Get ready for the Staunton music festival August 14th through the 21st.
Concert highlights include:
Dancing with the Devil – Sunday, Aug. 14
Enjoy an evening of devilish music at the Blackfriars Playhouse featuring music by Mozart, Saint-Saens, Wadsworth, Gesualdo and culminating with a staged version of Stravinsky’s “A Soldier’s Tale” from the Starr Foster modern dance company.
Early Keyboard Extravaganza – Tuesday, Aug. 16
Featuring a performance collection of early keyboards, the concert includes four harpsichords, two fortepianos and two organs in repertoire from the Renaissance to the 20th century. Program includes concertos by JS Bach, Mozart and Mendelssohn, and works by CPE Bach, Böhm and Takemitsu.
Ludwig Van – Wednesday, Aug. 17
Concert celebrates the familiar and unfamiliar works of Beethoven featuring “Pastoral” Symphony No. 6 and a “Knight’s Ballet” with dancers from Staunton Academy of Ballet, plus works by Saint-Saens and a world premiere work for percussion ensemble inspired by the Viennese master.
Baroque Inside/Out – Friday, Aug. 19
An audience favorite, this concert features four of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos on period instruments. The program also includes arias and choruses by Bach, as well as musical surprises outside during intermission.
Titans and Trifles – Saturday, Aug. 20
Enjoy the best of music large and small. The first half features assorted miniature gems by Bach, Satie, Rachmaninoff, Webern and others, while the second half presents a chamber arrangement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 1, subtitled “Titan.”
Bach Mass in B Minor – Sunday, Aug. 21
World-class vocalists and chamber orchestra performing on period instruments present one of the towering works in music history. Bach’s incredible Mass in B Minor has been admired and beloved since its completion in 1749, just a year before Bach died.
This year, the festival welcomes a dozen new musicians joining almost 50 performers returning from last season. Among the roster of performers are Heini Kärkkäinen (pianist), Aisslinn Nosky (violin), Minna Pensola (violin), Nina Stern (recorder, clarinet), Andrew Willis (fortepiano), Igor Begelman (clarinet), Kris Kwapis (trumpet), Sara Couden (contralto) and Vladimir Mendelssohn (viola and composer). In addition, SMF’s composer in residence program underscores the festival’s commitment to living composers, such as Stefan Heucke of Germany and Richmond-native Zachary Wadsworth.
IF YOU GO!
What Staunton Music Festival
When and where Aug. 12-21. Evening performances include a pre-concert talk at 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 12
Noon Île de France, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Leclair, Debussy, and Poulenc (free)
7:30 p.m. Royal Handel Extravaganza: from Fireworks to Fretworks, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Handel, special guests Hound Dog Hill (tickets required)
Saturday, Aug. 13
Noon Classically Romantic, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Brahms and Nielsen (free)
7:30 p.m. City of Lights, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Fauré, Stravinsky, Rameau, Antheil, Perotin and others (tickets required)
Sunday, Aug. 14
10 a.m. Trinity morning service, Trinity Episcopal Church (free and open to the public)
3:30 p.m. Concert for Young People, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Zachary Wadsworth (free)
7:30 p.m. Dancing with the Devil, Blackfriars Playhouse – music by Mozart, Stravinsky, Gesualdo and others (tickets required)
Monday, Aug. 15
Noon New York-Moscova, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Porter, Ives and others (free)
3 p.m. Composer’s Forum: Stefan Heucke, Central United Methodist Church (free)
7:30 p.m. Neocons and Free Radicals, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Haydn, Cage, Britten, Palestrina and others (tickets required)
Tuesday, Aug. 16
Noon Neo-Baroque, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Mustonen, Bach and others (free)
7:30 p.m. Early Keyboard Extravaganza, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Bach, Mozart, Böhm, Takemitsu and others (tickets required)
Wednesday, Aug. 17
Noon Mendelssohn’s Magic, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Mendelssohn (free)
3 p.m. Meet the SMF Historic Winds, Central United Methodist Church (free)
7:30 p.m. Ludwig Van, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Beethoven, Saint-Saëns, Guinivan (tickets required)
Thursday, Aug. 18
Noon Serenades at noon, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Brahms, Wadsworth, Heucke (free)
7:30 p.m. Poetry in Motion, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Debussy, Britten, Wolf, Jeths and others (tickets required)
Friday, Aug. 19
Noon Bach at noon, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by J.S and J.C Bach (free)
7:30 p.m. Baroque Inside/Out: Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, Trinity Episcopal Church – Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos and more (tickets required)
Saturday, Aug. 20
Noon Summer Music, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Crumb and Dohnányi (free)
7:30 p.m. Titans and Trifles, Trinity Episcopal Church – music by Mahler, Boulez, Bach, Satie and others (tickets required)
Sunday, Aug. 21
1 p.m. Bach brunch and lecture, Trinity Episcopal Church – extended discussion of the B-minor Mass featuring Jon Gibson of James Madison University (Tickets are $20/person; limited to 50 people. To make reservations, contact Jason Stell at (540) 569-0267.)
3:30 p.m. Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Trinity Episcopal Church – complete performance on period instruments (tickets required)
Cost Season passes and evening performance tickets are available by phone or online. All other concerts, lectures and workshops are free and open to the public. All ages are welcome. Youth aged 18 years old and younger are free to all concerts, except evening concert on Aug. 14.
More info (540) 569-0267 or www.stauntonmusicfestival.org
Source: http://www.newsleader.com/story/entertainment/2016/08/08/staunton-music-festival-brings-world-class-music/88386746/
