Program

String Quartet No. 7 (Shostakovich)

String Quartet in F Major (Ravel)

The 2017 Festival Opening Night Gala kicks off this year’s exploration of the theme "Measuring Time" with music celebrating the 250th anniversary of Telemann, Ludwig van Beethoven’s relationship with the metronome, and Clockwork by this year’s Composer-in-Residence Sebastian Currier. The Gala will come to a thrilling end with 2017 Festival Ensemble-in-Residence, the Verona Quartet, joined by Melinda Lee Masur on piano in a musical journey through the history of time-keeping in Clocks by Miguel del Aguila. 

Curated Gala Reception to follow the concert.

PROGRAM

Telemann Sinfonia in D major for String Orchestra, TWV 44:1
Beethoven Romance No. 2 in F Major, Op. 50
Currier Clockwork (1989) 
Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 22 in F Major, Op. 54
del Águila Clocks, Op. 58 for Piano and String Quartet (1998) (New York Premiere)

From the CMF Website:

Ludwig van Beethoven’s impact on all of our lives, regardless of background, is tremendous. From descriptors such as “revolutionary,” “romantic” or “madman,” his life and music continue to fascinate, puzzle and mesmerize those who encounter it. This evening, from 6pm until midnight, experience a multi-faceted exploration on Beethoven.  Through music, food, visual art and talks, we focus on his obsession with the metronome and mission to understand the pulse of time.

6:00pm— Dinner
6:30pm— Festival Talks I | Beethoven’s Impact on Keeping Time
7:30pm— Performance | What’s the Tempo, Ludwig! 
10:00pm— Late Night | Beethoven’s Groove— Late Night Jazz with Helen Sung

Held on the beautiful grounds of the General Theological Seminary, this evening’s concert features works that explore the communicative spectrum of four protagonists in dialogue with one another and their surrounding. The program features a string quartet by 2017 Festival Composer-in-Residence Sebastian Currier performed by the Verona Quartet, Telemann’s striking concerto for four violins and orchestra and concludes with four violin virtuosos from this year’s Festival leading audiences through the annual passage of time through Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

PROGRAM

Telemann Concerto for 4 Violins in A Major, TWV 54:A1
Currier Quiet Time (2004)
Vivaldi  Four Seasons

The Festival’s annual Carte Blanche event allows the 2017 Ensemble-in-Residence full artistic freedom in creating a program that highlights its reflection on the Festival theme, “Measuring Time.”

At the center of the program is the World Premiere performance of a string quartet from Etudes & Lullabies by Composer-in-Residence Sebastian Currier, commissioned by the Chelsea Music Festival as part of a world-wide, multi-year commissioning project. The string quartets of Maurice Ravel and Ludwig van Beethoven that flank the premiere, are milestones in the string quartet repertoire composed at opposite ends of the 19th century.

A curated reception will follow the performance.

6:30— Festival Talks III | Lecture by Michael Shadlen, MD, PhD, Professor of NeuroScience, Columbia University

7:30— Musical Performance

Beethoven String Quartet Op. 18 No. 4
Shostakovich String Quartet No. 7
Mozart Viola Quintet K515 in C major

Roeland Jagers, guest violist

Verona Quartet performs Franck Piano Quintet with Chih-Yi Chen

Ravel String Quartet

Sebastian Currier Etude: Interaction and Lullaby: Pulsing

Chausson Concerto for Violin, Piano and String Quartet with Sarah Kapustin, violin and Jeannette Koekkoek, piano

Beethoven String Quartet Op. 131 in C sharp minor

Brahms Sextet with Atar Arad, viola and Amir Eldan, cello

Repertoire TBA

Performers: Joseph Lin, violin; the Verona Quartet and Bradley Brookshire, harpsichord

Joseph Lin, first violinist for the Juilliard String Quartet, joins the Verona Quartet, winner of the 2015 Concert Artists Guild Competition, and harpsichordist Bradley Brookshire to perform Vivaldi’s beloved Four Seasons and Piazzolla’s tango-inspired version.