Greetings!
Friends and
Music Lovers, in preparing for the 37th season of the Hop River Chamber Music
concerts, my thoughts turn to joyful anticipation of beautiful, spirited,
music-making, the wonderful camaraderie among the talented musicians, the three
hot Thursday evenings cooled by the Church’s air conditioning, and your much
appreciated presence. We look forward to seeing you at 7:30 p.m. on July 9, 16,
& 23 at the First Congregational Church (United Church of Christ) on the
corner of Route 6 and Long Hill Road in Andover, CT.
We are at the
beginning of a new season with some of the founding musicians and others from
the early years. Our outstanding Artistic Directors continue to be Fran Bard,
Gary Chapman, and Barbara Vaughn. Each year our family of artists is extended
to include guest musicians. This year we welcome back flutist Barbara Hopkins
and soprano Joanne Scattergood.
This summer’s
concerts take the form of ‘musical sandwiches,’ in which less familiar works
appear between old favorites. The first concert will open with two preludes and
fugues by Bach and close with Chopin’s second piano concerto, as arranged by
the composer for piano and string quintet. In between is Lowell Liebermann’s
piquant Trio No. 1, a 2002 composition for flute, cello, & piano
commissioned by James Galway.
At the second
concert, we will hear music by Haydn and Brahms, two favorite composers of the
standard music literature. The concert begins with the “Quinten” quartet from Haydn’s
late Op. 76 quartets and ends with Brahms’ Violin Sonata No. 3, one of the
great violin sonatas. The delectable filling in this ‘sandwich’ is S´er´enade
lointaine for piano trio (1903), a beautiful gem, not often heard, by Romanian
composer George Enescu, and songs from the 1930s by Francis Poulenc & Kurt
Weill.
For the final
concert, masterpieces by Mozart & Brahms bracket a very tonal Serenade
(1935) for clarinet, violin, & cello by Austrian composer Hans Gál. Mozart’s
sublime Clarinet Quintet opens this concert, which closes with Brahms’ Sextet
in G-major for strings, a beautiful way to end the season.
The Board of
Directors offers its appreciation and thanks to Art Kirschenbaum, who served
Hop River Chamber Music as Treasurer for the past two years. In his place, we
welcome Barbara Vaughan as our new Treasurer.
This is the
third season for raising funds to commission an outstanding composer to create
a significant work for performances by the Hop River Chamber musicians. You will
hear more about this venture and how, you, our audience, can continue to
support this effort. We are deeply grateful for your financial contributions
thus far.
In order to
continue offering three concerts each season, it is essential that we receive
your strong financial support. We do not sell tickets, but we do accept
contributions at the door (suggested amount: $10 per person). We also rely on
the philanthropy of many of you who become special donors of greater amounts.
To make a contribution, please complete the form below, detach, and return it
with your check (payable to “Hop River Chamber Music” or “HRCM, Inc.”) to
Barbara
Vaughan, Treasurer
Hop River
Chamber Music
772 Warrenville
Rd.
Mansfield
Center, CT 06250
Donors whose
contributions are received by June 27 will be acknowledged in the program
booklet. Hop River Chamber Music, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) organization, and
contributions to it are tax-deductible.
I look forward
to greeting you at our July concerts!
Carolyn Lester,
President
Board of
Directors
