William Grant Still (1895-1978) is profiled at AfriClassical.com, which features a comprehensive Works List by Dr. Dominique-Rene de Lerma,
Almost exactly a year ago the wind and piano chamber ensemble of Frequency 49 made its debut in the Old First Concerts
series at Old First Church. The group consists of pianist Margaret
Halbig and a wind quintet consisting of flutist Carmen Lemoine, oboist
Ryan Zwahlen, clarinetist Jeannie Psomas, bassoonist Yueh Chou, and
hornist Leslie Hart. At the end of this month, they will be making their
return engagement with a program entitled Americana: American Wind Music.
The selections will span both the 20th and 21st centuries with a rich variety of stylistic approaches. It will begin with Samuel Barber’s Opus 31 “Summer Music.” While Barber was responsible for a variety of innovative uses of wind instruments in many of his compositions, “Summer Music” was the only piece he wrote for wind quintet. It was composed between 1955 and 1956; and, while the rhetoric has much of that reflective lyricism that can be found in his Opus 24 “Knoxville: Summer of 1915,” the instrumentation allows him to take that lyricism in an entirely new direction. The Barber selection will be followed by a much lesser known duo that Aaron Copland composed for flute and piano between 1970 and 1971. The program will then leap into the 21st century with a performance of a quartet for flute, oboe, bassoon, and piano by Bill Douglas.
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The selections will span both the 20th and 21st centuries with a rich variety of stylistic approaches. It will begin with Samuel Barber’s Opus 31 “Summer Music.” While Barber was responsible for a variety of innovative uses of wind instruments in many of his compositions, “Summer Music” was the only piece he wrote for wind quintet. It was composed between 1955 and 1956; and, while the rhetoric has much of that reflective lyricism that can be found in his Opus 24 “Knoxville: Summer of 1915,” the instrumentation allows him to take that lyricism in an entirely new direction. The Barber selection will be followed by a much lesser known duo that Aaron Copland composed for flute and piano between 1970 and 1971. The program will then leap into the 21st century with a performance of a quartet for flute, oboe, bassoon, and piano by Bill Douglas.
***
The program will then conclude with a set of arrangements for flute,
oboe, and piano of American folk songs by the African-American composer
William Grant Still, written in 1948.
Old First Concerts events take place in the Old First Church at 1751 Sacramento Street (on the southeast corner of Van Ness Avenue). This recital will be held on Friday, January 29, at 8 p.m. General admission is $18 with a special $15 rate for seniors and $5 for full-time students. Children aged twelve and under are admitted at no charge. Tickets may be purchased in advance through the event page on the Old First Concerts Web site. Further information may be obtained by calling 415-474-1608.
Old First Concerts events take place in the Old First Church at 1751 Sacramento Street (on the southeast corner of Van Ness Avenue). This recital will be held on Friday, January 29, at 8 p.m. General admission is $18 with a special $15 rate for seniors and $5 for full-time students. Children aged twelve and under are admitted at no charge. Tickets may be purchased in advance through the event page on the Old First Concerts Web site. Further information may be obtained by calling 415-474-1608.
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