SB Music Club Free Concert

THE SANTA BARBARA MUSIC CLUB

2025-2026 SEASON

 

HOLIDAY CONCERT AND RECEPTION

 

Saturday, December 13, 2025, 3:00 PM

First United Methodist Church

305 E. Anapamu St.

 Santa Barbara, CA

Admission Free

 

“Among the musical riches with which this community is blessed,

the Santa Barbara Music Club shines especially bright”

— Noozhawk

On Saturday, December 13, at 3:00 PM, the Santa Barbara Music Club will present its annual Holiday Concert and Reception with a festive program of solo piano works by Ottorino Respighi, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Yannis Constantinidis, Manos Hadjidakis and Mikis Thedorakis performed by Erin Bonski and Eric Valinsky.  The concert will be held at First United Methodist Church, 305 E. Anapamu St., Santa Barbara.   Visit <SBMusicClub.org> for concert notes and program details.  Admission is free.

The concert opens with excerpts from Ottorino Resphigi’s Ancient Airs and Dances which he arranged for piano, performed by Eric Valinsky.  This work is a set of three orchestral suites created from Respighi’s free transcriptions of Renaissance and Baroque lute pieces. As a renowned musicologist, he synthesized pre-Classical melodies with rich, modern twentieth-century harmonies to bring older works to a new audience.

Valinsky continues with W.A. Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major, which is famous for its final movement, the “Rondo alla Turca,” or “Turkish March.” The sonata is comprised of three movements and is notable for its structure, as it does not follow the typical sonata-allegro form in its opening movement. Rather, it opens with Andante grazioso, a gentle and graceful theme followed by six variations. Then follows Menuetto in standard minuet and trio movement.  It concludes with Alla turca—Allegretto, the famous “Turkish March” finale.  The piece imitates the sound of Turkish Janissary bands, which were popular in Vienna at the time.

Then Erin Bonski performs works by three twentieth-century Greek composers: Yannis Constantinidis, Manos Hadjidakis and Mikis Thedorakis.

She begins with Huit danses des îles grecques by Yannis Constantinidis, who introduces us to the subtle sensitivity of neoclassical Impressionism.  His piano works are celebrated for their sensitive harmonic language and their ability to capture the essence of Greek folk melodies and dances while presenting them in a sophisticated, classical style.

She continues with Preludes and Dances for the Piano by Manos Hadjidakis, including the famous “For a Little White Seashell.” Hadjidakis’s music often fused elements of traditional Greek folk music with Western classical forms, creating a unique and evocative sound.  His ability to blend cultural influences while maintaining a distinct Greek identity has made him a beloved figure in both Greece and abroad.

Bonski concludes with selections from Twelve Preludes by Mikis Thedorakis, one of the most influential Greek composers of the twentieth century, who is perhaps best known internationally for his score for the film Zorba the Greek.  His compositions blend traditional Greek music with classical and contemporary style.

THE PERFORMERS:

Erin Bonski, pianist, began her musical journey in Pennsylvania, where she studied with Dr. Tim Shafer at Penn State University while in high school, and became the youngest participant in the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts. Erin went on to earn her B.M. and M.M. degrees from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, and pursued doctoral studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

A versatile artist, Erin has served as Staff Continuo player at the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute, collaborative pianist at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, and as Chorusmaster and Repetiteur for Toledo Opera.  Since moving to Santa Barbara, she has collaborated regularly with local arts organizations, including the Santa Barbara Symphony, Opera Santa Barbara, and Ensemble Theatre Company, and has performed internationally, including appearances with the Grammy-winning ensemble Forever Tango.  Her academic career includes positions at Santa Barbara City College, the University of California, Santa Barbara, Westmont College and Bowling Green State University, where she has taught piano pedagogy, opera coaching, and piano literature.

She has published works on ensemble playing and sight-reading in American Music Teacher Magazine, and she has recorded the works of Dr. Earl Louis Stewart. Erin has also worked as a church musician throughout most of her career, leading a vibrant music ministry for the last decade at First Presbyterian Church.   She is eager to give back to her community as Secretary on the Board for the Performing Arts Scholarship Foundation.  Currently, she serves as adjunct faculty and collaborative pianist at Westmont College while maintaining a private piano studio and consulting with arts organizations across Southern California.

Eric Valinsky, a native Manhattanite, has, for more years than he would like to admit, maintained dual careers in computer systems architecture and music. He was educated at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the University of Illinois, finally achieving his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in music composition from Columbia University. He studied composition with Walter Aschaffenburg, Salvatore Martirano, Jack Beeson, and Darius Milhaud; piano with Sara Crawford Drogheo and Emil Danenberg; and conducting with Harold Farberman. While living in Los Angeles, he became music director and composer-in-residence for The Storie-Crawford Dance Theatre Ensemble. Returning to New York, he served in a similar capacity for Danny Buraczeski’s Jazzdance, Uris Bahr and Dancers, and The New American Ballet Ensemble as well as composer-in-residence for The Rachel Harms Dance Company, Opera Uptown, and the Dance Department at City College of New York. He is currently Music Director for the American Dance & Music Performance Group and moonlights as founder and partner of Inlineos LLC, a strategic Internet consulting company.

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This and all concerts offered by the Santa Barbara Music Club are open to the public with free admission.  For more information about this concert as well as future and past concerts, see our website www.SBMusicClub.org.

The mission of the Santa Barbara Music Club is to contribute to the musical life of our community through the following:

1. Presentation of an annual series of concerts, free to the public, featuring outstanding performances by Performing Members and invited guests;
2. Presentation of community outreach activities, including bringing great music to residents of area retirement homes;
3. Aiding and encouraging musical education by the disbursement of scholarships to talented music students whose permanent address is in Santa Barbara County.

For more information about programs, to join or to donate, please visit our website, http://sbmusicclub.org.