The Library's Autumn Concert Series takes place on Fridays from September 9 to October 3. Each concert will begin at 1 p.m. in the Winn Room. Doors will open 15 minutes prior to the performance. On October 16, we will have Irina Bessonova on the piano. This concert is free to attend thanks to the support of the City of Coronado and the Friends of the Coronado Public Library. Seating is first come, first seated and doors will open at 12:45 p.m. Russian-born Irina Bessonova is an accomplished pianist who has performed throughout Europe, Russia, and Ukraine. Winner of the “Lysenko Competition” in Ukraine, Irina has performed extensively in Ukraine as a soloist and has accompanied a number of famous Ukrainian singers, such as Victor Sportko, Lina Prochorova, and Tatiana Russova. Ms. Bessonova’s talent was recognized early: she began studying music at age four at the National Music School for Gifted Children. She received instruction from the famous pianist Ariadna Lysenko. She graduated from Kiev State Conservatory with a Master of Arts degree in Piano, Ensemble Performance, Accompaniment and Piano Pedagogy. Ms. Bessonova was employed by the Glier College of Music in Kiev, Ukraine, for 15 years where she served as a piano teacher and leading accompanist, until she moved with her family to San Diego in 2002. In the US, she has continued her career as a piano soloist, accompanist, and teacher. She performs regularly in San Diego and Los Angeles, often accompanying great singers such as the soloists Nikolai Gutorovich and Lydia Zacharenko of the “Musical Theater of Stanislavsky”; Aleksandr Agamirzov, laureate of New York Voice Competition; Susana Poretsky, a soloist for the Metropolitan and the San Diego Opera; and Larisa Tetuev, a soloist for the Israel Opera; famous violinist Irina Tseitlin, the winner of many competitions; and the famous cellist Gayana Mndolyan. She has also performed with the soloist of Frankfurt Society Orchestra, Serge Walter, the winner of the Wieniawski Competition. She has also worked with the Small Opera of San Diego as a recital accompanist, as well as participated in an International production of the Broadway Musical “Thief,” a production based on the music of the Russian composer Vladimir Shainsky. Mrs. Bessonova has also worked at the San Diego Academy of Ballet, and serves as a teacher and accompanist at the California Institute of Music of San Diego. Ms. Bessonova has participated in numerous concerts: Talents of San Diego (organized by the Russian community), Concert of Russian Romances and Songs, the California Foundation for the International Global Arts, City of Solana Beach, American German Society, the Polish Art and Culture Society of San Diego, and the Central Library of San Diego. Ms. Bessonova is a member of the Music Teacher Association of California (MTAC) and prepares students regularly for certified MTAC competitions and events. Her student, Ami Liu, became a winner of the International Piano Competition in San Jose, and went on to become a winner of the USA Open Piano Competition in Oakland.
