Midwinter Night's Theme

Okay, my fingers have thawed out enough to type a bit here.

2018 will start with a bang! January's schedule promises to create its own body heat with SEVEN different programs. Just over the horizon lay the Chamber Classics concert, a gathering of lively friends which will take place Sunday, January 7 at 2:30 at the beautiful Powell Recital Hall on the UT campus. The Principal Woodwind Quintet will begin with Samuel Barber's hearty Summer Music, Barber's only chamber work for winds. Principal flutist Hannah Hammel will then join the Principal String Quartet for music of Arthur Foote; his Scherzo and Night Piece from 1923. Foote was a member of the “Second New England School,” a Boston-centric squad of composers which included Amy Beach and Edward MacDowell, and his music is strongly reminiscent of Puccini and Debussy.

The closing work will be Beethoven's op. 20 Septet in E-flat. A septet is a rarely found array of forces, and instrumentation is not standardized. Only Ludwig Spohr, Saint-Saens and Stravinsky have attempted that combo with any success (and I use the term “success” loosely). Beethoven's band is clarinet, horn, bassoon, bass, and string quartet. He somehow managed to find the time between composing his first SIX quartets (op. 18) and his First Symphony (op. 21) to squeeze out this gem. Its six short movements identify it as a Serenade, reminiscent of his own op. 8 string trio and of many such works by Mozart. Tickets here.

The chamber music will continue to shine on Wednesday and Thursday nights, January 10 and 11 with the Concertmaster and Friends at the KMA. These 7:00 p.m. shows will feature music by Kendall Briggs, Mozart and J.S. Bach in a program of duets, with Katy Gawne, viola and Gordon Tsai and Zofia Glashauser, violins. Tickets here or $25 general admission at the door.

Wow, that's just the first 11 days of the year. We aim to start your year off right, and the hits just keep coming. HAPPY NEW YEAR, Y'ALL!