Chamber Music Society Of Lincoln Center Returns To Saratoga Performing Arts Center

THE CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER (CMS) returns to the historic resort town of Saratoga Springs in upstate New York on August 4 - 20, with a roster of internationally celebrated artists. CMS will be taking audiences at the Spa Little Theatre on a musical journey with six programs designed specifically for the Saratoga Performing Arts Center Residency of 23 works never before been performed by CMS at SPAC. In addition to performances by David Finckel and Wu Han, Co-Artistic Directors of CMS, in residency for all three weekends, audiences will experience the return of the Escher Quartet, plus debut appearances by four artists including Chinese violinist Angelo Xiang Yu, British flutist Adam Walker, Bulgarian violinist Bella Hristova and renowned American cellist Keith Robinson.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 4 @ 3PM: Thrills & Chills

Ravel
Jeux d'eau for Piano

Fauré
Fantasy for Flute and Piano, Op. 79

Poulenc
Sonata for Flute and Piano

Foss
Capriccio for Cello and Piano

Britten
Suite for Violin and Piano, Op. 6

Beethoven
Trio in D major for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 70, No. 1, "Ghost"

Michael Brown, Piano; Bella Hristova, Violin;

Angelo Xiang Yu, Violin; Nicholas Canellakis, Cello; Adam Walker, Flute.

French color, American optimism, British wit and German drama combine to kick off the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's season at SPAC. Ravel's iconic water work, Jeux d'eau, begins a program which includes reflective and dynamic works by Poulenc and Fauré; Lukas Foss's lively cello and piano Capriccio; Britten's humorous and bold violin suite; and Beethoven's Shakespeare-inspired "Ghost" trio, a game-changer in the chamber music landscape.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 6 @ 8PM: Instrumental Array

Bach
Concerto in D minor for Keyboard, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1052

Kodály
Duo for Violin and Cello, Op. 7

Spohr
Grand Nonetto in F major for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, Violin, Viola, Cello, and Bass, Op. 31

Michael Brown, Piano; Bella Hristova, Violin; Angelo Xiang Yu, Violin; Kerri Ryan, Viola

Nicholas Canellakis, Cello; David Finckel, Cello; Nathaniel West, Double Bass; Adam Walker, Flute; Stephen Taylor, Oboe; Ricardo Morales, Clarinet; Angela Anderson Smith, Bassoon; Jeffrey Lang, Horn.

Three compositions, three undeniable masterpieces. CMS celebrates the virtuosity and genius of the baroque keyboard concerto with JS Bach, Hungarian flair and nationalism with Zoltan Kodály's Duo for Violin and Cello, and an inventive collaboration of nine winds and strings in Spohr's Grand Nonetto, the first work ever to be written for this unusual grouping of instruments.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 11 @ 3PM: Deeply Inspired

Schubert
Trio in B-flat major for Violin, Viola, and Cello, D. 581

Mozart
Concerto No. 12 in A major for Piano and String Quintet, K. 414

Mendelssohn
Trio No. 2 in C minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 66

Juho Pohjonen, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Chad Hoopes, Violin; Arnaud Sussmann, Violin; Matthew Lipman, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Keith Robinson, Cello.

Lost to the world too soon, Schubert, Mozart and Mendelssohn gave classical music some of its most profound and compelling works. Deeply Inspired spotlights these iconic composers together in one performance, including an effervescent string trio written when Schubert was only 20 years old and Mendelssohn's moving Piano Trio No. 2, the last chamber work the composer lived to see published.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 13 @ 8PM: International Voices

Burleigh
Southland Sketches for Violin and Piano

Adolphe
Couple for Cello and Piano

Stravinsky
L'Histoire du soldat (The Soldier's Tale), Trio Version for Violin, Clarinet, and Piano

Falla
Selections from Suite populaire espagnole for Violin and Piano

Dohnányi
Sextet in C major for Clarinet, Horn, Violin, Viola, Cello, and Piano, Op. 37

Juho Pohjonen, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Chad Hoopes, Violin; Arnaud Sussmann, Violin; Matthew Lipman, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Keith Robinson, Cello; Ricardo Morales, Clarinet; Jeffrey Lang, Horn.

International Voices will take listeners on a journey through North America and Europe in this program of distinct voices that embody both eras and cultures. The evening will feature the picturesque work for violin and piano by Henry Burleigh, the song composer who introduced Dvo?ák to African-American spirituals; the vibrancy of a modern American composition by CMS's own Bruce Adolphe; the political turmoil of Russia and Hungary with Stravinsky and Dohnányi; and the passion of Spain in Falla's work inspired by popular melodies of his native country.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 18 @ 3PM: Vienna to Paris

Beethoven
Trio in C minor for Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 9, No. 3

Debussy
Quartet in G minor for Strings, Op. 10

Brahms
Quartet No. 2 in A major for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 26

Wu Han, Piano; Paul Huang, Violin; Paul Neubauer, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Escher String Quartet: Adam Barnett-Hart, Violin; Danbi Um, Violin; Pierre Lapointe, Viola; Brook Speltz, Cello.

The majestic cities of Vienna and Paris were thriving centers of creative energy in the 18th and 19th centuries, nurturing many great artists. Among those was Beethoven, who wrote a copious amount of works shortly after moving to Vienna in 1792, including his popular Op. 9 string trios. A hundred years later, Debussy's Paris provided a stunning backdrop for his string quartet, which revealed previously unimagined possibilities for quartet composition. Brahms's blockbuster piano quartet provides a spectacular finish to the program.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20 @ 8PM: Technical Brilliance

Mozart
Quartet in F major for Strings, K. 590, "Prussian"

Saint-Saëns
Sonata No. 1 in D minor for Violin and Piano, Op. 75

Dvo?ák
Sextet in A major for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Two Cellos, Op. 48

Wu Han, Piano; Paul Huang, Violin; Paul Neubauer, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Escher String Quartet: Adam Barnett-Hart, Violin; Danbi Um, Violin; Pierre Lapointe, Viola; Brook Speltz, Cello.

Technical Brilliance features three incomparable craftsmen and the performers who bring their works to life on stage. Mozart introduces the evening with his "Prussian" string quartet, a showcase for the cello; Saint-Saëns's Sonata adds fireworks for the violin, and closing out this program and CMS's 2019 residency at SPAC is Dvo?ák's glowing String Sextet.

TICKETS: Tickets available online at www.spac.org

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