Spoleto Festival USA Announces 2014
Bank of America Chamber Music Series Programs
33 concerts of 11 programs performed twice daily in Charleston’s historic Dock Street Theatre throughout the Festival, May 23–June 8
Series features the world premiere of Stephen Prutsman’s Color Preludes for Piano Quintet to be performed by Prutsman and the St. Lawrence String Quartet, June 4 and 5
MARCH 26, 2014 (CHARLESTON, SC)—Geoff Nuttall, now in his fifth year as Spoleto Festival USA’s Charles E. and Andrea L. Volpe Director for Chamber Music, today announced details of the Bank of America Chamber Music series comprising 11 programs, each performed three times at the Dock Street Theatre in Charleston, South Carolina from Friday, May 23 through Sunday, June 8.
This year’s series includes the world premiere of Color Preludes for String Quintet by pianist/composer/conductor Stephen Prutsman, who has been a regular performer at the chamber series for the past 19 years. This work will be performed by Mr. Prutsman and the St. Lawrence String Quartet on Wednesday, June 4 at 1:00pm and Thursday, June 5 at 11:00am and 1:00pm.
Swedish mezzo-soprano Charlotte Hellekant will appear in four programs this season, with performances of baroque opera arias as well as romantic and 20th-century songs. An instrument not always included in Spoleto’s chamber series, the voice allows for great expression, a skill Hellekant has perfected; she is often praised for her strong stage presence and acting ability.
Programs for this season’s series span nearly 350 years and include well-known canonic jewels as well as new musical experiences with contemporary compositions and selections unearthed from past centuries. Program highlights include two arias from Handel’s Giulio Cesare; George Crumb’s “Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale);” Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio in D Minor, op. 49, no. 1; Schoenberg’s “Ein Stelldichein;” Michael Colgrass’s “Hammer and Bow;” a chamber arrangement of Haydn’s Symphony no. 102 in B-flat Major; a string sextet from Richard Strauss’s opera Capriccio; a solo jazz set by Stephen Prutsman; and Vaughan Williams’s Piano Quintet in C Minor.
The chamber music series begins on Friday, May 23 at 1:00pm with Telemann’s Concerto for Oboe in E Minor, TWV 51:e1, Sarasate’s “Nouvelle fantaisie sur Faust,” op. 13 and Schubert’s admired Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667, “The Trout.”
Assembling distinguished musicians from around the world, the chamber series is renowned for its engaging artists and their onstage camaraderie as much as for their virtuosity. In addition to Mr. Prutsman and the St. Lawrence String Quartet (Mr. Nuttall, Mark Fewer, Lesley Robertson, Christopher Costanza), returning artists include pianist Inon Barnatan, cellist Andrés Díaz, percussionist Aiyun Huang, flutist Tara Helen O’Connor, clarinetist Todd Palmer—who celebrates his 20th year as part of this series—bassist Anthony Manzo, pianist Pedja Muzijevic, violinist Daniel Phillips, oboist James Austin Smith, and violinist Livia Sohn. Artists making their Festival debut include violinist/violist Gabriela Díaz, violist Masumi Per Rostad of the Pacifica Quartet, cellist David Ying from the Grammy Award-winning Ying Quartet, and mezzo-soprano Charlotte Hellekant.
Mr. Nuttall’s program introductions from the stage are a hallmark of the series. Of his ability to educate and entertain, The New York Times said: “Mr. Nuttall turns out to be chamber music’s Jon Stewart… while maintaining the high musical standards of the series, he has established a new style of presentation that juxtaposes the ridiculous with the sublime, delves into serious musicology and casually uses technology. In short, he is subtly redefining what a chamber music concert can be.”
Each of the 11 programs is performed three times with two chamber performances daily at 11:00am and 1:00pm in the 463-seat Dock Street Theatre at 135 Church Street.
Chamber Music Series Subscriptions
Spoleto Festival USA offers three chamber music subscription packages that include benefits such as premium reserved seats, up to a 15% savings on full-price chamber music tickets, access to Patron Services Manager Sally Lovejoy, and free exchanges:
- SUBSCRIPTION A: $192 (six odd-numbered chamber concerts, 1:00pm)
- SUBSCRIPTION B: $160 (five even-numbered chamber concerts, 1:00pm)
- SUBSCRIPTION C: $352 (first performance of each chamber concert, times vary)
Subscriptions are available by calling Patron Services Manager Sally Lovejoy at 843.720.1114.
Chamber Affinity Program
For $50, Chamber Affinity Program members are invited to five receptions in a private home following the 1:00pm weekend chamber performances giving them the opportunity to meet Geoff Nuttall and the chamber artists, and to socialize with other chamber music lovers. For more information or to purchase membership in the Chamber Affinity Program, please call Patron Services Manager Sally Lovejoy at 843.720.1114
Tickets
Tickets to all Bank of America Chamber Music series performances are available online at spoletousa.org, by phone at 843.579.3100, in person at the Charleston Visitor Center, 375 Meeting Street, or through the Festival’s mobile app. Tickets start at $15.
• • •
SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA | 2014 BANK OF AMERICA CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES
You may also click here to download a PDF version of the program.
PROGRAM I
Friday, May 23 at 1pm; Saturday, May 24 at 11am and 1pm
Concerto for Oboe in E Minor, TWV 51:e1
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
James Austin Smith, oboe; Geoff Nuttall and Livia Sohn, violins; Gabriela Díaz, viola; David Ying, cello; Anthony Manzo, double bass; Pedja Muzijevic, harpsichord
“Nouvelle fantaisie sur Faust,” op. 13
Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908)
Livia Sohn, violin; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Piano Quintet in A Major, D. 667, “The Trout”
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Inon Barnatan, piano; Geoff Nuttall, violin; Gabriela Díaz, viola; David Ying, cello; Anthony Manzo, double bass
PROGRAM II
Sunday, May 25 at 11am and 1pm; Monday, May 26 at 11am
Neue Wiener Ländler, op. 1
Joseph Lanner (1801-43)
Geoff Nuttall and Livia Sohn, violins; Gabriela Díaz, viola; Anthony Manzo, double bass
Sonata op. 3, no. 2
Giovanni Antonio Pandolfi (fl 1660-69)
Mark Fewer, violin; David Ying, cello; Pedja Muzijevic, harpsichord
“Le corps á corps,” op. 49
Georges Aperghis (b 1945)
Aiyun Huang, percussion
Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91)
Pedja Muzijevic, piano; Geoff Nuttall, violin; Gabriela Díaz, viola; David Ying, cello
PROGRAM III
Monday, May 26 at 1pm; Tuesday, May 27 at 11am and 1pm
Sonata in G Major, H. XVI: 40
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Pedja Muzijevic, piano
“Hammer and Bow”
Michael Colgrass (b 1932)
Mark Fewer, violin; Aiyun Huang, percussion
“Hommage à Tristan”
György Kurtág (b 1926)
James Austin Smith, English horn; Todd Palmer, bass clarinet
Piano Trio in D Minor, op. 49, no. 1
Felix Mendelssohn(1809-47)
Inon Barnatan, piano; Livia Sohn, violin; David Ying, cello
PROGRAM IV
Wednesday, May 28 at 11am and 1pm; Thursday, May 29 at 11am
Violin Concerto in B-flat Major
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (1710-36)
Livia Sohn, violin; Geoff Nuttall, Mark Fewer, Daniel Phillips, Gabriela Díaz, violins; Masumi Rostad, viola; David Ying, cello; Anthony Manzo, double bass; Pedja Muzijevic, harpsichord
“Flickan kom ifrån sin älsklings möte”
Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927)
“Memories: a. Very Pleasant, b. Rather Sad”
Charles Ives (1874-1954)
“Den enda stunden”
Ture Rangström (1884-1947)
“Funeral Blues”
Benjamin Britten (1913-76)
Charlotte Hellekant, mezzo-soprano; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
String Quartet in C Major, op. 20, no. 2
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Geoff Nuttall and Daniel Phillips, violins; Masumi Rostad, viola; David Ying, cello
“Techno-parade”
Guillaume Connesson (b 1970)
Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; Todd Palmer, clarinet; Inon Barnatan, piano
PROGRAM V
Thursday, May 29 at 1pm; Friday, May 30 at 11am and 1pm
“Caprice sur des aires danois et russes”, op. 79
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; James Austin Smith, oboe; Todd Palmer, clarinet; Inon Barnatan, piano
“Priva son d’ogni conforto”
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
“Deh, piangete, o mesti lumi” from Giulio Cesare
Charlotte Hellekant, mezzo-soprano; Geoff Nuttall, Mark Fewer, Gabriela Díaz, Daniel Phillips, violins; Masumi Rostad, viola; David Ying, cello; Anthony Manzo, double bass; Pedja Muzijevic, harpsichord
Viola Quintet in B-flat Major, op. 87
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-47)
Daniel Phillips and Mark Fewer, violins; Masumi Rostad and Gabriela Díaz, violas; David Ying, cello
PROGRAM VI
Saturday, May 31 at 11am and 1pm; Sunday, June 1 at 11am
Serenade no. 3 for Oboe, Clarinet, 4 Violins and Cello, H. 218
Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959)
James Austin Smith, oboe; Todd Palmer, clarinet; Gabriela Díaz, Mark Fewer, Livia Sohn, Geoff Nuttall, violins; David Ying, cello
Two Songs, op. 91
Johannes Brahms (1833-97)
Charlotte Hellekant, mezzo-soprano; Masumi Rostad, viola; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Harmonia artificiosa-ariosa: Partita no. 3
Henrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
Mark Fewer and Livia Sohn,violins; Pedja Muzijevic, harpsichord
Piano Quintet in C Minor
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Inon Barnatan, piano; Geoff Nuttall, violin; Masumi Rostad, viola; David Ying, cello; Anthony Manzo, double bass
PROGRAM VII
Sunday, June 1 at 1pm; Monday, June 2 at 11am and 1pm
Kegelstatt Trio, K. 498 | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91)
Todd Palmer, clarinet; Masumi Rostad, viola; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
“Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale)”
George Crumb (b 1929)
Tara Helen O’Connor, flute;Chris Costanza, cello; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
“Il tramonto”
Ottorino Respighi (1879-1936)
Charlotte Hellekant, mezzo-soprano; St. Lawrence String Quartet
PROGRAM VIII
Tuesday, June 3 at 11am and 1pm; Wednesday, June 4 at 11am
String Quartet in E Minor | Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
St. Lawrence String Quartet
Ein Stelldichein | Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
James Austin Smith, oboe; Todd Palmer, clarinet; Gabriela Díaz, violin; Andres Díaz, cello; Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Piano Quartet in C Minor, op. 60, no. 3 | Johannes Brahms (1833-97)
Stephen Prutsman, piano; Livia Sohn, violin; Gabriela Díaz, viola; Andrés Díaz, cello
PROGRAM IX
Wednesday, June 4 at 1pm; Thursday, June 5 at 11am and 1pm
Quintetto in D Major | Franz Xaver Süssmayr (1766-1803)
Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; James Austin Smith, oboe; Livia Sohn, violin; Gabriela Díaz, viola; Andrés Díaz, cello
“Elégie,” op. 24
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924)
Andrés Díaz, cello; Stephen Prutsman, piano
Color Preludes for Piano Quintet (World premiere)
Stephen Prutsman (b 1960)
Stephen Prutsman, piano; St. Lawrence String Quartet
PROGRAM X
Friday, June 6 at 11am and 1pm; Saturday, June 7 at 11am
Symphony no. 102 in B-flat Major
Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), arr. Salomon
Pedja Muzijevic, piano; Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; St. Lawrence String Quartet
Jazz Set
Stephen Prutsman,piano
Duo for Violin and Cello, op. 7
Zoltán Kodály (1882-1967)
Gabriela Díaz, violin; Andrés Díaz, cello
PROGRAM XI
Saturday, June 7 at 1pm; Sunday, June 8 at 11am and 1pm
Sextet from Capriccio, op. 85
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
St. Lawrence String Quartet; Gabriela Díaz, viola; Andrés Díaz, cello
“Introduction, Theme and Variations” for Clarinet and Orchestra
Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868), arr. Palmer
Todd Palmer, clarinet; Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; James Austin Smith, oboe; Livia Sohn and Daniel Phillips, violins; Gabriela Díaz, viola; Andrés Díaz, cello; St. Lawrence String Quartet
“Scherzo” from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-47)
Stephen Prutsman and Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Clarinet Quintet in A Major, K. 581
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91)
Todd Palmer, clarinet; St. Lawrence String Quartet
