Cherry Street Music
Next Concert
Classical With A Twist: Postcards showcases the rich folk music traditions of India, China, and Japan, infused with a classical twist. Led by Cherry Street Music’s Artistic Director and renowned international cellist, Allison Eldredge, this unique performance blends folk influences with cross-cultural fusion. The evening will feature captivating performances by Julia Glenn, Sayuri Miyamoto, and TaalMel, bringing a vibrant tapestry of sound to life. Enjoy a world-premiere composition by Ruhan Iyer based on the work of Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941). Join us at The Allen Center for an unforgettable musical journey—secure your tickets now for this mesmerizing experience!
Classical with a Twist: Postcards, Sunday, April 6th at 3:00 pm
Meet The Artists
Allison-Yoshie Eldredge, Artistic Director, cello
Cellist Allison Eldredge, a recipient of the coveted Avery Fisher Career Grant and Musical America’s “Young Artist of the Year”, has enjoyed performing nationally and internationally, from London to Moscow to China to Berlin. She has been called “a cellist afraid of nothing” (Chicago Times) with “virtuosity wholly at the service of the music” (American Fanfare – American Record Guide). She gained international attention when Daniel Barenboim invited her to give the first performance of the Elgar Cello Concerto, which he conducted years after the death of his wife, the celebrated cellist Jacqueline Du Pre.
Allison has appeared as cello soloist with 30 major American orchestras and innumerable major international orchestras. She has been invited by the premiere Music Directors of the world from Scotland to Italy to Canada to the Netherlands and the United States receiving critical acclaim such that “She belongs to “the crème de la crème” of cello talents” (Het Noord Hollands Dagblad Amsterdam).
Allison has loved teaching the next generation for the past 30 years. She has taught cellists at New England Conservatory since 2000 and at Harvard University from 2008-2011. Allison also maintains a private teaching studio in Massachusetts and Connecticut. She has given masterclasses at numerous universities and schools and has visited more than 100 schools in support of music education in communities with greater needs. She teaches chamber music at Young Talent Chamber Music, a two-week Pro-Am intensive summer camp in Connecticut, where she has been Artistic Director since 2014.
Her cello teachers have included Harvey Shapiro, Yo-Yo Ma, Eleonore Schoenfeld, Joan Lunde, Mstislav Rostropovich, Ardyth Alton and Channing Robbins. Allison studied at the Pre-College and College of The Juilliard School.
Instagram @allison.eldredge.1740
Facebook @allisoneldredgecellist
Julia Glenn, violin
Boston native Julia Glenn has been called "remarkable," "gripping," and "a brilliant soloist" by the New York Times and performs internationally on modern and baroque violins. She recently joined the Naumburg-winning Lydian String Quartet and the faculty of Brandeis University after teaching for three years at the Tianjin Juilliard School, where she served as violin and music theory faculty and was a member of the Tianjin Juilliard Ensemble.
Ms. Glenn has performed on stages including Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall, Sanders Theatre, Jordan Hall, the Beijing Recital Hall, Beijing's National Centre for the Performing Arts, and Shanghai Concert Hall. She has appeared with groups and artists including the New York New Music Ensemble, ACRONYM, Cantata Profana, Chameleon Arts Ensemble, the Shanghai Camerata, Soloists of New England, and members of the Juilliard, Ysaÿe, Muir, and Shanghai String Quartets. In January of 2016 she gave the world premiere of Milton Babbitt’s violin concerto to critical acclaim; her article on the work was published in 2022 in Contemporary Music Review.
With a deep interest in exploring and sharing the music and culture of China, Julia enjoys drawing on her backgrounds in phonology and Chinese language to open up new avenues in perception and performance. Her dissertation was titled “Hearing in Tone: A Phonetic Approach to the Analysis and Performance of Chinese Contemporary Music.” The recipient of Juilliard’s 2019 John Erksine Faculty Prize, she has also received awards and support for her work from Tianjin Juilliard and Brandeis University. She has presented talks and lecture-performances at the Harvard Shanghai Center, Hamburg Hochschule für Musik und Theatre, Harvard University, Shanghai Conservatory, Beijing Central Conservatory, and Juilliard.
For more about Julia: www.juliaglennviolin.com
Sayuri Miyamoto, piano
Born in Osaka, Japan, and raised in New Jersey, pianist Sayuri Miyamoto has concertized in solo and chamber recitals and as soloist with orchestras across the U.S. As soloist, she performed with the North Shore Philharmonic in 2024. Ms. Miyamoto has collaborated with great artists including the late Marylou Speaker Churchill, former principal second violinist of the Boston Symphony; violinist Stefan Jackiw and cellist Zlatomir Fung.
Ms. Miyamoto has appeared at Sevenars Music Festival, West Stockbridge Chamber Players, Newton and Weston library series, Music Mondays, and annual Pan-Mass Challenge/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute benefit concerts which she has produced with her husband, oboist and conductor Joel Bard, since 2006. They have recorded companion CDs during select years with all proceeds going to the same cause.
Ms. Miyamoto holds degrees from Yale University, the Juilliard School, and Manhattan School of Music, where she received her doctorate. She maintains a private teaching studio in Newton and has served on the coaching staff of the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras.
Kavitha Venkatesan, vocals, member of TaalMel band
Kavitha is a vocalist based in the Boston area with over 20 years of training in carnatic music under her gurus Smt. Seetha Narayanan and Smt. Tara Bangalore. She has won prizes in music competitions in India and performed in several venues in the New England area. Kavitha is also a singer in a local band "TaalMel", which explores the intersection of music across many genres including Indian classical music, bollywood, rock, blues and jazz and has performed in several Boston area music events. Kavitha’s career has been in drug development in the Pharma industry.
More about TaalMel HERE
Find TaalMel on Facebook
Sharada Krishnan, violin
Sharada Krishnan is a senior disciple of Sangita Kalanidhi Vidwan Sri Lalgudi GJR Krishnan, the torchbearer of the inimitable Lalgudi style of Carnatic violin. Sharada performs widely across North America and India as a soloist and accompanist, and has received many awards from the Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, CMANA, and the Sringeri Vidya Bharathi Foundation. Passionate about spreading Carnatic music, Sharada teaches violin to young music students. Sharada is an occupational therapist by training and currently a PhD candidate in Rehabilitation Sciences at Boston University.
L. Subramanian, mridangam (Indian drum)
L. Subramaniam is a disciple of Sangitha Kala Acharya Vid K S Kalidas, who was a direct disciple of the mridangam and Kanjira maestro Palani Subramania Pillai. Subramanian has received awards from major institutions including the Madras Music Academy, the All India Radio, and Cleveland Thyagaraja Aradhana, and has performed extensively in the USA and India. An alumnus of IIT Madras and SUNY Stony Brook, Subramanian now works in finance at Man Group.
Ruhan Iyer, composer
Ruhan Iyer is 16 years old and currently is a sophomore at Lexington High School. Ruhan has been learning cello with Ms. Allison Eldredge since he was 11 years old. In addition to that, he has been studying composition with Dr. Rodney Lister at New England Conservatory for 3 years. He also learns Indian Classical vocal music from Tara Bangalore at Anubhava School of Music.
As a cellist, Ruhan has won the Rivers Youth Orchestra Concerto Competition. He also plays in many orchestras, including New England Conservatory’s Youth Symphony, Rivers Youth Symphony, and Lexington High School Chamber Orchestra. He has attended many summer programs, including Boston University Tanglewood Institute(BUTI), Altschuler Summer Music Institute(ASMI), and Greenwood Music Camp.
Ruhan’s compositions have been performed locally in Tanglewood, New England Conservatory, and Greenwood Music Camp, as well as at international festivals in Italy. In his free time, Ruhan enjoys playing chamber music, studying music theory, and playing video games.
About Cherry Street Music
Cherry Street Music is a music program with a simple mission: to create a space to meet new people, develop friendships, and find togetherness, passion and hope through evenings of music. Our "classical with a twist" concerts are less formal with conversation between artists, special guests, and audience members. Attendees will also have an opportunity to experience the visionary educational history and beauty of the 1840 Nathaniel Allen Homestead, now The Allen Center, as our artistic home!
The Allen Center's Artist-in-Residence, cellist Allison Eldredge is Founder and Artistic Director of Cherry Street Music.
Season Overview
Cherry Street Music, the resident music program at Newton’s Allen Center, has announced the first five concerts of their 2024-25 season. Artistic Director Allison Eldredge has planned an intimate cross-cultural performance series featuring classical, jazz, folk, and more.
Past Concerts
9.30.24 Oded Tzúr
10.6.24 Classical with a Twist: Champions for Change
10.26.24 440- The Gypsy Jazz Quartet: Toe-Tapping Snappy Hot Jazz
11.17.24 Classical with a Twist: West Newton Pops
12.15.24 Classical with a Twist: I’ve Got Rhythm
2.2.25 Classical with a Twist: Love Is All Around
3.8.25 Classical with a Twist: Musical Kaleidoscope
Follow Cherry Street Music
Make a Donation to Cherry Street Music
See what else is happening at The Allen Center...