"If I don't check myself into Sheppard Pratt, I'll be lucky," Wong says with a laugh. "I know some people say I'm nuts to do so many concerts, but you should see the e-mails I get all the time asking to perform here. We have learned to be extremely pragmatic about our operating expenses."
Baltimore Magazine named Wong one of 2009's "arts world heroes."
"I know sometimes I fall short, but I try to improve," he says. "And, given our no resources, I think we do OK. We have very successful concerts and very unsuccessful concerts, but the emphasis is always on the music, the musicians and the public. It's not about making a lot of money."
The Poulenc Trio and soprano Hyunah Yu perform at 8 p.m. Friday at the University of Baltimore Student Center, 21 W. Mount Royal Ave. The jazz piano series continues there Oct. 16 with Kenny Werner. Go to ubalt.edu/spotlightub.
The Monument Piano Trio performs at 3 p.m. Sunday at An die Musik, 409 N. Charles St. The program includes the premiere of Michael Sheppard's arrangement of Brahms' Symphony No. 2. Call 410-385-2638 or go to andiemusiklive.com.
Artistic rush hour
We don't need a water main break or juicy accident to tie up traffic around the Inner Harbor at rush hour. The next time you're stuck, think about hanging around downtown until the gridlock eases. A cool alternative is being presented by Maryland Art Place, which last month launched a series of events called Rush Hour: Art Beats Traffic.
The next program offers a reception at 5 p.m. Thursday, followed by a gallery talk at 6 p.m., part of the seventh annual "Curators' Incubator," three exhibits curated by Shelly Blake-Plock, Rachel Sitkin and Margaret Winslow. Artists include Bonnie Jones, Kim Beck and Ronald Longsdorf. Maryland Art Place is at Market Place, Suite 100, Power Plant Live. Call 410-962-8565 or go to mdartplace.org.
Bounty of Beethoven
Pianist Anne Koscielny, who has long specialized in performing all 32 of Beethoven's sonatas, will present the complete cycle in a series of concerts at Howard Community College this season. The first program is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Smith Theatre, 10901 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia. For ticket information, call 410-772-4900 or go to howardcc.edu/music.
Three of Beethoven's cello sonatas will be featured in a recital by a dynamic Austrian cellist Friedrich Kleinhapl, with pianist Andreas Woyke, at 7 p.m. Sunday in the Great Hall at Saint John's College, 60 College Ave., Annapolis. Admission is free. For more information, call 410-626-2539.
