ASPECT Chamber Music Series Will Present Two April Concerts, Plus Newly Added ALMA MAHLER: MUSE OR MONSTER?

The ASPECT Chamber Music Series will conclude its spring 2020 season with three concerts-Personal Diaries in A Major on Thursday, April 16, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. at Bohemian National Hall; Sensibility: Gainsborough, Abel & Bach on Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. at the Italian Academy at Columbia University; and Alma Mahler: Muse or Monster? on Thursday, May 28, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. at Bohemian National Hall. ASPECT's concerts feature expertly curated chamber music by the world's top performers, alongside illustrated talks by leading musicologists and industry experts that reveal fascinating details about the program's composers, works, and the cultural history of the period.

Personal Diaries in A Major on Thursday, April 16, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. explores the relationship between love and music, particularly the inspiration that can come from unfulfilled love. The concert features acclaimed Hungarian violinist Kristóf Baráti and pianist Enrico Pace-winner of the International Yamaha Competition-performing Brahms's Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Op. 100 'Thun'; Janáček's Violin Sonata, JW 7/7; and Beethoven's Sonata for Violin and Piano, No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47 'Kreutzer', all works that had their genesis from the feeling of unrequited passion. The program also includes an illustrated talk by BBC radio host and musicologist Stephen Johnson.

On Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. at the Italian Academy at Columbia University, ASPECT presents Sensibility: Gainsborough, Abel & Bach. Celebrated viola da gamba player Richard Boothby and international harpsichord sensation Mahan Esfahani perform and give an illustrated talk on how the cult of sensibility-a movement that emphasized spontaneous emotional responses to art, music and literature, a sensitivity to the suffering of others, and a love of nature-rose to popularity in mid-eighteenth-century Britain. Such ideas are apparent in the art of Thomas Gainsborough, who painted two German émigrés to London who were similarly adept at articulating direct emotions in their musical performances and compositions: Johann Christian Bach, J.S Bach's youngest son who was to become London's leading composer and musician, and Carl Friedrich Abel, composer and virtuoso viola da gamba player. Together, Abel and Bach set up their own concert series, which was such a success that they went on to build their own concert room, for which Gainsborough provided much of the decoration. The concert will feature Abel's Sonata in D Major, Three Improvisations, Sonata in G minor, and Sonata in A minor; as well as J.C. Bach's Sonata in D Major for Keyboard, Op. 5, No. 2 and Sonata in A flat Major for Keyboard.

The Aspect spring 2020 concert series season closes with a newly added concert: Alma Mahler: Muse or Monster? on Thursday, May 28, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. at Bohemian National Hall. The program features songs by Alma and Gustav Mahler, as well as Zemlinsky's Three Pieces for Cello and Piano and Korngold's Piano Trio, Op. 1 performed by mezzo-soprano Rebecca Ringle, pianist Bryan Wagorn, cellist Brooke Speltz, violinist Michelle Ross, and pianist Adam Golka. Accompanying talks will be presented by Stephen Johnson and historian, writer and broadcaster Patrick Bade surrounding the existence of the storied "muse of genius" and Alma Mahler's ability to allure and inspire powerful, artistic men paired with her own gift as a composer.

Program Information

Personal Diaries in A Major
Thursday, April 16, 2020 at 7:30 p.m.
Bohemian National Hall | 321 E 73rd St | New York, NY 10021
Tickets: $45, includes wine and refreshments
Link: https://www.aspectmusic.net/personal-diaries-in-a-major

Performers:
Kristóf Baráti, violin
Enrico Pace, piano
Illustrated Lecture by Stephen Johnson

Program:
Brahms - Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Op. 100 'Thun'
Janáček - Violin Sonata, JW 7/7
Beethoven - Sonata for Violin and Piano, No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47 'Kreutzer'

Sensibility: Gainsborough, Abel & Bach
Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 7:30 p.m.
Italian Academy | 1161 Amsterdam Ave | New York, NY 10027
Tickets: $45, includes wine and refreshments
Link: https://www.aspectmusic.net/sensibility-gainsborough-abel-bach

Performers:
Richard Boothby, viola da gamba
Mahan Esfahani, harpsichord
Illustrated talk by musicians

Program:
Abel - Sonata in D Major
J. C. Bach - Sonata in D Major for Keyboard Op. 5, No. 2
Abel - Three Improvisations
Abel - Sonata in G minor
J. C. Bach - Sonata in A flat Major for Keyboard
Abel - Sonata in A minor

Alma Mahler: Muse or Monster?
Thursday, May 28, 2020 at 7:30 p.m.
Bohemian National Hall | 321 E 73rd St | New York, NY 10021
Tickets: $45, includes wine and refreshments
Link: https://www.aspectmusic.net/alma-mahler-muse-or-monster-2020

Performers:
Rebecca Ringle, mezzo-soprano
Bryan Wagorn, piano
Brook Speltz, cello
Michelle Ross, violin
Adam Golka, piano
Pre-concert talk by Patrick Bade
Illustrated Talk by Stephen Johnson

Program:
Songs by Alma and Gustav Mahler
Zemlinsky - Three Pieces for Cello and Piano
Korngold - Piano Trio, Op. 1