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SPAC Announces 2018 Classical Season

Saratoga Performing Arts Center has announced its 2018 classical season.

Kicking off the season from June 6th to 8th, the National Ballet of Cuba will make their SPAC debut.

The New York City Ballet will hold residency from July 17th to 21st with four seperate programs. 

The Philadelphia Orchestra will return for a three-week residency from August 1st to 18th. For two weeks, the orchestra will be led by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin. A new Cinema Saturday's at SPAC program will feature iconic film scores.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will perform six programs from August 5th to 21st.

Tickets will go on sale Thursday, February 22nd at 10 a.m.

For more information visit: SPAC.org

NATIONAL BALLET OF CUBA: JUNE 6 - 8

June 6 @ 8PM – Giselle

Giselle                                                               (Adam/Alonso)   based on Coralli and Perrot

June 7 @ 2PM – Giselle

Giselle                                                               (Adam/Alonso)   based on Coralli and Perrot

June 8 @ 8PM – Giselle

Giselle                                                               (Adam/Alonso)   based on Coralli and Perrot

Director of the National Ballet of Cuba and one of the most important personalities in the history of dance, Alicia Alonso is the leading figure of classical ballet in the Ibero-American sphere. Alonso's deeply humanistic interpretation of Giselle is considered the epitome of the romantic ballet tradition. Taking a French masterpiece based on a German poem, once best known through Russian interpretations, Alonso’s spectacularly re-created Giselle now defines the classic work. 

Based on a fairy tale about a peasant girl who falls in love with a dashing prince disguised as a commoner, Giselle follows its heroine through a haunting story of betrayal, heartbreak, forgiveness and redemption. The title role of Giselle has been called “the ballerina’s Hamlet” and is regarded as one of the most difficult in ballet due to the intensely dramatic nature of the role as well as the physical stamina required to dance the lead throughout the full-length production.  

NEW YORK CITY BALLET: JULY 17 - 21

JULY 17 @ 8PM – All Balanchine

Square Dance                                                 (Vivaldi, Corelli/Balanchine)                       

The Four Temperaments                              (Hindemith/Balanchine)                

Symphony in C                                                (Bizet/Balanchine)

JULY 18 @ 8PM – All Balanchine

Square Dance                                                  (Vivaldi, Corelli/Balanchine)                       

The Four Temperaments                               (Hindemith/Balanchine)                

Symphony in C                                                (Bizet/Balanchine)

Known for his love of all things American, Balanchine joined the traditions of American folk dance with classical ballet in his work SQUARE DANCE.  Highlighting the dance forms’ common roots and similar regard for orderliness, the work is set to music from 17th-century Italian composers Antonio Vivaldi and Arcangelo Corelli.

Featuring a Balanchine-commissioned score by Paul Hindemith, THE FOUR TEMPERAMENTS is classically grounded but with definitively modern movement.  Performed at the first night of NYCB’s predecessor, Ballet Society, on November 20, 1946, The Four Temperaments had its NYCB premiere on October 25, 1948.  

Originally created for the Paris Opera Ballet, Balanchine’s SYMPHONY IN C sparkles with over 50 dancers in costumes covered in Swarovski elements featuring a spectacular finale with the full cast onstage. In 2012 Symphony in C returned to the NYCB repertory in a major revival with new costumes designed by Marc Happel, NYCB’s Director of Costumes, and lighting designed by Mark Stanley.

                                                  

JULY 19 @ 2PM – Romeo + Juliet

Romeo + Juliet                                                (Prokofiev/Martins)

In defiance of its tragic ending, Shakespeare’s ROMEO + JULIET remains the greatest romance of all time, demonstrating the power of love in its many forms. NYCB’s staging of this eternal classic, set to Prokofiev’s glorious accompaniment, features choreography by Peter Martins, sets and costumes by Danish artist Per Kirkeby, and lighting by Mark Stanley.

    

JULY 19 @ 8PM – SPAC Premieres: 21st Century Choreographers

New Peck (Spring 2018)                                (Bernstein/Peck)

Composer’s Holiday                                       (Foss/Reisen)

Not Our Fate                                                   (Nyman/Lovette)                                          

Pulcinella Variations                                     (Stravinsky/Peck)

GIANNA REISEN’S COMPOSER’S HOLIDAY premiered on NYCB’s stage at the Company’s 2017 Fall Gala making her – at age 18 – the youngest choreographer to create a piece for the Company’s storied repertory.  Reisen is a former student of the School of American Ballet and current apprentice with Dresden Semperoper Ballet, in Dresden Germany.

NYCB Principal Dancer LAUREN LOVETTE will showcase her most recent NYCB work NOT OUR FATE (Fall 2017 World Premiere) for its SPAC Premiere.  Her second creation for NYCB, the work features ten dancers and is set to three movements from composer Michael Nyman’s concert suite of music from his soundtrack for the Peter Greenaway film Prospero’s Brooks.

NYCB Resident Choreographer and Soloist JUSTIN PECK brings two works for their SPAC Premieres as part of the 21st Century Choreographers program.  Peck’s PULCINELLA VARIATIONS (Fall 2017 World Premiere) is set to music by Stravinsky with costumes by fashion designer Tsumori Chisato and lighting by Mark Stanley. His forthcoming work for NYCB, which will to premiere at the NYCB’s 2018 Spring Gala, is inspired by Jerome Robbins and set to a Bernstein score.

JULY 20 @ 8PM – Romeo + Juliet

Romeo + Juliet                                                (Prokofiev/Martins)

JULY 21 @ 2PM – Romeo + Juliet

Romeo + Juliet                                                (Prokofiev/Martins)

JULY 21 @ 8PM – GALA: Robbins/Bernstein Centennial

Four Seasons                                                   (Verdi/Robbins) 

New Peck (Spring 2018)                                (Bernstein/Peck)

Other Dances                                                  (Chopin/Robbins)

Something to Dance About                          (Bernstein, Bock, Gould, Rodgers, and Styne / Robbins, staged by Carlyle)

SPAC’s New York City Ballet Gala will honor the centennial celebration of the birth of both Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein.  The evening will feature two of Robbins’ own celebrated works, as well as Justin Peck’s Spring 2018 ballet, inspired by Robbins and set to a Bernstein score.  The centerpiece of the summer soirée will be the finale performance and SPAC Premiere of a new piece directed by Tony Award-winning choreographer and director Warren Carlyle, which will celebrate the Broadway choreography of Jerome Robbins and have its World Premiere at NYCB’s 2018 Spring Gala.

Set to Giuseppe Verdi’s vibrant melodies, Jerome Robbins’ 1979 work THE FOUR SEASONS, translates the seasons into frosty flirtation, springtime awakening, sultry revelry, and autumnal bacchanal.

Jerome Robbins was a great admirer of the Russian stars Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov, who each famously defected and made new careers in America. OTHER DANCES, a pas de deux created in 1976 for a New York Public Library for the Performing Arts benefit, was specifically crafted to display their legendary technique and artistry. Robbins chose four mazurkas and one waltz by Chopin, the composer whose piano music had inspired him for Dances at a Gathering. Other Dances, through its simplicity and virtuosity, pays homage to both Chopin’s Romanticism and the fluidity of classical ballet technique.

SPAC’s New York City Ballet Gala program will conclude with the SPAC Premiere of WARREN CARLYLE’s SOMETHING TO DANCE ABOUT, which pays tribute to the legendary Broadway career of NYCB’s co-founding choreographer Jerome Robbins.  The ballet, set to have its World Premiere at NYCB’s 2018 Spring Gala performance on Thursday, May 3, will feature 30 NYCB dancers in a showcase of music and choreography from landmark Broadway musicals that Robbins was closely associated with during his storied career.  Featuring excerpts of Robbins’ original choreography, with staging and direction by Carlyle, the ballet will be set to music and lyrics from iconic scores written during Broadway’s golden age by such artists as Leonard Bernstein, Jerry Bock, Betty Comden, Morton Gould, Adolph Green, Sheldon Harnick, Oscar Hammerstein II, Bob Merrill, Stephen Sondheim, Jule Styne, and Richard Rodgers.  In addition to Carlyle, the creative team for the ballet will be comprised of a number of award-winning Broadway veterans including Rob Berman (musical arrangements), Jonathan Tunick (orchestrations), Beowulf Boritt (scenery), Toni-Leslie James (scenery), and Mark Stanley (lighting).  Currently represented on Broadway with his choreography for the revival of Hello, Dolly!, Carlyle received 2014 Tony and Drama Desk awards for his choreography for the musical After Midnight, which he also directed.

     

THE PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA: AUGUST 1 – 18

 

NEW! Thursday Matinee Series:

AUGUST 2 @ 2PM: Symphonic Shakespeare

Stéphane Denève, conductor

Walton                                              Selections from As You Like It

Berlioz                                               Overture to Beatrice and Benedict

Tchaikovsky                                      Romeo and Juliet

Mendelssohn                                   Selections from A Midsummer Night’s Dream

As part of SPAC’s new Thursday Matinee series, Stéphane Denève will lead a “Symphonic Shakespeare” program of popular orchestral music set to Shakespeare’s most illustrious works. Pieces by Tchaikovsky, Walton, Berlioz, and Mendelssohn will underscore excerpts performed by guest actors of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays, such as Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and As You Like It.

AUGUST 9 @ 2PM: Young Virtuosi: Carnival of the Animals

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

Lucas and Arthur Jussen, duo pianos

Elgar                                                   Selections from The Wand of Youth

Saint-Saëns                                       Carnival of the Animals

Britten                                               The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra

CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS is a humorous musical suite of fourteen movements by the French Romantic composer Camille Saint-Saëns. Accompanied by accessible commentary, alongside projections of animal drawings submitted by local children, attendees are invited to follow each section of Saint-Saëns' classic piece while they listen. Young, virtuosic “Piano Brothers” Lucas and Arthur Jussen will perform alongside the Orchestra following their debut performance the previous evening.

AUGUST 16 @ 2PM: Captivating Classics

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

David Kim, violin

Choong-Jin Chang, viola

Rossini                                               Overture to William Tell

Mozart                                               Sinfonia concertante, K. 364, for violin, viola, and orchestra

Musorgsky                                        Pictures from an Exhibition

The final orchestra matinee of the season will feature DAVID KIM, concertmaster of The Philadelphia Orchestra, and CHOONG-JIN (C.J.) CHANG, principal viola of The Philadelphia Orchestra, for an evening of “Captivating Classics.” Kicking off the afternoon is the festive Overture to William Tell, irrevocably remembered for its exciting final three minutes, which came to serve as the theme music for the Lone Ranger programs in movies and on radio and television.

NEW! “Cinema Saturdays @ SPAC” Series:

AUGUST 4 @ 8PM: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone™ in Concert

Justin Freer, conductor

Williams                              Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone™ (complete with film)

The concert will feature The Philadelphia Orchestra performing, live to picture, every note from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone™, the first installment of the popular series. Audiences will be able to relive the magic of the film in high-definition projected on the big screen while hearing the live symphony orchestra perform John Williams’ complete score, which was nominated for a 2002 Academy Award for Best Original Score.

In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone™, based on J.K. Rowling’s novel, Harry Potter learns on his 11th birthday that he is the orphaned son of two wizards and possesses magical powers of his own. At Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he learns the high-flying sport of Quidditch and plays a thrilling “live” chess game en route to facing a Dark Wizard determined to destroy him.

AUGUST 11 @ 8PM: Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope in Concert

Constantine Kitsopolous, conductor

Williams                             Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope (complete with film)

Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope will be projected with The Philadelphia Orchestra performing live accompaniment of the iconic John Williams’ score. Since the release of the first Star Wars movie 40 years ago, the saga has had a seismic impact, inspiring audiences worldwide with its storytelling, characters, groundbreaking special effects and John Williams' iconic musical scores for all seven films. His score for 1977's A New Hope earned him an Academy Award for best original score. In Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope, Luke Skywalker begins a journey that will change the galaxy, as he leaves his home planet, battles the evil Empire, and learns the ways of the Force.

The evening will be led by conductor CONSTANTINE KITSOPOLOUS, who comfortably spans the worlds of opera and symphony, appearing in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, and Royal Albert Hall, and musical theater, leading orchestras on Broadway. Music director of the Queens Symphony Orchestra, he also continues as general director of Chatham Opera (which he founded in 2005), serves as music director of the Festival of the Arts BOCA (a multi-day cultural arts event in South Florida), and was appointed artistic director of Oklahoma’s OK Mozart Festival.

AUGUST 18 @ 8PM: The Red Violin with Joshua Bell

Michael Stern, conductor

Joshua Bell, violin

Corigliano                          The Red Violin (complete with film)

The season finale celebrates the 20th Anniversary of the film The Red Violin with JOSHUA BELL, the original artist on the movie’s soundtrack, performing John Corigliano’s score alongside The Philadelphia Orchestra.

The Academy Award-winning film The Red Violin follows the intricate history of a beautiful antique violin that is traced from its creation in Cremona, Italy, in 1681, where a legendary violin maker (Carlo Cecchi) paints it with his dead wife's blood to keep her memory alive, to an auction house in modern-day Montréal, where it draws the eye of an expert appraiser (Samuel L. Jackson). Over the intervening years, the violin travels through four different countries, where it has a profound impact on all those who own it.

The Philadelphia Orchestra Season:

AUGUST 1 @ 8PM: Festive Fireworks

Stéphane Denève, conductor

Dancers from American Ballet Theatre

Rachmaninoff                              Symphonic Dances

Connesson                                    Maslenitsa

Minkus                                           Pas de deux, from Don Quixote

Tchaikovsky                                  1812 Overture

Opening Night of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s August residency will continue the new tradition of featuring Tchaikovsky’s famed 1812 Overture, complete with fireworks, live cannon fire and dancers from American Ballet Theatre, as the kick-off to the 2018 orchestra season.

The evening will be led by Principal Guest Conductor STÉPHANE DENÈVE, who has conducted more programs than any other guest conductor during the period since making his Philadelphia Orchestra debut in 2007, in repertoire that has spanned more than 100 works, ranging from Classical through the contemporary, including presentations with dance, theater, film, and cirque performers. Mr. Denève is also chief conductor of the Brussels Philharmonic and director of its Centre for Future Orchestra Repertoire, and music director designate with the St. Louis Symphony. He recently received his third Diapason d’Or of the Year award with the Brussels Philharmonic for the Deutsche Grammophon release Pour sortir au jour, was shortlisted in 2012 for Gramophone’s Artist of the Year award, and won the prize for symphonic music at the 2013 International Classical Music Awards.

AUGUST 3 @ 8PM: The Planets -- An HD Odyssey

Kensho Watanabe, conductor

Theofanidis                       Rainbow Body

Sibelius                               Night Ride and Sunrise

Holst                                   The Planets (including images from NASA)

Film by Duncan Copp

Commissioned by the Houston Symphony

In Cooperation with NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratories

In this unprecedented multimedia event, The Philadelphia Orchestra will perform The Planets from the HD Odyssey film series, featuring images of NASA’s exploration of the solar system brought to life in vivid form with the orchestra’s performance of Holst’s exciting, cosmic score.

The Planets is a seven-movement orchestral suite by the English composer Gustav Holst, written between 1914 and 1916. Each movement of the suite is named after a planet of the Solar System and its corresponding astrological character as defined by Holst.  

The program has received international acclaim by publications such as The New York Times, stating, “The images in the movie, produced and ­directed by Duncan Copp, were often ­astonishing. ­Photographs from rovers and satellites, radar images and ­computer-generated ­graphics were combined to give the audience the impression of circling individual planets and sometimes ­flying over their awesomely barren landscapes...There is, of course, a ­film-score-like quality to the music, and combining it with imagery has been done ­before, though not to my mind with such sophistication.” 

AUGUST 8 @ 8PM: Mozart & Mahler

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

Lucas and Arthur Jussen, duo pianos

Janai Brugger, soprano

Mozart                                Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365

Mahler                                Symphony No. 4

Internationally recognized Dutch piano duo LUCAS AND ARTHUR JUSSEN will perform at SPAC and with The Philadelphia Orchestra for the first time. Already a sensation from New York to Shanghai, the brothers are in their early twenties and are known for their ability to perform virtuosic repertoire with panache. Lucas and Arthur Jussen’s debut album on Deutsche Grammophon, featuring compositions of Beethoven, won the "Edison Klassiek Publieksprijs Audience Award."

Montréal-native YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN, “the greatest generator of energy on the international podium,” according to The Financial Times, will lead The Philadelphia Orchestra in Saratoga for two weeks, his longest SPAC residency to date. Named Musical America’s 2016 “Artist of the Year,” Yannick renewed his contract with the Orchestra in 2016, committing to lead the ensemble at least through the 2025-26 season, an extraordinary and significant long-term commitment. Additionally, he is the Music Director Designate of The Metropolitan Opera and in 2020, will become the third music director in the storied company’s history. 

Soprano JANAI BRUGGER, the 2016 winner of the Marian Anderson Vocal Award, and one of Opera News’ top 25 “brilliant young artists” will perform in Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with The Philadelphia Orchestra.  

AUGUST 10 @ 8PM: All Bernstein: Celebrating 100 Years

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

Jennifer Koh, violin

Guest singers from the Broadway stage

Bernstein                           Symphonic Suite from On the Waterfront

Bernstein                           Serenade (after Plato’s Symposium) for Solo Violin, Strings, Harp, and Percussion

Bernstein                           Scenes from West Side Story

Bernstein                           Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin pay homage to the birth centennial of the composer-conductor with an ALL-BERNSTEIN program featuring an orchestral suite from his only film score, On the Waterfront; the Serenade featuring violinist JENNIFER KOH; and scenes from West Side Story. Making her SPAC debut, Jennifer Koh, Musical America’s 2016 Instrumentalist of the Year, is recognized for her intense, commanding performances. Collaborating with artists of multiple disciplines, she has premiered more than 60 works written especially for her.

AUGUST 15 @ 8PM: The Orchestra Unleashed!

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor           

Serhiy Salov, piano

Strauss                                               Don Juan

Rachmaninoff                                  Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, for piano and orchestra

Bartók                                                Concerto for Orchestra

Born into the exceptional pianistic tradition of the Ukraine, SERHIY SALOV is recognized as an outstanding pianist, whose playing is both energetic and imbued with sensitivity. Salov, who will be making his SPAC and Philadelphia Orchestra debuts, is Artist-in-Residence at the Orchestre Métropolitain.

AUGUST 17 @ 8PM: Joshua Bell with The Philadelphia Orchestra

Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

Joshua Bell, violin

Dvo?ák                                               Otello Overture

Bruch                                                 Violin Concerto No. 1

Tchaikovsky                                      Symphony No. 6 (“Pathétique”)

Returning to SPAC for two encore performances is celebrated violinist JOSHUA BELL. With a career spanning more than 30 years as a soloist, chamber musician, recording artist and conductor, he will perform two closing evenings including an August 17 program highlighted by Bruch’s ravishing Violin Concerto No. 1.

THE CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER: AUGUST 5 - 21

AUGUST 5 @ 3PM: In the Old Style

Schnittke             Suite in Old Style for Violin and Piano

Shostakovich      Quintet in G minor for Piano, Two Violins, Viola, and Cello, Op. 57

Beethoven          Quartet in C-sharp minor for Strings, Op. 131

Gilles Vonsattel, Piano; Nicolas Dautricourt, Violin;

Schumann Quartet: Erik Schumann, Violin; Ken Schumann, Violin; Liisa Randalu, Viola; Mark Schumann, Cello

In this program, CMS presents three works written by composers at times when they were examining and transforming their own unique styles -- sometimes inspired from the old, sometimes searching for the new, but always in an effort to share their own voice.

AUGUST 7 @ 8PM: Summer Warmth

Haydn                   Trio in A major for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Hob. XV:18

Dvorák                 Quartet in E-flat major for Strings, Op. 51

Schubert              Quintet in A major for Piano, Violin, Viola, Cello, and Bass, D. 667, Op. 114

Gilles Vonsattel, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Nicolas Dautricourt, Violin; Joseph Conyers, Double Bass

Schumann Quartet: Erik Schumann, Violin; Ken Schumann, Violin; Liisa Randalu, Viola; Mark Schumann, Cello

CMS’s Summer Warmth program is highlighted by Haydn’s serene Trio in A major and Dvo?ák’s bohemian inspired Op. 51 String Quartet. Closing the evening is Schubert’s beloved “Trout” quintet, a masterpiece composed for friends, based on a song about a fish.

AUGUST 12 @ 3PM: An Afternoon in Vienna

Haydn                   Trio in E-flat major for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Hob. XV:29

Schubert              Fantasie in F minor for Piano, Four Hands, D. 940, Op. 103

Kreisler                 Viennese Rhapsodic Fantasietta for Violin and Piano

Schubert              Octet in F major for Winds and Strings, D. 803, Op. 166

Gilbert Kalish, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Alexander Sitkovetsky, Violin; Arnaud Sussmann, Violin; Yura Lee, Violin/Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Clive Greensmith, Cello; Joseph Conyers, Double Bass; Ricardo Morales, Clarinet; Daniel Matsukawa, Bassoon; Jennifer Montone, Horn

Viennese composers Franz Schubert and Fritz Kreisler are showcased in this program with their hometown-inspired masterpieces, while Austrian-born Joseph Haydn contributes a trio full of character and impeccable technique.  

AUGUST 14 @ 8PM: An Evening in Prague

Dvorák                 Terzetto in C major for Two Violins and Viola, Op. 74

Janá?ek                Presto for Cello and Piano

Suk                       Quartet in A minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 1

Dvorák                 Trio in F minor for Piano, Violin, and Cello, Op. 65

Gilbert Kalish, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Alexander Sitkovetsky, Violin; Arnaud Sussmann, Violin; Yura Lee, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Clive Greensmith, Cello

Nationalist composer Dvo?ák rose to fame in Prague, paving the way for his student and later son-in-law Josef Suk, as well as the highly original Leoš Janá?ek, who dedicated a number of his works to Dvo?ák.  This program will transport the listener to those cobbled streets of the old town and back to an era when music served as the voice of the Czech people.

AUGUST 19 @ 3PM: Timeless Masterworks

Mozart                 Trio in E-flat major for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, K. 498, “Kegelstatt”

Lobos                   Assobio A Játo (The Jet Whistle) for Flute and Cello

Mackley               Micro-Concerto for Solo Percussion, Flute, Clarinet, Violin, Cello, and Piano

Schumann           Quartet in E-flat major for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 47

Alessio Bax, Piano; Sean Lee, Violin; Matthew Lipman, Viola; Mihai Marica, Cello; Tara Helen O’Connor, Flute; Romie De Guise-Langlois, Clarinet; Ayano Kataoka, Percussion

This program features timeless pieces ranging from Mozart’s day, when the clarinet was just becoming a solo instrument, to the late 20th century, when works such as this program’s effervescent Micro-concerto by Steve Mackey offer an astounding variety of percussion instruments.

AUGUST 21 @ 8PM: The Composer’s World

Debussy                              Sonata for Cello and Piano (1915)  

Stravinsky                          Petrushka for Piano, Four Hands

Brahms                               Quartet No. 1 in G minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 25

Alessio Bax, Piano; Lucille Chung, Piano; Wu Han, Piano; Sean Lee, Violin; Matthew Lipman, Viola; David Finckel, Cello; Mihai Marica, Cello

The Composer’s World on August 21, invites audiences to experience Debussy’s fanciful cello sonata, Stravinsky’s exotic imagination through his milestone ballet about a puppet, and Brahms’s ceaseless internal struggle for musical perfection through his intensely emotional Piano Quartet No. 1.

Lucas Willard is a news reporter and host at WAMC Northeast Public Radio, which he joined in 2011. He produces and hosts The Best of Our Knowledge and WAMC Listening Party.