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Cello and piano magic: Annie Perkins-Jacobs and Katelyn Vahala to perform at Nazareth University

Annual Changemakers Series finishes with world premiere composition by Octavio Vazquez

Rochester, NY (02/11/2025) — Nazareth University's '24/'25 Changemakers Series concludes with "An Evening with Annie Jacobs-Perkins and Katelyn Vahala." This captivating duo combines the lyrical mastery of the cello with the expressive power of the piano, creating a mesmerizing performance that transcends genres and resonates deeply with audiences. The pair take the Beston Hall stage in the Glazer Music Performance Center, 4245 East Ave., at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 13.

This highly anticipated concert will showcase the extraordinary talents of these two world-class musicians in a captivating program featuring timeless classical works and the debut of a new, modern composition written specifically for the artist. In addition to Cello Sonata No. 2 in D major by Felix Mendelssohn and Cello Sonata by Claude Debussy, the program will include the World Premiere of Sonata for Cello and Piano, "The Fool," by Octavio Vazquez commissioned by prominent Rochester cellist and educator Kathleen Murphy Kemp for her former student, Annie Jacobs-Perkins, with additional support from Betsy Rice and Margaret Lindsay. Vazquez is an Associate Professor and Director of the Music Composition Undergraduate Program at Nazareth University's School of Music.

Annie Jacobs-Perkins is a highly regarded cellist who has performed across the globe, captivating audiences with her expressive playing and technical prowess. Her love of interdisciplinary work has led her to collaborate with painters, dancers, potters, cheesemongers, fashion designers, boxers, composers, poets, woodworkers, essayists, knitters, and farmers. She believes that it is the duty of an artist to protect beauty that already exists in the world, and as such, is a passionate participant in local, sustainable agriculture and a boycotter of fast fashion. Music is one of the ways she digs her toes into the earth around her.

Praised for anything from "hypnotic lyricism, causing listeners to forget where they were for a moment" (Alex Ross, The New Yorker) to "color alchemy" (Cleveland Classical) to "delightfully pluck[ing] and slapp[ing] her cello like a rockabilly upright bassist" (The Democrat and Chronicle), Jacobs-Perkins is known for "eras[ing] all kinds of boundaries" (USC Thornton School of Music) with her music.

Annie Jacobs-Perkins is principal cellist of Joshua Weilerstein's Phoenix Chamber Orchestra in Boston and cellist of Trio Bronte, 1st prize winners of the 2023 Ilmari Hannikainen International Piano Chamber Music Competition in Finland. She has performed at venues such as the Library of Congress, Het Concertgebouw, Jordan Hall, Carnegie Hall, Berlin Konzerthaus, Berliner Philharmonie, Ravinia Steans Institute, Krzyzowa Music, Yellow Barn Festival, and La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest.

Most recently, Jacobs-Perkins received an Artist Diploma with highest marks from the Barenboim Said Akademie in Berlin studying with Frans Helmerson. She holds masters degrees from the Hochschule fur Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin with Troels Svane (graduated with highest marks) and the New England Conservatory with Laurence Lesser, where she additionally held the Laurence Lesser Presidential Scholarship. She received her Bachelor of Music from USC's Thornton School of Music with Ralph Kirshbaum.

Praised as a "highly accomplished pianist with wonderfully rhythmic and robust playing" (New York Concert Review), Katelyn Vahala is a passionate soloist, chamber musician, educator, and arts advocate in the Los Angeles area.

Vahala's performances have taken her to prestigious concert halls and festivals, where she has been celebrated for her versatility and unique musical voice. She has performed in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Het Concertgebouw, Salzburg Mozarteum, Bratislava Reduta Philharmonic Hall, St. Petersburg Union of Composers, Porto Casa da Musica, and LACMA's Bing Auditorium. Her past collaborations include performances with artists from the Juilliard and American String Quartets, as well as appearances with the Tandru Trio and the Julius Quartet. She has attended the Yellow Barn Young Artists Program, Perlman Music Program, Colburn Academy Piano Festival, Port Townsend Chamber Music Workshop, and Maine Chamber Music Seminar.

Vahala holds a DMA in Piano Performance from USC's Thornton School of Music, where she studied with Dr. Lucinda Carver and Jeffrey Kahane and was the Outstanding DMA Graduate of her class. She is currently a USC Thornton School of Music faculty member, where she teaches Keyboard Literature. She is also a member of the piano faculty at the Pasadena Conservatory of Music.

A composer, pianist, and conductor, Octavio Vazquez has had his works performed throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the National Auditorium of Spain, Cologne's Philharmonie, and the Big Hall of the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He joined the Nazareth faculty in 2014.

When asked about the origins of his new composition, Vazquez said, "The Fool is a powerful and mysterious symbol. A special card in tarot decks, the Rider-Waite version depicts a young man approaching open-heartedly a cliff, heedless of dangers and worldly considerations. This divine madness invariably leads to his demise, and from his ego-death or shamanic dismemberment a re-emergence occurs, a phoenix-like rebirth."

Part of the world-premiere tour, with additional concerts in Boston, Chicago, and South Kingstown, RI, the concert in Nazareth's Beston Hall, a renowned venue known for its outstanding acoustics and intimate atmosphere, offers the perfect setting for this evocative new work by one of the region's most noted and celebrated classical music composers. This special collaboration will offer a rich, emotionally engaging experience for all audiences.

"In the words of 13th century poet Rumi," added Vazquez, '"Love whispers to my ear: (...) make yourself my fool.'"

Reserved seated tickets to "An Evening with Annie Jacobs-Perkins and Katelyn Vahala" are $20 to $40 and are available online at naz.edu/artscenter/tickets or through the box office at 585-389-2180 or boxoffice@naz.edu. Nazareth students are admitted free of charge.

The performance is presented in cooperation with Nazareth University's School of Music where the duo will be in residence before the concert.

Nazareth's Visual, Performing Arts & Design's Changemakers Series spotlights artists and performers that have made significant and lasting contributions to their fields, redefining or reimagining their particular art form.

More information about Nazareth University's Arts Center and its programs can be found at artscenter.naz.edu.

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