Ravinia 2025 Issue 5

SANDRA K. CROWN THEATER 6:00 & 8:00 PM FRIDAY, AUGUST 8, 2025 DAN TEPFER, piano Natural Machines 2.0 with JINTY McTAVISH, violin KHELSEY ZARRAGA, violin WILFRED FARQUHARSON, viola GENEVIEVE TABBY, cello BRETT WAGNER, bass DANIEL FLETCHER, flute ELIZABETH KAPITANIUK, clarinet WILLIAM GEORGE, bassoon DAN TEPFER One of his generation’s extraor- dinary talents, Dan Tepfer has earned an international repu- tation as a pianist-composer of wide-ranging innovation, indi- viduality, and drive. Born in 1982 in Paris to American parents, he has recorded and performed around the world with some of the leading lights in jazz and classical music, from Lee Konitz to Renée Fleming, and released 11 albums of his own in solo, duo, and trio formats. Tepfer earned global acclaim for 2011’s Goldberg Variations / Variations , where he performs J.S. Bach’s landmark music and improvises upon it. Tepfer’s 2019 video album Natural Machines stands as one of his most forward-minded projects yet, finding him exploring in real time the intersection between science and art, coding and improvisation, digital algorithms and the rhythms of the heart. His 2023 return to Bach, Inventions / Reinventions , an exploration of the nar- rative processes behind Bach’s 15 Inventions, became a bestseller, spending two weeks in the number-one spot on Billboard ’s Classical chart. Tepfer has composed for various ensembles beyond jazz—he premiered his piano quintet Solar Spiral in 2016 at Ravinia alongside the Avalon String Quartet. He received commissions from the Prague Castle Guard Orchestra for two works, the suite Algorithmic Transform (2015) and a concerto for symphon- ic wind band and improvising piano, The View from Orohena (2010), and in 2019, Tepfer unveiled his jazz-trio arrangement of Stravinsky’s Pulcinella . In 2024/25, he has premiered three major commissions: a suite for choir and piano in memory of his mother, a chorister at the Paris Opera; a song cycle for jazz great Cécile McLorin Salvant and string orchestra; and a symphon- ic work featuring algorithms and visuals. Tepfer’s honors include first prizes at the Montreux Jazz Festival (2006), East Coast Jazz Festival (2006), and American Pianists Association (2007) Competitions, as well as fellowships from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2014), the MacDowell Colony (2016), and the Fondation BNP-Paribas (2018, 2021, and 2024). Dan Tepfer made his Ravinia debut in 2014 performing Goldberg Variations/ Variations , and most recently appeared in 2019 with an early performance of Inventions/Reinventions . He has also played jazz-duo sets with Ben Wen- del (2016) and Miguel Zenón (2019). PAVILION 11:00 AM SATURDAY, AUGUST 9, 2025 LAURIE BERKNER LAURIE BERKNER While Laurie Berkner nev- er planned to be a children’s performer, looking back on her career it almost seems in- evitable. While growing up in Princeton, NJ, Berkner was al- ways involved in music, wheth- er singing in choirs, playing in bands, or performing in musi- cal theater. In high school and throughout college (at Rutgers University), she toured Europe with several choirs and orches- tras as a soloist and guitarist. Af- ter graduation, Berkner spent several years as a children’s mu- sic specialist at New York–area preschool and day care centers before becoming a professional musician in 1992. She maintains a busy touring schedule and has performed at Lin- coln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the White House, among many venues. Berkner was the first recording artist ever to perform in music videos on Nick Jr. and was a frequent presence on the network’s Jack’s Big Music Show series. Her music videos now appear regularly on Sprout House and The Laurie Berkner Band’s YouTube channel, and she is often featured on SiriusXM’s Kids Place Live . In 2018, she created a 10-chapter Audible Original Series titled Laurie Berkner’s Song and Story Kitchen . Berkner has released 12 bestselling, award-winning albums: Whaddaya Think of That (1997), Buzz Buzz (1998), Victor Vito (1999), Under a Shady Tree (2002), Rocketship Run (2008), The Best of The Laurie Berkner Band (2010), A Laurie Berkner Christmas (2012), Laurie Berkner Lullabies (2014), The Ultimate Laurie Berkner Band Collection (2014), Laurie Berkner’s Favor- ite Classic Kids’ Songs (2015), Superhero (2016), and Laurie Berkner: The Dance Remixes (2017). She has also released seven digital collections of her songs: Laurie Berkner’s Food Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Animal Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Transportation Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Classroom Favor- ites , Laurie Berkner’s Movement Songs , Laurie Berkner’s Nature Songs , and Love . Berkner recently authored three picture books for Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, each based on one of her beloved songs— We Are the Dinosaurs , Pillowland , and Monster Boogie —having previous- ly written two Barnes & Noble Nook Kids e-books. Laurie Berkner first played at Ravinia in 2004, and this is her 14th season at the festival. RAVINIA.ORG  • RAVINIAMAGAZINE 65 NOADYLON(TEPFER)