David Weiss will join his wife Alpha Hockett Walker and his brother Abraham on Sunday, October 31, to give a free public concert in the Ithaca College venue named in honor of Alpha's parents, Chas and Shirley Hockett.
Featuring David on oboe and musical saw, Alpha on piano, and Abraham on bassoon, the performance will begin at 8:15 p.m. in the Hockett Family Recital Hall in the James J. Whalen Center for Music.
The talented family ensemble will perform in various combinations, playing works by Dring for oboe and piano; trios by Mendelssohn and Poulenc for oboe, bassoon, and piano; and various works arranged for musical saw, piano, and bassoon. Two pieces by Dana Wilson, the Charles A. Dana professor of music theory, history, and composition at the College, will also be on the program.
David Weiss teaches at the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music and the Music Academy of the West. For 30 years he was the principal oboist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He now performs with his wife in a duo known as DnA. His musical saw performances have been featured on the Tonight Show and A Prairie Home Companion.
An innovative teacher, Walker performed as both oboist and keyboardist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She composed the 1977 off-Broadway musical The Great American Singing Commercial.
Abraham Weiss has been principal bassoonist of the Rochester Philharmonic since 1970. He has performed in numerous chamber music settings and given master classes throughout central New York.
Accomplished musicians in their own right, Chas and Shirley Hockett have been longtime supporters of the School of Music. Their generosity led the College to establish the Shirley and Chas Hockett Chamber Music Series, for which Shirley has provided a permanent endowment. The Shirley and Chas Hockett Library of Ensemble Music in the Whalen Center was named n their honor in 1999. The Hockett Family Recital Hall was dedicated in 2002.
Contributed by Erik Kibelsbeck
