New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu



 

RVCC to Present Benefit Concerts In April Featuring Musical “Treasures”

originally published: 03/22/2022


(BRANCHBURG, NJ) -- The MOZAIKA Concert Series at Raritan Valley Community College, presented by the College’s Arts & Design department, will offer two benefit concerts in April. Ticket proceeds go to the RVCC Applied Music Fund to help the College’s music majors pay for private lessons on their primary instruments. 

The first concert, “Uncovered Treasures of America,” will be presented Friday, April 8 at 7:00pm in the Nash Theatre at RVCC’s Branchburg campus. Featuring soprano Chantal Freeman and pianist Alla Milchtein, the concert will include music by African-American artists. The works of many of these composers were undervalued and even “hidden” from history until their recent rediscovery. 

The series will continue Sunday, April 10 at 2:00pm in the Nash Theatre, with “Treasures of Jewish Art Music: the St. Petersburg School and Beyond,” a matinee concert featuring clarinetist Louis Arques and pianist Milena Zhivotovskaya. The program will include music by Leonard Bernstein, Alexander Krein, Solomon Rosowsky, Pesach Lvov, and Milena Zhivotovskaya.  

Soprano Chantal Freeman is originally from Chicago. After relocating to Philadelphia, she performed as part of the Amici Opera Company, Main Line Opera Guild’s Concert Series, and as a studio artist at the Russian Opera Workshop. In 2019 she was a finalist in the NANM Marian Anderson Vocal Award Competition and was the 3rd-place winner in Harlem Opera Theater’s Vocal Competition. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Theology from Fordham University and completed her Professional Studies Diploma at Mannes School of Music. She also was awarded the prestigious Richard F. Gold Career Grant by the Shoshana Foundation. She received her Master of Music Degree from the Butler School of Music of the University of Texas.

Pianist Alla Milchtein, a vocal coach in New York City, is staff pianist at Juilliard School of Music and Mannes College New School for Music. She also has been part of the accompanying staff at the Rotterdam Conservatory (The Netherlands), Scuola di Musica di Fiesole (Italy), and Jalisco State Choir (Mexico). Milchtein has performed at festivals throughout Europe, Mexico, and the United States. She served as a staff pianist at prestigious competitions and also worked as coach/repetiteur for various Opera programs. Milchtein received both a Bachelor’s Degree in Piano Performance and Master’s Degree in Piano Performance and Chamber Music from Rotterdam Conservatory and a Professional Studies Diploma in Collaborative Piano at Mannes College New School for Music.




Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



Louis Arques is a clarinet virtuoso, saxophonist, singer, and conductor. He plays classical and contemporary music, as well as Brazilian, Afro-Cuban, and jazz music, and early music on period instruments. As a soloist, Arques performed the Mozart Clarinet Concerto with the Empire State Symphony; the Debussy Clarinet Rhapsody with Camerata New York; and the Zych Bass Clarinet concerto with Paris Ostinato Orchestra. A sought-after chamber music partner, Arques has engaged in multiple collaborations, including with the internationally acclaimed Quintet of the Americas and the players of the Metropolis Ensemble. He recently joined the Bridget Kibbey’s Bach to Brazil Trio on its U.S. concert series and university residencies.

Ukrainian-born Milena Zhivotovskaya is a New York-based pianist, composer, and collaborator. She has been a prizewinner at the American Fine Arts Festival, The Young Artist Piano and Composers' Competition, the ASCAP Young Composers' Competition, and the Composition in the Arts Program. Zhivotovskaya has performed at such sites as Carnegie Hall, the United Nations, Merkin Concert Hall, Steinway Hall, and Colston Hall (UK). She holds Bachelor’s and Master of Music degrees from Mannes College. She studied with Eteri Anjdaparidze at NYU Steinhardt, where she was a member of the adjunct piano faculty. She teaches piano at Lucy Moses School and music theory at Mannes Preparatory Division.

The MOZAIKA Concert Series is designed to promote multicultural dialogue through the performance of music from the classical canon through the 21st Century.

Both concerts also will be streamed lived on the RVCC Music Program's Facebook Page.

A post-performance discussion with the artists will follow both concerts, which will be available for viewing online after the initial performance dates. General admission tickets cost $15 each; admission is free of charge for students and seniors. For advance ticket reservations, contact the RVCC Theatre Box Office at 908-725-3420. For information, call the Arts & Design department at 908-218-8876.

The MOZAIKA Concert Series is made possible by funds from the Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission, a partner of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) is located at 118 Lamington Road in Branchburg, New Jersey.




Advertise with NJ Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info




 

EVENT PREVIEWS

An

An Interview with Dan Kurtz of The New Deal

Formed in 1999, Toronto, Canada based trio The New Deal, is a pioneer in jam-based electronic music. The group was founded by remaining members Dan Kurtz (bass) and Jamie Shields (keys), along with Darren Shearer (drums) who left tND in 2011. Since its inception, tND has remained committed to its improvisational roots and has served as a model for other jamtronica bands bridging the gap between multiple music genres as well as the border between Canada and the United States.



Rick

Rick Springfield, John Waite, Wang Chung, and Paul Young to bring the "I Want My 80s Tour" to NJPAC

(NEWARK, NJ) -- Get ready to revive the spirit of the 1980s! Iconic rock star and eternal heartthrob Rick Springfield, a true emblem of the '80s music scene, is set to take the stage on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC). Showtime is 7:00pm.



Young

Young the Giant to Play Tropicana Atlantic City

(ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Critically-acclaimed, multi-platinum selling band Young the Giant announces the In The Open 2025 Acoustic Tour. An intimate concert experience performed in beautiful spaces and venues around the country, the band will be supported by Cassandra Coleman (debut album produced by Jack Antonoff out June 6 via Warner) throughout. Locally, the tour comes to Tropicana Atlantic City on Saturday, July 12, 2025.



West

West Windsor Arts presents Summer Music and More: Channel Collective

(PRINCETON JUNCTION, NJ) -- West Windsor Arts presents Channel Collective on Saturday, July 12, 2025 from 5:00pm to 7:30pm. Dan Kassel and Friends, featuring Gregg Merkle, will open the night. This is the first of three in their free summer concert series sponsored by Site Centers. Admission is free.



Asbury

Asbury Lanes presents There, There - A Tribute to Radiohead

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Asbury Lanes presents There, There on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at 8:00pm. They are the premier Radiohead tribute act, playing songs from throughout the band's iconic multi-decade catalogue.



FEATURED EVENTS

ART | COMEDY | DANCE | FILM | MUSIC | THEATRE | COMMUNITY

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


Candlelight

Candlelight Concert: Tribute to Queen and The Beatles

Friday, July 11, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Monmouth University - Pollak Theatre
400 Cedar Avenue, West Long Branch, NJ 07764
category: music


 

Damn

Damn The Torpedoes - The Music of Tom Petty

Friday, July 11, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music


 

There,

There, There (A Tribute to Radiohead)

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 8:00pm
Asbury Lanes
209 4th Avenue, Asbury Park, NJ 07712
category: music


 

Band

Band Infusion Musical Night by GG

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 7:00pm
New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC)
11 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
category: music


 

Annual

Annual Jazz, Health and Food Truck Festival 2025

Saturday, July 12, 2025 @ 11:00am
Monte Irvin Orange Park
S center and South Harrison Street, Orange, NJ 07050
category: music