Be the first to discover the finest rising-star classical musicians of their generation. Astral's newest artists debut at the Winners Concert, in a showcase of masterful artistry.

Featuring:
ARKAI, string duo
Amer Hasan, clarinet
Hilda Huang, piano
Helen Zhibing Huang, soprano
Valentin Kovalev, saxophone
Julian Rhee, violin
Hao Yang, guitar

Join us for this special outdoor concert on September 25th to take in the sounds of Quinteto Latino. The concert begins at 6:00pm at Seminary Oaks Park in Menlo Park. For those planning to attend, please be sure to bring your own chair or blanket for seating. 

Performers: Diane Grubbe, flute; Kyle Bruckmann, oboe; Leslie Tagorda, clarinet; Shawn Jones, bassoon; Armando Castellano, horn.

PROGRAM

Nkeiru Okoye Movements for String Quartet
Chen Yi Shuo for String Quintet
Francis Poulenc Trio for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano
Adolphus Hailstork "Detroit" Piano Quintet

FEATURING

Ashley Horne, Violin
Claire Chan, Violin
William Frampton, Viola
Wayne Smith, Cello
Anthony Morris, Double Bass
Hassan Anderson, Oboe
Alexander Davis, Bassoon
Lydia Brown, Piano
David Berry, Piano

*Editors note: this concert program will also take place on Friday September 24, 2021. See link below for info and tickets to either event.

PROGRAM

Franz LISZT, arr. Müller-Berghaus Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2

Michael TORKE SKY (Concerto for Violin)*
I. Lively;
II. Wistful;
III. Spirited
Tessa Lark, violin

William DAWSON Negro Folk Symphony
I.The Bond of Africa;
II. Hope in the Night;
III. O, Le’ Me Shine, Shine Like a Morning Star!

CONDUCTOR
Mei-Ann Chen

GUEST ARTIST
Tessa Lark, violin

*Chicago Premiere

On SKY: “The balance between the worlds of classical and vernacular music is masterly: one can bet that this work will soon be imposed as a classic of literature for violin and orchestra.” — Filippo Focosi, Kathodik

Chicago Sinfonietta’s 34th season begins with a dynamic concert drawing on the deep connections of community through works grounded in folk music. The rhythmic spontaneity and seductive expression of Franz Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 opens the concert, followed by violinist Tessa Lark’s compelling energy in Michael Torke’s SKY, a fusion inspired by Irish reel and American bluegrass. The evening closes with American composer William Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony, a Chicago Sinfonietta signature piece informed by traditional spirituals.

September 18, 2021 at 8:00 pm | Wentz Concert Hall
September 20, 2021 at 7:30 pm | Symphony Center

Approximately 70 mins, no intermission

PROGRAM

Franz LISZT, arr. Müller-Berghaus Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2

Michael TORKE SKY (Concerto for Violin)*
I. Lively;
II. Wistful;
III. Spirited
Tessa Lark, violin

William DAWSON Negro Folk Symphony
I.The Bond of Africa;
II. Hope in the Night;
III. O, Le’ Me Shine, Shine Like a Morning Star!

CONDUCTOR
Mei-Ann Chen

GUEST ARTIST
Tessa Lark, violin

*Chicago Premiere

On SKY: “The balance between the worlds of classical and vernacular music is masterly: one can bet that this work will soon be imposed as a classic of literature for violin and orchestra.” — Filippo Focosi, Kathodik

Chicago Sinfonietta’s 34th season begins with a dynamic concert drawing on the deep connections of community through works grounded in folk music. The rhythmic spontaneity and seductive expression of Franz Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 opens the concert, followed by violinist Tessa Lark’s compelling energy in Michael Torke’s SKY, a fusion inspired by Irish reel and American bluegrass. The evening closes with American composer William Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony, a Chicago Sinfonietta signature piece informed by traditional spirituals.

September 18, 2021 at 8:00 pm | Wentz Concert Hall
September 20, 2021 at 7:30 pm | Symphony Center

Approximately 70 mins, no intermission

Aakash Mittal’s Nocturne suite offers listeners a reimagining of the night. The music places the density and sonic collisions of urban India alongside the meditations of a world at rest, night terrors conjured by the imagination, and the slow cadence of blue light melting into darkness. The second half of the program will feature Mittal’s new works for voice that explore dreams as a non linear space where memory, experience and premonition meet.

ARTISTS
Aakash Mittal | Alto Saxophone
Rajna Swaminathan | Mridangam
Miles Okazaki | Guitar
Jasmine Wilson | Voice
Shurmila Dhar | Voice
Eddy Kwon | Violin
Trevor New | Viola
Stephan Crump | Bass

Benjamin Baker, violin
Brian Hong, violin and co-artistic director
Jordan Bak, viola
Alexander Hersh, cello and co-artistic director
Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson, flute
Kristina Bachrach, soprano

Augusta Read Thomas, composer and emcee

Program

Upon Wings of Words

Amy Beach: Theme and Variations for flute and string quartet
Augusta Read Thomas: Upon Wings of Words (Emily Dickinson Settings) for soprano and string quartet
—World Premiere
Alma Mahler: Five Lieder (1910) for soprano and string quartet (arr. Cliff Colnot)

Program

Sounds of Dance

Coleridge-Taylor: Danse nègre from African Suite
J. Strauss Jr.: The Blue Danube Waltz
Chopin: Grande valse brillante (arr. Stravinsky)
Price: Dances in the Canebrakes (arr. Still)
Smetana: The Moldau from My Fatherland
Dvořák: Slavonic Dance No. 8
Arturo Márquez: Conga del Fuego Nuevo

Imani Winds
Brandon Patrick George, flute
Toyin Spellman-Diaz, oboe
Mark Dover, clarinet
Kevin Newton, horn
Monica Ellis, bassoon

VALERIE COLEMAN (b. 1970)
Umoja

RUTH CRAWFORD SEEGER (1901-1953)
Suite for Wind Quintet
Allegretto
Lento rubato
Allegro possibile

REENA ESMAIL (b. 1983)
The Light is the Same
(commissioned by the Lied Center at the University of Kansas; premiered March 15, 2017)

VALERIE COLEMAN (b. 1970)
Afro-Cuban Concerto
Afro
Vocalise
Danza

This concert is being broadcast and streamed live on 98.7WFMT/wfmt.com.

The Festival welcomes the young artist hailed for his “prodigious talent and scintillating personality.” Flutist Anthony Trionfo plays the rarely heard Flute Concerto by Saverio Mercadante. Also on the program, Carlos Kalmar conducts Debussy's haunting classic Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun and Saint-Saëns's Second Symphony.

Claude Debussy: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
Saverio Mercadante: Flute Concerto
Camille Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 2

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor
Anthony McGill, clarinet

Haydn: Symphony No. 60 (“Il distratto”)

Copland: Clarinet Concerto

Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Haydn

A joyous concert to come together after a challenging year to celebrate the season and our talented musicians. Featuring soloist Rafael Galvan-Herrera, and a brilliant composition by student-composer Kailyn Williams.

Please join us for our first in-person concert of the 2020-21 Season! With Special Guests: The Quintessentials & Furioso String Quartet. Compositions by Astor Piazzola, Antonio Vivaldi, Carlos Simon, Kailyn Williams, Luigi Boccherini, and more.

Date and Time:
Wed, Jun 2, 2021, 7:00 PM ET
Location:
The Woodland
60 Woodland Road 
Maplewood, NJ 07040