Les Muses de Calliope “The woman of the future with her broader outlook, her greater opportunities will go far, I believe, in creative work of every description.” The above quote from renowned Polish composer Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969) serves as the inspiration of violinist Guillaume Combet and pianist Kristin Ditlow as they embark on their next musical journey, promoting works for violin and piano of underrepresented women composers from various nationalities, backgrounds, and centuries. Our upcoming performances seek to help to change perspectives about the quality of violin and piano works which exist, especially written by women. We will perform and speak about works by Bacewicz, Amy Beach, Amanda Maier, Germaine Tailleferre, Nadia and Lili Boulanger, and Dora Pejačević ABOUT THE PERFORMERS KRISTIN DITLOW Pianist, conductor and coach Kristin Ditlow is enjoying a performance and teaching career throughout the United States and abroad. She has appeared in concert throughout North America, mainland China, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Hungary, Austria, and the Czech Republic. Her solo debut piano CD, Passages, has received national accolades. Harry Musselwhite of the Rome News-Tribune wrote that “the recording … is sonically breathtaking and her playing ranges from intimate pianistic thoughts to thundering room-shaking outbursts. She is a consummate interpreter.” In a review by musicologist Ralph Locke, Boston’s The Arts Fuse remarks, “I have played this album repeatedly for weeks … [the performances] are deeply affectionate: I sometimes felt I could hear Ditlow thinking about the (silent) words, noticing a surprising modulation, or responding to the tension-and-release within a musical phrase.” Travel, wonder and exploration are greatly important to this artist – and her playing reflects it. Critics have hailed her performances as “fiery, with great thrusts of energy” (Bethlehem Morning Call), and containing a “burnished color and sense of passion” (The Philadelphia Inquirer). GUILLAUME COMBET Guillaume Combet is an Associate Professor at the University of Delaware School of Music and is an internationally acclaimed violinist. His most recent recording Transcontinental: Music Without Borders was awarded a Silver Medal Outstanding Achievement from Global Music Awards for trios and chamber music. In his 2021 recording with the late Sandra Carlock, he was heralded for his “perfect technique, fidelity to the music, and impeccable articulation.” Recorded in London at the Menuhin Hall and released by SOMM Recordings in 2021, the Carlock-Combet Duo’s Romantic Violin Sonatas received a 5-star review by the French magazine Classica citing their “constant insights from beginning to end…their generous and rich colour palette” and Mr. Combet’s “rich, captivating sound.” Their debut disc of French violin sonatas was released in 2017 also by SOMM Recordings to great critical acclaim. Music Web International accorded them the honor of a listing both as the Recording of the Month at the time of the release, and in December of 2017, the disc was named as one of Music Web’s Best Recordings for the year, 2017. “An imaginative and intelligent program this, all three works performed with style, panache, and polish… the closing Allegro molto (of the Saint-Saëns Sonata) rushes headlong with sparkling virtuosity toward a glowing, majestic conclusion” (Music Web International). In December of 2025, he will record a CD of violin and piano music with pianist Kristin Ditlow, featuring all-women composers, under the Meyer-Media label.