Jan 23, 2009

WESTCHESTER, NY--Renowned conductor, clarinetist and educator, Mr. Dworkin, was "very very impressed" when he saw the Chinese New Year Splendor on January 23 at the Performing Arts Center, Purchase College, SUNY.

"Very very impressed, so is my wife, very impressed," he said, adding that he found the performances "world class".

Mr. Dworkin was particularly impressed with the conductor, Ying Chen, noting the skill she needed to coordinate the orchestra with the dancers.

"I haven't done much dance but I respect this conductor very much." He said when one conducts an orchestra which accompanies a dance, an even greater skill is required, "because you must be consistent with tempi [timing and speed] and if you are not, the dancers will tell you. Believe me, they will tell you!"

"So if besides just orchestral conducting to work with dance is difficult, to work in opera is difficult as well because you work with singers and it's very flexible, but this has got to be right there and it's got to be very consistent. She is a wonderful conductor."

Mr. Dworkin would know. "I am a musician," he explained," I have been in music my whole life, I am a conductor and I am a clarinetist. I taught at Manhattan school of music for many years conducting clarinet chamber music and I performed with the Metropolitan opera for about 36 years." He has worked with classical luminaries Herbert Von Karajan, Karl Boehm, Zubin Mehta, James Levine, Sir Colin Davis, and Erich Leinsdorf.

"I think it's a world class performance. I really do."

A graduate of the Juillard School and Columbia University, Mr Dworkin has conducted the New Jersey, Vermont and Manhattan Symphony Orchestras and was resident conductor of the Philharmonic on the Hudson for 15 years.

Mr. Dworkin praised all aspects of the show, particularly noting the skill of the dancers. "There is such discipline here," he said, "the male dancers have a combination of grace and strength. It's just beautiful, and the female dancers move in a way different ... but again so beautifully.

[The] choreography is great, the imagery is wonderful, the costumes, I think it's a world class performance. I really do".

Mr. Dworkin has a particular interest in music and movement. He has won an award for his popular fitness program, "Conductorcise" which he describes as "a symphony performance, music history lesson, and aerobics workout, all rolled into one".

Research had shown that classical music is beneficial to well being, he said, and audiences viewing The Splendor would reap the benefits. "They don't know it, the audience, but it's opening up their arteries, it's actually making them physically better, just by listening to this and seeing this," he said.

Mr. Dworkins also acknowledged the tales of traditional Chinese culture in the performances, noting the positive appeal for all ages.

"Oh. the stories are wonderful! Because, well, they give you an insight into the philosophy, I guess, of Falun Gong, in that respect for each other and the goodness of people, and the life hereafter. All of it ... good examples for the young and the old."

Source: http://en.epochtimes.com/n2/content/view/10797/