Third Wheel

Third Wheel expands the definition of chamber music with an unusual instrumentation and fresh, youthful perspective. The group is dedicated to seeking out lesser-known works by contemporary composers, and also steps outside the boundaries of classical music to perform works borrowed from jazz, folk, and rock. In 2008, Third Wheel won the Beverly Hills Auditions and has appeared on numerous Southern California music series such asLaguna Beach Live! and The Previews in Manhattan Beach.

The Line Forms Hear guitar trio (l to r:Julian Coryell, Steve Thachuk,Scott Morris) is among the premier Los Angeles-based classical guitar ensembles. Its newest member, Julian Coryell, is the son of famed jazz fusion guitarist Larry Coryell and is one of the youngest graduates of Berklee College of Music. Canadian-born Steve Thachuk is on the CSUN faculty and Scott Morris is on the CSUDH faculty.

Vibraphonist and composer Nick Mancini earned a Master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music and worked in NYC for 10 years; relocating to Los Angeles in 2006. A virtuoso improviser, he has performed and recorded with such diverse luminaries as Bob Hurst, Marvin “Smitty” Smith, Kenny Werner, New York Voices, Jennifer Holliday, Jesca Hoop, Leon Fleisher and Julian Fleisher, and at such notable venues as Birdland, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Alandia Jazz Festival.

Woodwind virtuoso Katisse is a graduate of the L.A. County High School for the Arts and the Grove School and received an NEA Fellowship Grant to study woodwinds with Bill Green. Allan Kozinn of The New York Times described him as, “…(his) ornate improvisations transformed this vocal score into a virtuosic instrumental work.” He has worked with Prince, Herbie Hancock, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, and notably, he played the “jazz flute” scene in the Will Ferrell film, Anchorman.

The Classical Music Series of Live At The Lounge in Hermosa Beach is a new concept for Southern California. New Yorkers have embraced the concept with great enthusiasm at Le Poisson Rouge in Greenwich Village. The weekly Classical Music Series at Live At The Lounge harkens back to music-halls in the time of Mozart and Beethoven, where classical music was enjoyed in a fun, informal setting. Feel free to applaud between movements whenever you’re inspired to do so.

Read the EasyReader article “Classical Gas: Yana Reznik brings concert hall musicians to Hermosa Beach” by clicking here.

Thanks to Mike Lacey, the forward-looking founder and President of the famed Comedy and Magic Club (where Jay Leno performs every Sunday evening), Southern California now has a new weekly classical music series where premier established and rising young performers can be enjoyed in an attractive and intimate club setting. Enjoy classical music in a listening-room setting (not background music) accompanied by fine dinners (optional) and/or drinks.

Writer and critic Laurence Vittes hosts the evening and provides expert commentary on the artists and pieces. Even experienced classical music aficionados will find his comments illuminating and entertaining. The high artistic quality of the offerings is assured by Artistic Director Yana Reznik, well known to Southland aficionados, who trained at the Manhattan School of Music under Phillip Kawin and earned a Master’s Degree at the USC Thornton School and the coveted Professional Studies Certificate at the Colburn Conservatory withJohn Perry.

Live At The Lounge (adjoining The Comedy & Magic Club) is a beautiful 90-person theater that serves dinner expertly prepared from the freshest ingredients available in Southern California before and during all performances. Arrive early and enjoy a delicious dinner with friends and make new ones. Stay after and socialize with the artists.