Winona Zelenka, cellist

Winona Zelenka, cellist
Winona Zelenka, known for her gorgeous, singing tone, is one of Canada’s finest cellists on the scene today. As a soloist, she has performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Strauss’ Don Quixote Suite, with Thomas Dausgaard conducting, 2006), and performs often with conductor John Barnum. Their past collaborations include Lalo’s Cello Concerto in D Minor with the Mississauga Symphony (2008) and Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1, with both the Scarborough Philharmonic (2007) and the Huronia Sinfonietta (2006). She has also performed Haydn’s Concerto No. 2 in D Major with the Canadian Sinfonietta (2007), conducted by Tak Ng Lai. At this same concert, Ms. Zelenka, a proponent of new music, performed the world premiere of “Invocation II’” for cello and orchestra, a work written for her by Canadian composer Michael Pepa. In 2008, Ms. Zelenka performed as guest Principal Cellist for the Canadian Opera Company’s production of Tosca. She also served as Principal of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra during the summers of 2007 and 2008. Winona was the Toronto Symphony Orchestra's Acting Principal Cellist for five seasons starting from 2004/2005. Winona is a dedicated recitalist and chamber musician, who regularly performs on the Les Amis, Syrinx, Amici, Art of Time and Off centre series in Toronto. She collaborates regularly with many of Canada’s finest musicians including violinists Stephen Sitarski and Erika Raum; violist Steven Dann; bassist Joel Quarrington, pianist Andrew Burashko, and countless others. In the past two summers she has performed at the Ottawa Chamberfest with, among others, soprano Donna Brown, pianist/composer Heather Schmidt, and the Art of Time ensemble. In the 2009/2010 season Winona performed with the Zuckerman Chamber Players at the Royal Conservatory’s new Koerner Hall as well as at the 92nd St. Y in New York. Ms. Zelenka recently formed Trio Arkel with violinist Marie Bérard and violist Teng Li, with whom she will perform at the Four Seasons Amphitheatre in February of 2010. Other highlights at the Amphitheatre have included a program of French duos with Jacques Israelievitch in December 2009; in February of 2010 she will be back at this eclectic venue to perform a program of solo cello works by Britten, Hindemith and Cassado. Winona's recording of the complete Bach Suites for Solo Cello was released on the Marquis Classics label in June of 2010. It has received international acclaim, and this year was nominated for a JUNO award in the category of solo/chamber music CD. The Globe and Mail writes '"Canadian cellist Winona Zelenka gives Bach's solo cello suites a stylish ease that we don't often hear on modern cello." Audiophile Review writes "Zelenka's tone is among the warmest and most invigoratingly burnished that I have ever heard in this music, bar none." and " she astonishes with her emotional vibrancy and control". This recording was made on the "Starker Guarnerius" cello, dated 1707. Since the summer of 2004, Ms. Zelenka began performing in the Music Garden Series at Toronto’s waterfront. Every year, she has performed a different Bach cello suite. In 2006, she performed Canadian composer Chris Paul Harman’s “After the Sixth Suite”, also a composition written for her, which, as the title suggests, she performed in tandem with Bach’s Cello Suite No. 6. For her performance of the Suite No. 4 in September of 2009 she was joined by dancer Claudia Moore who added beautiful movements choreographed by Carol Anderson. In March of 2010 Winona performed a work for solo dancer and solo cellist with first soloists of the National Ballet; at the Four Season Centre for the Performing Arts, this work is choreographed by Jerome Robbins to movements from the Bach Suites. Winona was also a featured soloist this past summer (2010) at the Stratford Summer Music Festival, where she performed the complete Bach Suites, with many repeat performances. Winona has also been the cello soloist of such notable film scores as Atom Egoyan’s “Adoration” (2008), István Szabó’s “Being Julia” (2004), and the IMAX film “Under The Sea” (2009) Winona Zelenka began her career at age 22 as Associate Principal in the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and won orchestra jobs with the National Ballet Orchestra and the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester. She obtained her Bachelor of Music and Artist Diploma at the University of Indiana, and studied with the legendary Janos Starker. Ontario born and raised, Ms. Zelenka’s other main teachers include William Findlay, Vladimir Orloff, and William Pleeth.

Winona Zelenka, known for her gorgeous, singing tone, is one of Canada’s finest cellists on the scene today. As a soloist, she has performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Strauss’ Don Quixote Suite, with Thomas Dausgaard conducting, 2006), and performs often with conductor John Barnum. Their past collaborations include Lalo’s Cello Concerto in D Minor with the Mississauga Symphony (2008) and Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1, with both the Scarborough Philharmonic (2007) and the Huronia Sinfonietta (2006). She has also performed Haydn’s Concerto No. 2 in D Major with the Canadian Sinfonietta (2007), conducted by Tak Ng Lai. At this same concert, Ms. Zelenka, a proponent of new music, performed the world premiere of “Invocation II’” for cello and orchestra, a work written for her by Canadian composer Michael Pepa.

In 2008, Ms. Zelenka performed as guest Principal Cellist for the Canadian Opera Company’s production of Tosca. She also served as Principal of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra during the summers of 2007 and 2008. Winona was the Toronto Symphony Orchestra's Acting Principal Cellist for five seasons starting from 2004/2005.

Winona is a dedicated recitalist and chamber musician, who regularly performs on the Les Amis, Syrinx, Amici, Art of Time and Off centre series in Toronto. She collaborates regularly with many of Canada’s finest musicians including violinists Stephen Sitarski and Erika Raum; violist Steven Dann; bassist Joel Quarrington, pianist Andrew Burashko, and countless others. In the past two summers she has performed at the Ottawa Chamberfest with, among others, soprano Donna Brown, pianist/composer Heather Schmidt, and the Art of Time ensemble. In the 2009/2010 season Winona performed with the Zuckerman Chamber Players at the Royal Conservatory’s new Koerner Hall as well as at the 92nd St. Y in New York.

Ms. Zelenka recently formed Trio Arkel with violinist Marie Bérard and violist Teng Li, with whom she will perform at the Four Seasons Amphitheatre in February of 2010. Other highlights at the Amphitheatre have included a program of French duos with Jacques Israelievitch in December 2009; in February of 2010 she will be back at this eclectic venue to perform a program of solo cello works by Britten, Hindemith and Cassado.

Winona's recording of the complete Bach Suites for Solo Cello was released on the Marquis Classics label in June of 2010. It has received international acclaim, and this year was nominated for a JUNO award in the category of solo/chamber music CD. The Globe and Mail writes '"Canadian cellist Winona Zelenka gives Bach's solo cello suites a stylish ease that we don't often hear on modern cello." Audiophile Review writes "Zelenka's tone is among the warmest and most invigoratingly burnished that I have ever heard in this music, bar none." and " she astonishes with her emotional vibrancy and control". This recording was made on the "Starker Guarnerius" cello, dated 1707.

Since the summer of 2004, Ms. Zelenka began performing in the Music Garden Series at Toronto’s waterfront. Every year, she has performed a different Bach cello suite. In 2006, she performed Canadian composer Chris Paul Harman’s “After the Sixth Suite”, also a composition written for her, which, as the title suggests, she performed in tandem with Bach’s Cello Suite No. 6. For her performance of the Suite No. 4 in September of 2009 she was joined by dancer Claudia Moore who added beautiful movements choreographed by Carol Anderson.

In March of 2010 Winona performed a work for solo dancer and solo cellist with first soloists of the National Ballet; at the Four Season Centre for the Performing Arts, this work is choreographed by Jerome Robbins to movements from the Bach Suites. Winona was also a featured soloist this past summer (2010) at the Stratford Summer Music Festival, where she performed the complete Bach Suites, with many repeat performances.

Winona has also been the cello soloist of such notable film scores as Atom Egoyan’s “Adoration” (2008), István Szabó’s “Being Julia” (2004), and the IMAX film “Under The Sea” (2009) Winona Zelenka began her career at age 22 as Associate Principal in the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and won orchestra jobs with the National Ballet Orchestra and the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester. She obtained her Bachelor of Music and Artist Diploma at the University of Indiana, and studied with the legendary Janos Starker. Ontario born and raised, Ms. Zelenka’s other main teachers include William Findlay, Vladimir Orloff, and William Pleeth.