4444 Arlington Blvd
Arlington, VA 22204
USA
The National Chamber Ensemble continues its eleventh season with Romantic Violin For Two – a repertoire of romantic works for Valentine’s Day – on Saturday, February 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington.
General admission tickets are $36 for adults and $18 for students, plus applicable service charges. Tickets are available online at www.nationalchamberensemble.org. Group discounts for 10 or more are available by calling (703) 685-7590. For more information, call (703) 685-7590 or visit www.nationalchamberensemble.org. All concerts are followed by a reception with the artists.
One violin virtuoso is great, but two are even better! Enjoy some of the most romantic music for a unique duo of two violins and piano. Artistic director/violinist Leo Sushansky and violinist and professor of violin James Stern are joined by dynamic pianist Kathryn Brake for a program of works by Mozart, Moszkowski, Paganini, Massenet and Kreisler.
The evening’s program includes Mozart’s sparkling “Concertante For Two Violins,” Moszkowski’s brilliant “Suite for Two Violins and Piano in G Minor,” and Fritz Kreisler’s charming Viennese favorites “Liebesleid (Love’s Sorrow)” and “Liebesfreud (Love’s Joy).” Also on the program are two of the most beautiful violin works ever: “Cantabile in D Major” by Niccolo Paganini and the Massenet ethereal “Meditation” from Thais.
Mozart’s “Concertante for Two Violins” opens the performance. Ferdinand David has taken “Sonata for Two Pianos K.448,” which Mozart authority Alfred Einstein (cousin of Albert) called one of the most profound of Mozart’s compositions, and arranged the piece for two violins and a piano. This particular work is often referred to during discussions of the Mozart Effect (the theory that listening to classical music improves brain function). The piece is followed by the short, lush works ofMassenet, Paganini, and Kreisler to conclude the first half of the program.
The second half includes Moritz Moszkowski’s “Suite in G Minor.” Moszkowski enjoyed a considerable international reputation as a composer and pianist, and was feted as the natural successor to Chopin. It is a mark of his success that his music was arranged for countless ensembles and solo instruments. His “Suite in G Minor” is a collection of four contrasted movements written for all three instruments: the violins soar and trade phrases above a piano accompaniment. Moszkowski’s Suite – almost unknown to the general concert-going public today – provides an exciting discovery for those who attend this concert.
National Chamber Ensemble’s internationally acclaimed musicians have redefined the meaning of chamber music by incorporating tango, spirituals, jazz, klezmer, opera, ballet, modern dance, and multimedia into programs with traditional classical masterpieces. The Ensemble has also hosted premiere works by top contemporary classical composers such as Lowell Liebermann, Gary William Friedman, Dick Hyman, and Alexander Goldstein.
The remainder of the 2017-18 NCE season includes Strings Fever – Brahms and Mendelssohn on March 24 (at Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington) and Today’s Classical and Jazz Masters on May 19 (at the Gunston Arts Center).
Where:
Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington
4444 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, VA
Parking: Free on-site, Entrance from Arlington Blvd or George Mason Dr.
