For Immediate Release
Contact: Bonnie Messix
Director, Aspen Wye River Conference Centers
(410) 820-5424 bonnie.messix@aspeninstitute.org
Aspen Institute to Host Concert at Wye Woods:
Anastasia Petanova and Timothy Hoft to Perform
Queenstown, MD, October 15, 2009 – The Aspen Institute will host its fall recital featuring Russian flutist, Anastasia Petanova and her pianist husband Timothy Hoft. The performance will take place on Sunday, October 25, 2009 at 3:00 PM at the Institute’s Wye Woods Conference Center in Queenstown, MD. For reservations please call Mary Ann Dodd at 410-820-5433. Seating is limited.
Anastasia Petanova began to play the flute at age four and she gave her first public performance at five. In 1990, she entered the Central Music School of the Moscow State Conservatory where she studied with the celebrated teacher Uriy N. Dolzhikov, professor at the Moscow State Conservatory.
Ms. Petanova has performed in major concert halls in Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union as well as in France, Austria, Great Britain, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, Germany, US, and Canada. She has been invited to perform at numerous music festivals including the Festival de Russe in Cannes, France in 1999, International Music Festival of Colmar, France in 1998 and 2000, The Flute Festival of Young Artists in Zurich, Switzerland in 2004, Festival La Gesse in France, Italy, and the US in 2006.
Ms. Petanova has won scholarships from the Vladimir Spivakov International Charity Foundation, the New Names International Charity Program, Yuri Bashmet’s Foundation, The Stars of New Russia, The Orpheus of the 21st Century, and many others. She is also a first prize-winner of the New Names National Open Competition in Moscow in 2000, and a second prize-winner of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in New York in 2001. After completing her bachelor of music degree in flute performance at the Peabody Conservatory of Music as a full scholarship and a grant recipient, Ms. Petanova was chosen to be the first flutist to enter the prestigious artist diploma program at Peabody where she continues her studies at the present time with the renowned flutist Marina Piccinini.
Originally from Michigan, Mr. Hoft began to study piano at the age of ten and gave his first public performance in the same year. He enjoyed early success as the winner of several state competitions including the Michigan Youth Arts Festival, the Michigan MTNA Yamaha and the Margaret Denise competitions. Mr. Hoft has performed with the Detroit Civic Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea, the Peabody Camerata, and the St. John’s Orchestra. In addition, he has participated in several festivals including the Interlochen Arts Festival, the Brevard Music Festival, the Prague International Piano Masterclasses, and the Paris International Piano Sessions. He has also participated in numerous master classes led by artists such as Leon Fleisher, Kenneth Cooper, Robert Taub, Martin Katz, Phillip Bush, Lori Sims, Maurice Hinson, and Nelita True.
Mr. Hoft has earned a bachelor of music degree in piano performance from the University of Michigan, studying under Logan Skelton, as well as a master of music degrees in piano and music theory pedagogy from the Peabody Conservatory of Music. In addition, Mr. Hoft is also an accomplished harpsichordist, having studied early music, continuo, and performance practice with Edward Parmentier and Webb Wiggins.
In 2006, Mr. Hoft was awarded a fellowship through the La Gesse Foundation, sponsored by Princess Cecilia de Medici, giving him numerous performances in Europe and in the U.S, including Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. Mr. Hoft has also recently been granted the Earl Wild Scholarship of the Ivory Classics Foundation, giving him the opportunity to study with Mr. Wild. Mr. Hoft is currently pursuing a doctor of musical arts from the Peabody Conservatory of Music studying under Benjamin Pasternack.