Charlene Kluegel Joins World-Premiere Recording of Mischa Zupko’s Harpsichord Concerto on Cedille Records

Charlene Kluegel, violin

CHICAGO, IL —

Violinist Charlene Kluegel is featured on the world-premiere recording of Mischa Zupko’s Harpsichord Concerto, released June 12, 2026 on Cedille Records as a digital single available on all major streaming platforms.

Scored for harpsichord and string quartet, the recording brings together two-time Grammy-nominated harpsichordist Jory Vinikour alongside multi-Grammy-nominated violinist Desirée Ruhstrat, Kluegel, violist Margaret O’Malley, and cellist David Cunliffe.

Zupko’s three-movement Harpsichord Concerto draws on the motor-rhythmic world of J.S. Bach, the French ornamentation of François Couperin, and the percussive brightness of Domenico Scarlatti, reshaping these historical voices into a vivid contemporary language. The three movements — “Preamble,” “Whispers,” and “The Dance” — trace a journey from sustained harmonic tension through ornate impressionism to a finale that breaks, unexpectedly, into tango.

Originally commissioned with support from the Fromm Music Foundation and premiered at New York’s Merkin Hall in 2003, the work marks Zupko’s third release on Cedille Records and Vinikour’s fourth. The recording was produced by James Ginsburg and engineered by Bill Maylone at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts at the University of Chicago on November 11, 2025, with support from a generous gift from Bruce Oltman.

Recording session · Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, University of Chicago · November 2025