Tag Archives: Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

St. Cecilia’s chamber music series finale examines ‘The Jazz Effect’ with works of Gershwin, Marsalis

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Several Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) musicians will perform, including pianists Anne-Marie McDermott and Zhu Wang, as well as violinist Ida Kavafian and the Orion String Quartet (violinists Daniel Phillips, Todd Phillips and Steven Tenenbom, and cellist Timothy Eddy). (Supplied)

By WKTV Staff

St. Cecilia Music Center’s final Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center concert of the 2021-22 season, set for Thursday, March 31, will present classical music influenced by “The Jazz Effect” and featuring works by composers Wynton Marsalis, George Gershwin, Maurice Ravel and Darius Milhaud.

Seven Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) musicians will perform, including pianists Anne-Marie McDermott and Zhu Wang — including in a rare “four hands” piece, as well as violinist Ida Kavafian and the Orion String Quartet (violinists Daniel Phillips, Todd Phillips and Steven Tenenbom, and cellist Timothy Eddy).

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) pianists Anne-Marie McDermott and Zhu Wang will perform in a “four hands” piece. (Pixaby)

“The Jazz Effect” program will include Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Piano, Marsalis’ Selections from At the Octoroon Balls for String Quartet, Milhaud’s La création du monde for piano quintet, Op. 81, and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for piano, four hands (arr. Henry Levine).

Tickets for the concert are available and can be purchased online at scmc-online.org or by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224.

While the series of short pieces by Marsalis may be among the more unique of the program — set to include “Come Long Fiddler”, “Mating Calls and Delta Rhythms”, “Creole Contradanzas”, “Many Gone”, “Hellbound Highball”, “Blue Light on the Bayou” and “Rampart Street Row House Rag” — the Gershwin work is set to close the night for good reason.

“In terms of pure musicality, George Gershwin was America’s Schubert,” according to promotional material. “He composed with a creativity and skill that immortalized his art, and hardly any of his works is more embedded in the world’s musical consciousness than Rhapsody in Blue, originally described by Gershwin as a “symphony” for piano solo and jazz band. This extraordinary chamber music program pays tribute to great composers who crossed the bridge between the classical and jazz idiom, with dazzling results.”

And having Ann-Marie McDermott and Zhu Wang, and their four hands, on the keyboard should be unforgettable.

Health and safety requirements 

According to supplied material, St. Cecilia currently requires proof of fully vaccinated status, or a negative COVID test taken within 72 hours, to attend a concert at the SCMC venue. Attendees need to bring photo ID and proof of vaccination, or a negative test, the night of a concert. Home tests are not accepted. All patrons will be required to wear a mask while in the building for the duration of the concert.

 

If patrons have tickets to an upcoming performance and are unwilling or unable to abide by this policy, please contact the SCMC box office for a refund at kelly@scmc-online.org a minimum of 48 hours prior to the concert date.

Brahms, Mahler and Franck on program as St. Cecilia hosts chamber music Jan. 27  

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The Chamber Music Society (CMS) of Lincoln Center musicians scheduled to perform include, clockwise from top left, co-Artistic Director and pianist Wu Han, violinist Aaron Boyd, violinist Danbi Um, violist Paul Neubauer, violist Timothy Riout and cellist Sihao He. (Supplied)

By WKTV Staff

ken@wktv.org

St. Cecilia Music Center is celebrating 10 seasons of partnership with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and local chamber music fans will likely be celebrating Jan. 27 as the series’ second concert of the 2021-22 season, “Romantic Perspectives” will feature music of Brahms, Mahler, Dvorak, and Franck.

The Chamber Music Society (CMS) of Lincoln Center musicians scheduled to perform include co-Artistic Director and pianist Wu Han, violinist Aaron Boyd, violinist Danbi Um, violist Paul Neubauer, violist Timothy Riout and cellist Sihao He.
  

Wu Han and other members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will be in concert at St. Cecilia Music Center. (Supplied/Lisa-marie Mazzucco)

“To hear the exquisite blend of six outstanding Chamber Music musicians performing the works of Brahms, Mahler, Dvorak and Franck will be a captivating highlight of this monumental season,” Cathy Holbrook, St. Cecilia Music Center (SCMC) executive and artistic director, said in supplied material.
 

The final concert of the St. Cecilia chamber music series will be March 31 and will feature George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”, as well as music by Maurice Ravel, Darius Milhaud, and Wynton Marsalis.

Tickets for CMS of Lincoln Center concerts can be purchased online at scmc-online.org or by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224.

‘Romantic Perspectives’ background and program

The Romantic movement in classical music blossomed across Europe during the 19th Century, as stated in supplied material, and was “fueled by the vision of Beethoven, the poetry of Schubert, and the hyper-emotionalism of Schumann, composers tapped their inner selves, often deeply inspired by their native cultures.”

Johannes Brahms, declared to be the heir to the mantle of Beethoven, adhered to the discipline of the classical age, yet, few have ever composed more romantically and with such passion. Gustav Mahler, whose symphonies expanded music’s horizon by leaps and bounds, penned his only work of chamber music, an achingly beautiful movement, as an idealistic student.

And César Franck, the lion of French romantic composers, brought all his sensuousness and seriousness to this epic quintet, one of the literature’s most cherished masterpieces.

The program includes:

Johannes Brahms (1833 – 1897), Scherzo, WoO 2, from “F-A-E” Sonata for Violin and Piano (1853).

Gustav Mahler (1860 – 1911), Quartet in A minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello (1876)

Antonin Dvorak (1841 – 1904), Quintet in A minor for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, Op. 1 (1861)

Cesar Franck (1822 – 1890), Quintet in F minor for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, and Cello (1879)

SCMC special pandemic precautions

SCMC currently requires proof of fully vaccinated status, or a negative COVID test taken within 72 hours, to attend a concert at the SCMC venue. Attendees need to bring photo ID and proof of vaccination, or a negative test, the night of a concert. Home tests are not accepted. All patrons will be required to wear a mask while in the building for the duration of the concert.

All ticket holders will be notified if mandatory mask requirements are in effect for a particular show by an artist. If you a have tickets to an upcoming performance and are unwilling or unable to abide by this policy, please contact the SCMC box office for a refund at kelly@scmc-online.org a minimum of 48 hours prior to the concert date.

For complete information on all shows at St. Cecilia, visit scmc-online.org.

Viennese connection: St. Cecilia’s chamber music concerts begin with CMS of Lincoln Center’s power couple

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The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s artistic directors cellist David Finckel (right) and pianist Wu Han, as well as violinist Arnaud Sussmann and violist Paul Neubauer, will be on stage at the St. Cecilia Music Center. (Supplied)

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

As if it were not enough of an attraction to have the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s musicians return to St. Cecilia Music Center as the center begins its chamber music series mid-November, inbound from New York to the Royce Auditorium stage is chamber music’s power couple.

In the first of three 2021-22 concerts during their 10th anniversary of partnership with St. Cecilia, CMS of Lincoln Center’s artistic directors cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han, as well as violinist Arnaud Sussmann and violist Paul Neubauer, will present a program titled “From Prague to Vienna” on Thursday, Nov. 18.

The program includes selections from the works of Brahms, Dvořák, and Suk. Future programs in the series include “Romantic Perspectives” on Jan. 27, 2022; and “The Jazz Effect” on March 31.

Tickets are available and can be purchased online at scmc-online.org or by calling St. Cecilia at 616-459-2224.

 

The last time CMS performed for a live audience at St. Cecilia was early 2020, and Cathy Holbrook, SCMC executive & artistic director, could not be happier — for the performers, the music center, and its audience.

 

“We are thrilled and thankful to be celebrating our 10th Anniversary with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center,” Holbrook said in supplied material. “We are also thrilled to welcome back our loyal supporters and music lovers in person to experience this exquisite evening with these outstanding musicians.”

As for the “outstanding musicians” — an understatement , perhaps — pianist Wu Han, recipient of Musical America’s Musician of the Year Award, the highest honor bestowed by the organization, enjoys a multi-faceted musical life that encompasses performing, recording, and artistic direction at across the nation. Married to cellist Finckel since 1985, Wu Han divides her time between concert touring and residences in New York City and Westchester County.

Finckel, in addition to his work with CMS, cellist of the Emerson String Quartet for 34 seasons, and has performed and recorded chamber music that includes virtually the complete string quartets of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Dvorák, Brahms, Bartók, and Shostakovich. He teaches cello and chamber music at both the Juilliard School and Stony Brook University.

Violinist Sussmann is the winner of a 2009 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and has distinguished himself with his unique sound, bravura, and profound musicianship. Minnesota’s Pioneer Press writes, “Sussmann has an old-school sound reminiscent of what you’ll hear on vintage recordings by Jascha Heifetz or Fritz Kreisler, a rare combination of sweet and smooth that can hypnotize a listener.”

Violist Neubauer has gained widespread praise, including the New York Times calling him “a master musician.” In 2018, he made his Chicago Symphony subscription debut with conductor Riccardo Muti and his Mariinsky Orchestra debut with conductor Valery Gergiev. He, too, is on the faculty of The Juilliard School, and Mannes College as well as a visiting professor at DePaul University.

Special pandemic policy

SCMC currently requires proof of fully vaccinated status, or a negative COVID test taken within 48 hours, to attend a concert at the SCMC venue. Attendees need to bring photo ID and proof of vaccination, or a negative test, the night of a concert.

In areas with substantial and high transmission, the CDC recommends that everyone (including fully vaccinated individuals) wear a mask in public indoor settings to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, especially the Delta variant, and to protect others. To that end, SCMC is requiring that all attendees wear a mask while in the building. They will continue to monitor the COVID environment and may change policies at any time if necessary.

If you have tickets to an upcoming performance and are unwilling or unable to abide by this policy, please contact the SCMC box office for a refund at kelly@scmc-online.org a minimum of 48 hours prior to the concert date.

For more information on all shows at St. Cecilia, visit SCMC-online.org.

Bach anyone? St. Cecilia to offer four free Chamber Music Society virtual concerts

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The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will team with St. Cecilia Music Center for a series of free virtual concert programs. (Supplied/CMS)

By WKTV Staff

ken@wktv.org

St. Cecilia Music Center has announced the 2021 Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center virtual concerts, with four free-to-the-public nights of chamber music beginning in January and running through April.

Kicking off the concerts is maybe the most famous program of all chamber music programs, Bach’s The Brandenburg Concertos, set to premiere Thursday, Jan. 7, at 7 p.m., on the St. Cecilia website, but, as with all concerts, the concert remains available for viewing for a week after initial air date.

 

“While we are still unable to gather audiences in person at this time due to COVID-19, SCMC remains committed to bringing our patrons great music into the safety of their own home,” St. Cecilia states in supplied material. “We received enthusiastic and positive feedback on our fall series and are pleased to continue this offering into the new year.”

The Chamber Music Society has thousands of professionally recorded archived performances, according to supplied material, and co-artistic directors David Finckel and Wu Han have “put together wonderful programs that feature an artist on each piece in each program.” A pre-concert artist profile and a post-concert Q&A with the artist, led by Finckel and Wu Han, “make these concert offerings unique and personal.” 

The concert programs and dates

The Brandenburg Concertos (concerto No.s 1-6) is Thursday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m., and featuring more than 40 musicians performing one or more of the six pieces.

A program featuring pianist Gloria Chien is Thursday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m., and will include  Field’s Nocturne No. 2 in C minor for Piano, Liszt’s Grand duo concertant sur la romance de ‘Le Marin’ for Violin and Piano, and Mendelssohn’s Quartet in C minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 1.

A program featuring violist Paul Neubauer is Thursday, March 18 at 7 p.m., and will include Schumann’s Märchenerzählungen (Fairy Tales) for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, Op. 132; Dale’s “Romance” from Suite for Viola and Piano; Turina’s Escena andaluza for Viola, String Quartet, and Piano, Op. 7; Kreisler’s Liebeslied for Three Violins, Viola, and Cello; Shostakovich’s Impromptu for Viola and Piano; and Boulanger’s American Vision for Viola and Piano Trio.

The series will wrap up with a program featuring violinist Ani Kavafian on Thursday, April 1 at 7 p.m., and will included Brahms’ Scherzo, WoO 2, from “F-A-E” Sonata for Violin and Piano; Babajanian’s Trio in F-sharp minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello; and Dvorák’s Trio in F minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 65.

For more information visit scms-online.org/virtual.

At home pleasure — St. Cecilia’s ‘From Prague to Vienna’ chamber concert available in spirit

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St. Cecilia Music Ceners’s final Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) chamber music concert of the 2019-20 season — “From Prague to Vienna”, was set to feature CMS co-artistic directors David Finckel and Wu Han, along with Arnaud Sussman and Paul Neubauer. (CMS)

By WKTV Staff

ken@wktv.org

St. Cecilia Music Center has expressed extreme disappointment that, due to COVID19 restricting, it had to cancel the final Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center concert on April 30 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

And West Michigan’s chamber music devotees were certainly eagerly anticipating St. Cecilia’s final and sold-out chamber music concert of the 2019-20 season — “From Prague to Vienna”, featuring CMS co-artistic directors David Finckel and Wu Han both on Royce Auditorium stage, along with Arnaud Sussman and Paul Neubauer.

Alas, fans will have to wait until the 2020-21 season to catch the chamber music power couple in a live chamber music concert. But they can still catch the program they were going to perform at St. Cecilia tonight, April 30.

As provided by St. Cecilia this week, there are videos available of the pieces to be performed on the program (some personnel have been changed for some pieces).

Dvorak Sonatina in G Major for Violin and Piano, Op. 100

Suk Quartet in A minor for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello, Op. 1

Brahms Quartet No. 1 in G minor for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello, Op 25

And for those who love to dig deeper into the music, St. Cecilia also provided the program page from the SCMC program book, as well as program notes. A lecture on the Brahms Quartet No. 1 in G Minor for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello is also available here.

(Ps. St. Cecilia also have a special message from Wu Han and David Finckel talking about the 2020-21 season’s lineup. And St. Cecilia Music Center’s CMS page will have tickets on sale in mid-May.)

St. Cecilia’s chamber music series brings ‘French Enchantment’ to Grand Rapids stage

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Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists visiting for the concert will be pianist and co-artistic director Wu Han, violinist Paul Huang, violist Matthew Lipman, and cellist Clive Greensmith. (Supplied)

By WKTV Staff
ken@wktv.org


The classic French music of Saint-Saëns, Fauré and Ravel. The masterful musicians of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. The exquisite acoustics of the Royce Auditorium Performance Hall.

Sounds like a perfect night of “French Enchantment”.

St. Cecilia Music Center’s second chamber music series concert if the season, set for Thursday, Jan. 23, will begin and end with early works by Saint-Saëns and Fauré that “recreate the elegant atmosphere of 19-century Parisian salons,” according to supplied material. In between will be Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Cello, “written soon after World War I, where he used just two string instruments to produce a composition of unique, austere beauty.”

Lipman Matthew (Supplied/Jiyang Chen)

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists visiting for the concert will be pianist and co-artistic director Wu Han, violinist Paul Huang, violist Matthew Lipman, and cellist Clive Greensmith.


“We are truly excited about this unique concert, ‘French Enchantment’, with the Chamber Music Society, as they communicate, through music, the beauty of French history and culture,” St Cecilia executive director Cathy Holbrook said in supplied material. “The audience will experience four amazing artists performing French music within our intimate world-class Royce Auditorium Performance Hall.”

“French Enchantment” selections will include: Trio No. 1 in F major for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 18 (written 1863-1864) and composed by Camille Saint-Saëns; Sonata for Violin and Cello (written 1920-1922) and composed by Maurice Ravel; and Quartet No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 15 (written 1876-1879; Revised in 1883) and composed by Gabriel Fauré.

Ravel’s work, The Sonata for Violin and Cello, remains one of the most challenging, enigmatic, least-known, and fascinating of Ravel’s compositions.

“I believe that the sonata marks a turning point in my career,” Ravel said of the work. “Bareness is here driven to the extreme: restraint from harmonic charm; more and more emphatic reversion to the spirit of melody.”

The final Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center concert of the season will take place on April 30, with Wu Han and cellist David Finckel both returning to Grand Rapids to perform with violinist Arnaud Sussman and violist Paul Neubauer on a program titled “From Prague to Vienna” and featuring three composers who mentored and inspired each other: Brahms, Dvořák and Suk.

 
Tickets for the Jan. 23 chamber music concert are $45 and $40 and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at scmc-online.org.  Ticket-holders are invited to a pre-concert artist talk at 7 p.m. prior to the 7:30 p.m. concert.

A post-concert “Meet-the-artist” party, with complimentary wine will also be offered to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists in person and to obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center to open St. Cecilia season with ‘Great Innovators’ 

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By St. Cecilia Music Center

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center begins their eight season at St. Cecilia Music Center on Thursday, Nov. 21, in a program entitled: Great Innovators, featuring the powerful works of brilliant composers Beethoven, Stravinsky, Mendelssohn and Smetana.

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists who will perform include Anne Marie McDermott, piano; Ida Klavafian, violin; Gary Hoffman, cello; and José Franch-Ballester, clarinet.

The program features Beethoven’s innovative Trio in B-flat major for Clarinet, Cello, and Piano, Op. 11, the first of its kind to include the clarinet in a trio; Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du sold (The Soldier’s Tale), Trio Version for Violin, Clarinet, and Piano, a piece that introduced the composer’s wildly controversial music extremism to the chamber music stage in the early 1920’s; Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words for Piano, an invention all his own; and Smetana’s Trio in G minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 15, the first major chamber work from the Bohemian region.

“It is truly a special experience to see the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center perform at St. Cecilia Music Center,” said Executive Director Cathy Holbrook. “These artists are amazing to watch with incredible artistry that is flawless. To hear the works of four powerful and brilliant composers — Beethoven, Stravinsky, Mendelssohn and Smetana — with these incredible artists in our world-class hall will be a memorable experience.”

Tickets for the Nov. 21 CMS of Lincoln Center concert are $45 and $40 and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at scmc-online.org.

A pre-concert reception for $15 will take place at 6:30 p.m. with wine and dos d’oeuvres, is available by reservation in advance (by Friday, Nov.15). A post-concert reception with dessert, coffee and wine is open to all ticket-holders to meet the artists and to obtain signed CDs of their releases.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Series will return on Jan. 23, 2020 with a program entitled French Enchantment where the audience will experience the grace, wit, and charm of French music. The program begins and ends with early works by Saint-Saëns and Fauré that recreate the elegant atmosphere of 19-century Parisian salons. In between the two works will be Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Cello, written soon after World War I, where he used just two string instruments to produce a composition of unique, austere beauty. CMS artists performing include pianist and Co-Artistic Director Wu Han, violinist Paul Huang, violist Matthew Lipman, and cellist Clive Greensmith.

On April 30, 2020, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Co-Artistic Directors Wu Han (piano) and David Finckel (cello) will perform with violinist Arnaud Sussman and violist Paul Neubauer on a program entitled From Prague to Vienna. This concert celebrates friendship and family with three composers who mentored and inspired each other: Brahms, Dvořák and Suk. Brahms discovered Dvořák through a composition competition and helped him rise to international stardom, and became his lifelong friend and mentor. In turn, Suk was one of Dvořák’s favorite students and eventually became his son-in-law.

St. Cecilia’s chamber music series continues with Rachmaninov, ‘Russian Mastery’

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Pianist Wu Han, violinists Arnaud Sussman and Alexander Sitkovetsky, and cellist Nicholas Canellakis. (Supplied/St. Cecilia)

By WKTV Staff
ken@wktv.org

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center returns to St. Cecilia Music Center on Thursday, March 14, in a program entitled “Russian Mastery” and featuring works by Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and Arensky. The Chamber Music Society artists who will perform include co-artistic director and pianist Wu Han, violinists Arnaud Sussman and Alexander Sitkovetsky, and cellist Nicholas Canellakis.
 
 
“Every concert at SCMC performed by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center is amazing to watch with artistry that is always flawless,” SCMC executive director Cathy Holbrook said in supplied material. “We are so lucky to have these brilliant musicians take the stage in Royce Auditorium. … We are also very excited to have Wu Han … back to provide background on some of the wonderful music they will be performing.”

According to supplied material, “Russia’s vastly expressive music over time has told the story of its country and people, painting a picture through music of its turbulent historical landscape. Specifically, the Prokofiev Two Violin Sonata, written in 1932, stands apart as an audaciously creative work from the period between World War I and World War II, while the remaining works will be glorious musical outpourings of the age of the Tsars and the Russian Empire.”
 
 
The selections to be performed include: Trio élégiaque in G minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello — Sergei Rachmaninov, composer; Souvenir d’un lieu cherfor Violin and Piano, Op. 42 — Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, composer; Sonata in C major for Two Violins, Op. 56 — Sergei Prokofiev, composer; Romance and Oriental Dance for Cello and Piano — Sergei Rachmaninov, composer; and Trio No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 32 — Anton Arensky, composer.

The final CMS of Lincoln Center concert for this season will take place April 25, titled From Mendelssohn” will feature works by Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms and Tchaikovsky.

Tickets for the March 14 and April 25 concerts are $45 and $40 and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at scmc-online.org.
 

A post-concert “Meet-the-artist” party, with complimentary wine will be offered to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists and to obtain signed CDs of their releases.

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center returns to St. Cecilia for new season

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Musicians from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will join to perform Schubert’s “Trout Quintet”. (Supplied)

 

By St. Cecilia Music Center

 

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Series 2018/2019 season begins on Nov. 15, with 5 internationally renowned musicians from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York performing diverse gems from the 19th century as the St. Cecilia Music Center’s chamber music series begins its season with the beloved Schubert composition The Trout Quintet.

 

Duos and trios will fill the first half of their performance, including Beethoven’s variations on Mozart’s melody, Schubert’s creation for the arpeggione, and Bottesini’s virtuoso showpiece for violin and double bass. The artists join forces after intermission to perform Schubert’s Trout Quintet, which has garnered a reputation as one of the most popular works in the chamber repertory.

 

A pre-concert artist talk with the visiting musicians begins at 7 p.m. and is open to all ticket holders.

 

“We are so pleased to renew another three-year agreement with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center,” St. Cecilia executive director Cathy Holbrook said. “They are some of the most exciting artists to experience at SCMC with their exquisite performances and amazing artistry. To listen to and see these artists in action is truly captivating,”

 

Musicians will include pianist Orion Weiss, violinist Paul Huang, violist Paul Neubauer, cellist Keith Robinson, and double bassist Xavier Foley. New artist Foley is the recipient of a prestigious 2018 Avery Fisher Career Grant. He has also won the 2016 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, and First Prizes at Astral’s 2014 National Auditions, Sphinx’s 2014 Competition, and the 2011 International Society of Bassists Competition.

 

Tickets for the November 15 CMS of Lincoln Center concert are $45 and $40. Season tickets for all 3 of the CMS of Lincoln Center concerts are also available for 15-20 percent discount off single ticket prices.

 

There will be two more chamber music concerts as part of the St. Cecilia series:

 

A program entitled Russian Mastery, featuring works by Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and Arensky, on March 14, 2019. Co-artistic Director and pianist Wu Han will return to Grand Rapids with violinists Arnaud Sussman and Alexander Sitkovetsky, and cellist Nicholas Canellakis. Russia’s vastly expressive music over time has told the story of its country and people, painting a picture through music of its turbulent historical landscape. The Prokofiev Two Violin Sonata, written in 1932, stands apart as an audaciously creative work from the period between the wars, while the remaining works will be glorious musical outpourings of the age of the tsars and the Russian Empire.

 

A program on April 25, 2019 entitled From Mendelssohn, which will feature Mendelssohn works and magnificent artists who admired and emulated his work through some of their own including Schumann, Brahms and Tchaikovsky. Mendelssohn’s combined mastery of melody, form, counterpoint, and the chamber idiom was admired and imitated by composers for generations. In a program bookended by two works of Mendelssohn from 1845, one brief, the other epic, the audience will hear Mendelssohn’s close friend Robert Schumann’s response to Mendelssohn’s piano trios; how, near the end of his life, Brahms recalled Mendelssohn’s lyricism through the viola’s dark voice; and, finally, how Mendelssohn’s great admirer Tchaikovsky combined the German’s signature scherzo idiom with Russian melancholy and splendor in three selections from The Seasons for solo piano. CMS musicians performing for the final concert of the season will include pianist Inon Barnatan violinist Cho-Liang Lin, violist Paul Neubauer, cellist Jakob Koranyi, and clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois.

 

All concert tickets can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.scmc-online.org.  A post-concert “Meet-the-artist” party, with complimentary wine will be offered to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists and to obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

‘Classical Evolution’ the theme of finale St. Cecilia chamber music season concert

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Pianist Vonsattel Gilles will be a featured performer at the final chamber music concert at St. Cecilia Music Center. (Supplied photo by Marco Borggreve)

By St. Cecilia Music Center

St. Cecilia Music Center will present the season finale of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center season, a program titled “Classical Evolution, Showcases Mozart, Weber and Brahms”, on Thursday, April 19, at 7:30 p.m.

 

The performance will feature pianist Gilles Vonsattel, violinists Ida Kavafian and Erin Keefe, violist Yura Lee, cellist Nicholas Canellakis and clarinetist Tommaso Lonquich.

 

“The final concert of this season with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) will bring some of our favorite chamber music artists back to SCMC and introduce us to a few new artists as well,” stated Cathy Holbrook, St. Cecilia executive director. “The title of this concert, ‘Classical Evolution’ showcases these stellar musicians performing works by Mozart, Weber and Brahms. Every chamber music concert with CMS is an exciting musical experience and this will be another night of magic.”

 

The Program will include Trio in E-flat major for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, K. 498, “Kegelstatt”, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Quintet in B-flat major for Clarinet, Two Violins, Viola, and Cello, Op. 34, by Carl Maria von Weber; and Quintet in F minor for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, and Cello, Op. 34, by Johannes Brahms.

 

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center is known for the extraordinary quality of its performances, its inspired programming, and for setting the benchmark for chamber music worldwide. No other chamber music organization does more to promote, to educate and to foster a love of and appreciation for the art form.

 

CMS brings together the very best international artists from an ever-expanding roster of more than 150 artists per season, to provide audiences with the kind of exhilarating concert experiences that have critics calling CMS “an exploding star in the musical firmament.”

 

St. Cecilia Music Center and CMS have an ongoing partnership that brings the group to Royce Auditorium each season.

 

Concert tickets are $38 and $43 and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.scmc-online.org.  A pre-concert wine / hors d’oeuvres event for $15 is available and begins at 6:00 p.m. (Reservations are required.)

 

There will also be a pre-concert talk with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists on Royce Auditorium stage beginning at 7 p.m. to discuss the music selection for the evening and any other questions that pertain to the artists themselves. All ticket holders are welcome to attend the artist talk. A post-concert party is open to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

St. Cecilia chamber concert to feature unique ‘piano for four hands’ selections 

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Four hands on the piano. (photo by Masataka Suemitsu)

By WKTV Staff

 

St. Cecilia Music Center’s next Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center concert, scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 18 will feature Society co-artistic director Wu Han and five internationally acclaimed chamber musicians performing the works of Brahms and Dvořák — including selections from both Brahms’ and Dvořák’s “Piano for Four Hands” compositions with pianists Wu Han and Michael Brown playing together on one piano.

 

At the 7:30 p.m. concert Wu Han and Brown will be joined by violinists Chad Hoopes and Paul Huang, violist Matthew Lipman and cellist Dmitri Atapine. Tickets are still available.

 

The musical and personal friendship between Brahms and Dvořák is the stuff of legend, according to supplied information. Their pairing brings to life the creative energy that reverberated between the German neo-classicist (Brahms) and the champion of Czech folk music (Dvořák), producing a glowing array of classical music’s most essential works.

 

Wu Hann (Supplied)

“Brahms and Dvořák were great friends. Brahms helped bring Dvořák’s music to the forefront in 1878.  Brahms, who was seven years older than Dvořák, mentored him and helped him to realize financial gain for his artistic works including some of the selections to be performed at the January 18 SCMC concert,” Wu Han said in supplied material. “Michael Brown and I will play Dvořák’s ‘Selected Slavonic Dances for Piano, Four Hands’, the works that brought Dvořák his first significant sum of money through Brahms efforts in introducing him to the esteemed Berlin publisher Fritz Simrock. We will also perform Brahm’s ‘Selected Hungarian Dances for Piano, Four Hands’, which was inspired by Brahms’ special affection for Gypsy Fiddlers and their music.

 

“These selections, as well as the two others to be performed — ‘Trio in C minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 101’ by Brahms, and ‘Trio in C minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 101’ by Dvořák were incredibly popular during those times (1868 – 1891).”

 

For a video introduction of the concert, visit here.

 

The concert will also likely introduce Brown, a rising star in chamber music circles, to the grand Rapids audience.

 

Michael Brown (Photo by Jamie Beck)

“The January 18 concert at SCMC will bring some new faces, introducing us to the next generation of chamber music stars,” Cathy Holbrook, St. Cecilia executive director, said in supplied material. “I’m especially looking forward to the pieces for four-hand piano that Wu Han and newcomer Michael Brown will be performing. It’s not often that you can experience two artists performing on one piano simultaneously in a chamber music performance, which makes this concert very special.”

 

Concert tickets are $38 and $43, and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at scmc.org .

 

A pre-concert wine and hors d’oeuvres event for $15 is available and begins at 6:30 p.m. (reservations for the pre-concert reception need to be made by Monday, Jan. 15.)

 

There will also be a pre-concert talk with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists in the Royce Auditorium to discuss the music selection for the evening and any other questions that pertain to the artists themselves. A post-concert party is open to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

The final 2017-18 season performance by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will take place April 19, with a performance including pianist Gilles Vonsattel, violinists Ida Kavafian and Erin Keefe, violist Yura Lee, cellist Nicholas Canellakis and clarinetist Tommaso Lonquich performing Mozart, Weber and Brahms.

 

‘Essential String Trios’ opens St. Cecilia chamber series

Entertainment,

 

 

By St. Cecilia Music Center

 

St. Cecilia Music Center will feature the outstanding Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in a concert on Thursday, Nov. 2, featuring co-artistic director and cellist David Finckel, with violinist Arnaud Sussman and violist Paul Neubauer. The program titled “Essential String Trios” will include the works of Beethoven, Mozart and Penderecki.

 

“We are excited to embark on our sixth season with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center,” SCMC executive director Cathy Holbrook said. “The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center is comprised of the finest chamber musicians in the world. Co-Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han choose the most amazing programs for this series and send us dynamic performers. If you haven’t attended one of these performances you should come to hear vibrant music in one of the finest concert halls in the world – The Royce Auditorium at St. Cecilia Music Center.”

 

The “Essential String Trios” concert will feature a string trio — violin, viola, and cello —is the chamber music connoisseur’s delight. The program will be:

Beethoven — Trio in G Major for Violin, Viola and Cello, Op. 9, No. 1

Penderecki — Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello

Mozart — Divertimento in E-flat Major for Violin, Viola and Cello, K. 563

 

Concert tickets are $38 and $43 and can be purchased by calling St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224 or visiting the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE. Tickets can also be purchased online at scmc-online.org.

 

A pre-concert wine/hors d’oeuvres event for $15 will be available to all ticket holders starting at 6:30 p.m. There will also be a pre-concert talk with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center artists in the Royce Auditorium to discuss the music selection for the evening and any other questions that pertain to the artists themselves.

 

A post-concert party is open to all ticket-holders giving the audience the opportunity to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

Season tickets for the Chamber Music Society Series are still available and include a $15 discount off of single ticket prices for the three concerts (with the others to be held Jan. 18 and April 19) by calling 616-459-2224 or visiting St. Cecilia Music Center at 24 Ransom NE, Grand Rapids.

 

Judy Collins highlights St. Cecilia’s peek at 2017-18 concert series lineups 

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Judy Collins will be making her St. Cecilia Music Center debut in early 2018. (Supplied)

St. Cecilia Music Center

 

The 2017-18 concert season at St. Cecilia Music Center includes the always remarkable Chamber Music of Lincoln Center series and a dynamite lineup for the Jazz Series. But the highlight of the winter may well be a visit  by the incomparable Judy Collins as part of the Acoustic Café Series.

 

“Since its inception in the 2015-16 season the Acoustic Café Folk Series has expanded its offerings and brought some of today’s up and coming artists, as well as some of the veterans of the singer/songwriter genre,” said Cathy Holbrook, St. Cecilia executive director. “We currently have two artists booked who represent generations of great music making … (including) the appearance of renowned and beloved singer Judy Collins.”

 

St. Cecilia’s Royce Auditorium stage concerts begin Oct. 26 and run through spring 2018. Series and individual ticket sales have started.

 

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center perform three times during the season with CMS artistic directors Wu Han and David Finckel featured in two of the three concerts. Programs include the works of Mozart, Brahms, Dvořák, and Beethovan. Concert dates are Nov. 2, Jan. 18, 2018, and April 19, 2018.

 

The 11th season of SCMC’s Jazz Series is appropriately entitled “The Encore Season” as it brings back favorite performers from the past 10 years. This special season will feature four concerts with performers who have all appeared at SCMC: Grammy-winning bassist Christian McBride on Nov. 16, contemporary jazz pianist Brad Mehldau on Nov. 30, Grammy-winning vocalist Gregory Porter on Feb. 22, 2018, and multi-Grammy nominated baritone vocalist Kurt Elling on March 22, 2018.

 

As part of a still-evolving Acoustic Café Series, singer/songwriter Collins will make her first appearance at St. Cecilia on Feb. 1, 2018. Before that, guitarist Leo Kottke will return to the Royce stage on Oct. 26. The Acoustic Café Series, in partnership with the syndicated radio show of the same name and its host Rob Reinhart, will bring these two legends of folk to the 2017/2018 season, with additional concerts to be announced later in the year.

 

Series subscription tickets are available now — subscription prices represent a 15 percent discount on regular single ticket prices and a reduced $7 fee for the pre-concert reception. The usual cost of the pre-concert wine and hors d’oeuvres reception is $15 per person, per concert for all Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Jazz Series concerts.

 

Single tickets are also available at this time. A post-party is included with each ticket where patrons are able to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs of their music.

 

For more information and tickets, visit scmc-online.org, call St. Cecilia Music Center at 616-459-2224, or visit the box office at 24 Ransom Ave. NE, Grand Rapids.

 

St. Cecilia’s chamber music season finale features pianist Wu Han in French mood

Entertainment,

 

Wu Han and other members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will be in concert this week at St. Cecilia Music Center. (Supplied/Lisa-marie Mazzucco)

By St. Cecilia Music Center

 

It will be an evening of chamber music master musicians playing in the French mood March 16 as St. Cecilia Music Center’s 2016-17 Chamber Music Series concludes with another concert by members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

 

The program is titled “French Virtuosity” and featuring Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center co-artistic director and pianist Wu Han performing with colleagues Kristin Lee, Yura Lee and Arnaud Sussman on violins, Richard O’Neill on viola and Nicholas Canellakis on cello.

 

“Sometimes people have the idea that chamber music concert will be stuffy and that the artists will be unapproachable. This idea can’t be further from the truth!” said Catherine Holbrook, Sty. Cecilia executive director. “The artists from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center are some of the most fun and outgoing people I’ve met. And this exuberance shines through during their exquisite performances. I’m very excited to have Wu Han and these five world class string artists here to engage with our enthusiastic Grand Rapids audience in the intimate Royce Auditorium.”

 

The program will include Leclair’s  Concerto in E minor for Violin, String Quartet and Continuo, Op. 10, No. 5; Françaix’s Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello; Ravel’s Tzigane, rapsodie de concert for Violin and Piano; and Chausson’s Concerto in D Major for Violin, Piano and String Quartet, Op. 21”

 

There will be a pre-concert wine and hors d’oeurves reception from 6-7 p.m. (for a $15 fee), a pre-concert artist talk with the musicians performing that evening moderated by St. Cecilia executive director Catherine Holbrook from 7-7:30 p.m., and a complimentary post-concert wine, coffee and dessert reception for the audience to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs.

 

For more information and tickets, call 616-459-2224 or visit scmc-onlilne.org.

 

St. Cecilia’s next chamber music concert features works by Brahms, Fauré

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Pianist Alessio Bax. (Supplied/Lisa-Marie Mazzucco

WKTV Staff

 

It will be an evening of chamber music master musicians playing chamber music master composers Jan. 26 as St. Cecilia Music Center’s 2016-17 Chamber Music Series continues with four of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s brightest stars playing works by Brahms, Fauré.

 

The artists scheduled to perform are pianist Alessio Bax, violinists Ani Kavafian and Yura Lee and cellist Paul Watkins, each of whom are among the most respected — and most exuberant — chamber musicians in the world, in the opinion of St. Cecilia executive director Cathy Holbrook.

 

“The many artists from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center are some of the most fun and outgoing people I’ve met,” Holbrook said in supplied material. “And this exuberance shines through during their exquisite performances. I’m very excited to have these four artists here and to introduce them, up close and personal in the intimate Royce Auditorium.”

 

The audience will be able to hear and see their skill and exuberance when the four takes the stage Thursday, Jan 26, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are still available.

 

 

The program includes Brahms’ “Scherzo, WoO 2, from ‘F-A-E’ Sonata for Violin and Piano”; Fauré’s “Quartet No. 2 in G minor for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello”; and Brahms’ “Quartet No. 2 in A Major for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello”.

 

See Alessio Bax perform the original piano solo version of Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmxezP1xzNk

 

This season’s St. Cecilia Chamber Music Series will conclude March 16, with a program titled “French Virtuosity” and featuring Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center co-artistic director and pianist Wu Han performing with colleagues Kristin Lee, Yura Lee and Arnaud Sussman on violins, Richard O’Neill on viola and Nicholas Canellakis on cello.

 

On Jan 26, there will be a pre-concert wine and hors d’oeurves reception from 6-7 p.m. (for a $15 fee), a pre-concert artist talk with the musicians performing that evening moderated by Grand Rapids Symphony President Peter Kjome from 7-7:30 p.m., and a complimentary post-concert wine, coffee and dessert reception for the audience to meet the artists and obtain signed CDs.

 

For more information and tickets, call 616-459-2224 or visit scmc-onlilne.org.

 

St. Cecilia, after renovations, opens concert season with chamber music

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David Finckel, left, will be one of the featured performers at the St. Cecilia Music Center concert.
David Finckel, left, will be one of the featured performers at the St. Cecilia Music Center concert. (Supplied)

 

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

The St. Cecilia Music Center unveiled its beautiful renovations last week and will draw the curtain this week with its 2016-17 season debut, the first of three visits by members of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

 

infoAlready called “one of the greatest halls for chamber music in the world,” upgrades to St. Cecilia’s Royce Auditorium will be on full display Thursday, Nov. 10,  when the chamber music players of the CMS of Lincoln Center present “Destination Vienna,” including the works of Mozart, Schoenberg and Brahms.

 

“This concert will showcase our ‘world class performance hall’ with world class musicians performing in a newly renovated setting,” according to SCMC executive director Cathy Holbrook. “The sound will be breathtaking and the audience will love our visual transformation of the hall, lobby, ballroom and entire facility.”

 

Chamber music artists performing include artistic director of CMS of Lincoln Center and cellist David Finckel as well as violinists Sean Lee and Alexander Sitkovetsky, violists Matthew Lipman and Richard O’Neill and cellist Keith Robinson.

 

The program includes Mozart’s “Quintet in C minor for Two Violins, Two Violas and Cello,” Schoenberg’s “Verklärte Nacht (Transfigured Night) for Two Violins, Two Violas and Two Cellos,” and Brahms’ “Sextet No. 1 in B-flat Major for Two Violins, Two Violas and Two Cellos.”

 

The evening will include a pre-concert wine and hors d’oeurves reception from 6-7 p.m. in the 2nd floor newly renovated ballroom for $15; a pre-concert artist talk with musicians performing that evening, and a complimentary post-concert wine, coffee and dessert reception for the audience to meet the six artists and obtain signed CDs of their releases.

 

For more information, call 616-459-2224 or visit scmc-online.org.