Women in Classical Music

$20.00

Sunday, November 23, 2025, 3pm

Ventura First United Methodist Church

Our second concert of the season, Women in Classical Music, shines a spotlight on three remarkable composers whose voices helped shape the orchestral tradition. The program opens with Germaine Tailleferre’s brilliant Concerto No. 1 for piano and orchestra, followed by Florence Price’s dramatic Piano Concerto in D minor, performed by acclaimed pianist Natasha Kislenko. The evening concludes with Emilie Mayer’s powerful Symphony No. 7 in F minor—a sweeping and expressive work that confirms her place among the great symphonists of the 19th century. Together, these works celebrate the artistry, resilience, and lasting legacy of women in classical music.

Soloist

Pianist Natasha Kislenko, praised for her “vividly expressive” interpretations and “virtuosity that left the audience exhilarated” (Santa Barbara Independent), offers dynamic concert programs worldwide. A prizewinner in multiple international competitions, she has performed across Europe, Turkey, and the Americas. After winning the Grand Prize at the Missouri Southern International Piano Competition, she made her Carnegie Hall debut.

A resident pianist with the Santa Barbara Symphony since 2010, Kislenko has performed major concerti to critical acclaim and recently appeared as a soloist with orchestras in Turkey, Bulgaria, and California. An avid chamber musician, she has collaborated with Glenn Dicterow, the Takács Quartet, and others, and released two acclaimed violin-piano CDs with Chavdar Parashkevov.

A devoted educator, Kislenko is on faculty at UC Santa Barbara and the Music Academy of the West. She holds degrees from the Moscow Conservatory, Southern Methodist University, and a DMA from Stony Brook University.