Musicians of Ma'alwyck presents its first live concert season since 2020, continuing with our concert on June 11 at Blessed Sacrament Church in Albany: Metamorphosis, featuring the music of Strauss, Mozart, Reicha, and Schulhoff.

This concert features guest artists Henry Peyrebrune of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra on bass, Katrina Smith of the Dallas and Glimmerglass Opera Orchestras on viola, and Andrea Blanchard Cone of the Buffalo Philharmonic on violin. These guest artists will be joined by the core Musicians of Ma’alwyck personnel and will perform works of Mozart, Reicha, Schulhoff, and Strauss. The centerpiece of the program is Strauss’s Metamorphosen.

Guest artists Henry Peyrebrune and Andrea Blanchard Cone both grew up locally and honed their musicianship through the Bethlehem Public School music programs. Henry was a member of the Empire State Youth Orchestra (in its inaugural year) and the Albany Symphony; Andrea performed as violin soloist with the Albany Symphony as a winner of the Vanguard Concerto Competition. Also on the roster are core Musicians of Ma’alwyck members Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz, violin; Norman Thibodeau, flute and Andre Laurent O’Neil, violoncello.

This concert features pieces that appeal to a variety of classical music fans. Melodies from Mozart’s opera Marriage of Figaro were popular hits of their time. In 1805 Anton Reicha wrote a stunning set of variations and a fantasie based on the aria Se Vuol Ballare, Signor Contino for flute, violin and cello. Musicians of Ma’alwyck pairs this with the 1925 Concertino for flute, viola and bass of Erwin Schulhoff. This Prague born, German-Jewish composer was championed by Dvorak, and studied with Debussy and Reger. His music is strongly jazz-influenced. The final work on the program is the virtuosic chamber arrangement of Richard Strauss’s 1945 masterpiece Metamorphosen. Written during the final months of WWII, and a piece of transcendent beauty and pathos, the work in a single continuous movement, alternates between optimism and sadness. Quoting the funeral march from Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony and spinning out glorious musical themes, Strauss prints at the end of the score IN MEMORIAM!

Metamorphosis will take place Sunday, June 11 at 3:00 pm at Blessed Sacrament Church in Albany, located at 607 Central Ave, Albany, NY 12206. This concert is dedicated to the memory of Henry and Sally Peyrebrune, who were long-time supporters and fans of Musicians of Ma'alwyck.

Ticket prices are $35 for general admission, and $10 for students. To purchase tickets, visit https://musiciansofmaalwyck.org/home.

For questions, contact: Laura Doe, Musicians of Ma’alwyck’s Business and Grants Manager – (518) 512-9479 or laura@musiciansofmaalwyck.org

ABOUT THE MUSICIANS OF MA’ALWYCK
Musicians of Ma’alwyck are a flexible-sized classical chamber music ensemble. The mission of Musicians of Ma’alwyck is to share history through music. Founded in 1999 by violinist and director Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz, the purpose of Musicians of Ma’alwyck is to cultivate and promote an understanding and appreciation for American, particularly New York State, life in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries through the performance of chamber ensemble music at historic sites and concert venues in collaboration with other artistic organizations. Based in the Capital Region but performing throughout New York State, the ensemble serves a diverse audience of music lovers, history enthusiasts, and supporters of the arts. Core musicians include Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz, director and violin; Norman Thibodeau, flute; Sten Isachsen, guitar; André Laurent O’Neil, cello. The group frequently works with guest artists of national stature.

Musicians of Ma’alwyck produce several concerts and online programs each year, combining archival research, historic sites in New York State, and classical music. They have been in residence at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany for over twenty years, and are currently holding residencies at SUNY-Schenectady and Hyde Hall, a historic house museum in Cooperstown, NY. The ensemble released its first commercial CD in 2016, Music in the Schuyler Mansion, which the Times Union called “elegant and charming,” and their second in 2021, Hyde Hall & the Silver Goddess: Operatic Brilliance of Auber, Bellini, Meyerbeer, and Rossini from the Drawing Room.