As part of the Tomlinson Visiting Artist Series at Tabor Academy, the duo Leslie Stroud (flute) and Matthew Odell (piano) will perform a program entitled “Chamber Music of France” at 7:00 pm on Friday, October 14, in the Lyndon South Auditorium on the campus of Tabor Academy, 85 Spring Street, Marion. The concert is free and open to the public.
Performing throughout New England, Ms. Stroud and Mr. Odell present the richly varied and often provocative chamber music written for flute and piano. They have the distinction of having performed the complete chamber works for flute and piano written by award-winning French composer Michel Merlet, as well as performing the works of other living composers including Philip Lasser, Ned Rorem and Pierre Boulez. Offering inventive and imaginative programming, they bring the voice of contemporary classical music, alongside favorite works of the established repertory, to a wide array of audiences.
Ms. Stroud and Mr. Odell are both graduates of the Peabody Conservatory of Music. Mr. Odell holds a doctoral degree from The Juilliard School. He is currently on the faculty at The Juilliard School and Keene State College. Mr. Odell, whose playing is called “excellent” by the New York Times and with “…total commitment and real abandon” by Gramophone, regularly performs as a chamber musician and soloist in the U.S. and abroad. Ms. Stroud performs actively in orchestras and collaborative ensembles across the U.S., and her playing is noted by the New Bedford Standard-Times for its “virtuosity” and “excellent solo flute work.” Their programming and performances together are noted as “impressive” (Artistree) and “…wildly diverse” (Boothbay Register).