Philip Palermo, violin; Louise Alexander, violin; Michael Strauss, viola; and Theodore Nelson, cello.
The program was repeated Monday, May 15th, as part of Encore! Linton at the Congregation Ohav Shalom, 8100 Cornell Road, Cincinnati, Ohio.

May 13, 2006.

Tatiana joined Frank Weinstock, piano, and Joshua McGuire, guitar, to perform a Private Recital at the Palmers' Residence in Indian Hill. The program included music by Piazzolla, Beethoven, De Falla, Poldini, Elgar, Tchaikovsky.

May 2, 2006.

Tatiana performed as part of a chamber group with clarinetest Ixi Chen as part of the University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music's Faculty Artist Series. She was featured in the Beethoven Septet along with Randolph Bowman, flute; Liang Wang, oboe; Jennifer Monroe, bassoon; Theodore Nelson, cello; and Owen Lee, bass.

March 24, 2006

Tatiana led the chamber music group Concertnova in its debut concert, at Nativity Church in Pleasant Ridge.

The Concertnova performance was the second in Nativity's Laetare Arts Series, launched in February 2005 with the dedication of a sculpture titled "Anguish of Abraham". This year's concert fell two days before Laetare ("to be joyful" in Latin) Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Lent when Catholics celebrate the joy of their journey toward Easter. Nativity of Our Lord Parish, 5935 Pandora Ave. Cincinnati OH 45213-2017. Phone (513) 531-3164, Fax (513) 458-6761

November 6, 2005

Tatiana, accompanied by Anna Polusmiak, gave a recital of Beethoven, Debussy, and Arvo Pärt as part of the Cathedral Concert Series at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, 1140 Madison Avenue, Covington, Kentucky, USA 41011; telephone: (859) 431-2060, ext. 204.