2000-2001 Season Schedule

CARTER BREY, Cello and CHRISTOPHER O'RILEY, Piano

Two of today's most engaging and gifted artists, in a musical partnership that has been unanimously acclaimed as one of the most creative collaborations, marked by "elegance, refinement, and the highest standards of musicianship." (The Milwaukee Sentinel)

* Beethoven: Variations on Ein Madchen oder Weibchen, op. 66
* Beethoven: Sonata no. 4 in C Major, op. 102, no. 1
* Debussy: Sonata for Cello and Piano
* Poulenc: Cello Sonata

JUILLIARD STRING QUARTET

In the third season of its current formation, the Library's distinguished quartet-in-residence returns to play with an "aerobic generosity of approach...in a style that is large, generous, and aggressive." (The Boston Globe)

* Mendelssohn: Four Pieces for String Quartet, op. 81
* Ruth Crawford-Seeger: Quartet for Strings
* Beethoven: Quartet in E-flat Major, op. 127

JazzTimes Magazine 1999 Artist of the Year, trumpeter-composer Dave Douglas, whose "defiantly uncategorizable music" has been described as a meeting of "European folk and classical ideas in a downtown NY jazz/free improv classroom" (Downbeat) makes his Library of Congress debut with two of his groups, Charms of the Night Sky and The Tiny Bell Trio.

( World premiere commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress )

Founder's Day Concert with FLUX QUARTET

Composed of four young virtuosos -- trained in the classics but grew up with MTV -- with "lots of ideas and clearly enjoy making music together" (New York Times), this exciting string quartet pays tribute to the legacy of the visionary Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge.

* Webern: String Quartet, op. 28
* Weill: String Quartet no. 1, op. 8
* Cornelius Dufallo: Afterimage
* John Zorn: Cat O’Nine Tails

November 10, 2000

ACCENTUS CHAMBER CHOIR directed by Laurence Equilbey

"Magical, poetic, subtle, and elegant are the epithets that come spontaneously to mind" (Classica) in describing this outstanding French a cappella choir--among the elite of vocal ensembles-- bringing its technical precision and the richness and clarity of its sound to its first appearance in the United States.

* Poulenc: Un soir de neige; Figure Humaine
* Mahler-Gottwald: Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen
* Mahler-Pesson: Kein deutscher Himmel
*Schoenberg: Friede auf Erden
* Barber: Agnus Dei

(Presented in cooperation with the Embassy of France)

ORPHEUS CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

Playing orchestral works without a conductor but with the "intense concentration and hair-trigger mutual responsiveness"(New York Times) of a chamber ensemble, Orpheus performs music of Aaron Copland for a special worldwide live NPR broadcast in the opening concert of the Library's Copland Centenary celebrations.

* Roberto Sierra: Fanfarria, Aria y Movimiento Perpetuo for Violin and Piano (Guillermo Figueroa, Violin; Margaret Kampmeier, Piano) (Commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress)
* Aaron Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man ; Ceremonial Fanfare (U. S. Marine Band conducted by Capt. Michael Colbume)
* Aaron Copland: Cat and Mouse ; Midday Thoughts ; "Jazzy" from Three Moods ; Down a Country Lane (Michael Boriskin, Piano)
* Aaron Copland:"Simple Gifts" and "At the River" from Old American Songs (N'kege Simpson, Soprano; Michael Boriskin, Piano)
* Aaron Copland: Quiet City (Solos: Carl Albach, Trumpet; Matthew Dine, English Horn)
* Aaron Copland: Appalachian Spring; Midday Thoughts (orchestrated by David Del Tredici) (Commissioned for the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra by National Public Radio and the Aaron Copland Fund for Music in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Copland's birth)
* Aaron Copland: Three Latin American Sketches - "Estribillo" ~ "Paisaje mexicano" ~ "Danza de Jalisco" ; "Hoe Down" from Rodeo (Orpheus Chamber Orchestra)

This broadcast was made in part by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts

LE CONCERT DES NATIONS directed by Jordi Savall

Composed of international artists, this period instrument chamber orchestra forms the triumvirate of music groups -- along with Hesperion XX and La Capella Reial de Catalunya -- founded by the universally-acclaimed performer, scholar, and teacher Jordi Savall, who has been at the vanguard of a revitalizing approach to early music within the last two decades.

* Lully: Suite d’orchestre d’Alceste
* Marais: Alcione Suite des Airs a jouer
* J. S. Bach: Overture-Suite IV in D Major, BWV 1069
* Cabanilles: Suite Imperial
* Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks

"COPLAND AT THE MILLENNIUM"

A reflection on Aaron Copland's role in American music history, this symposium will review current research and new discoveries in celebration his centenary and his centrality in twentieth-century American music and culture.

(Part of the Library's Copland Centennial Celebration)

MUSIC FROM THE COPLAND HOUSE directed by Michael Boriskin and Paul Lustig Dunkel

Derek Bermel, Clarinet ; Michael Boriskin, Piano ;
Paul Lustig Dunkel, Flute ; Nicholas Kitchen, Violin ; Wilhelmina Smith, Cello / Guest Artists: Jennifer Frautschi, Violin ; Hsin-Yun Huang, Viola

Inspired by Copland's fervent lifelong advocacy of American music, the resident chamber ensemble of the composer's residence during the last thirty years of his life gives the closing concert of the Library's Copland Centennial Celebration: an all-Copland program.

* Aaron Copland: Duo for Flute and Piano (1967-71) (Flowing; Poetic, somewhat mournful; Lively, with bounce)
* Aaron Copland: Quartet for Piano and Strings (1950) (Adagio serio; Allegro giusto; Non troppo lento)
* Aaron Copland: Two Threnodies for Flute, Violin, Viola, and Cello (I: In Memoriam Igor Stravinsky (1971); II: In Memoriam Beatrice Cunningham (1973))
* Aaron Copland: Sextet for string quartet, clarinet and piano (1931-33, arranged 1937) (Allegro vivace; Lento; Precise and rhythmic)

WIHAN QUARTET

Among the illustrious string quartets in the world today, the Wihan Quartet typifies the best traditions of the Czech quartet school -- sound that is "beautifully balanced, centered in warm, dark regions of tone color, and musical in every part." (New York Times)

* Beethoven: Quartet op. 18, no. 4
* Janacek: Quartet no. 1
* Dvorák: Quartet in F Major, op. 96 “American”

MIRÓ STRING QUARTET

"An American group with technical wizardry and spunk" (Toronto Globe and Mail) -- this group of young American musicians has rapidly established itself as one of the most sought-after ensembles in the country, whose performances are "always poised, judicious, and balanced, avoiding the pitfalls of easy sentiment and gratuitous emotion." (Calgary Herald)

* Barber: Quartet, op. 11
* Maurice Gardner: Quartet no. 4
* Schubert: Quartet “Death and the Maiden”

JUILLIARD STRING QUARTET with Yefim Bronfman, Piano

Joining the Library's quartet-in-residence for the Shostakovich Piano Quintet, Bronfman -- celebrated for his muscular performances of the concerto repertoire -- conveys most felicitously a "mature and reflective musicianship" (New York Times) in his chamber music performances.

* Mendelssohn: Quartet in E-flat Major, op. 44, no. 3
* Otto Luening: Opera Fantasia (McKim Fund commission)
* Shostakovich: Piano Quintet

PRAZÁK QUARTET

Playing of "exceptional freshness and distinction ... vital and consummate musicianship" (Daily Telegraph) has been the hallmark of the Prazak Quartet, acclaimed throughout Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia -- musicmaking that "touched the heart constantly." (De Telegraaf)

* Zemlinsky: Quartet no. 1
* Janacek: Quartet no. 2
* Dvorak: Quartet op. 105

ISRAEL CAMERATA JERUSALEM directed by Avner Biron with Ilya Itin, Piano

The ensemble's "effortless virtuosity, tight instrumental balances, and broad dynamic palette" (Los Angeles Times) is complemented by Ilya Itin's "wonderful range of color ... imaginative texture and phrasing, and supreme technical command." (The Guardian)

* Elgar: Introduction and Allegro, op. 47
* Mozart: Piano Concerto no. 27 in B-flat Major
* Sierra: Fanfarria, Aria y Movimento Perpetuo (McKim commission)
* Haydn: Symphony no. 78 in C Minor

LARK QUARTET

A truly "excellent group, full of musical life, sonorous and well-balanced" (The New York Times), the Lark Quartet boasts of an extensive string repertoire ranging from Schumann to Schnittke, and has gained critical praise for its collaborations with artists of diverse genres such as Peter Schickele, Bill T. Jones, and the San Francisco Ballet.

* Jay Aaron Kernis: Quartet no. 2 (Pulitzer Prize)
* Amy Beach: String Quartet
* William Bolcom: Rags
* Gershwin: Lullaby

ANDREAS STAIER, Harpsichord

"Virtuosic vigor...delicate whimsy...and dramatic impulse" (Boston Globe) are qualities found in Andreas Staier's impeccable taste and technically flawless playing -- indeed one of the very few great specialists of both harpsichord and fortepiano.

* Maximo Lopez: Varianiones del Fandango español
* Sebastián de Albero: Recercata; Fuga; Sonata in D Major
* Josep Galales: selections from sonatas 9, 17 and 16
* D. Scarlatti: selections from sonatas K. 490, K. 491, K. 492, K. 394, K. 215 and K. 216
* José Ferrer: Adagio in G Minor; Sonata Andantino in G Minor
* Antonio Soler: Fandango

CONCERTO PALATINO (period brass ensemble)

With "consummate technique, intonation, and ensemble"( Early Music), this period-instrument group based in Bologna, Italy has raised the benchmark for the revival of seventeenth-century music for cornetti and trombones, especially in its innovative and incisive performance of Venetian music.

* Wind Music for the Doge: Venetian Instrumental Music, 1580-1660
* Francesco Usper: Sinfonia à 6 Vulnerasti cor meum à 6
* G. Gabrieli: selections
* Merulo: Canzon 23 à 5
* Ascanio Trombetti detto “Ascanio del Cornetto”: Da Pacem Domine
* Cavalli: Sonata à 6; Priuli: Sonata à 6 (da Sacrorium Concentuum)
* Benedetto Rè: Canzon à 4 in risposta
* Cesare: Ecco à 3 G.
* Gabrieli: Canzon à 6

ENSEMBLE WIEN-BERLIN with Elena Bashkirova, Piano

Combining the best of the Viennese and German schools of woodwind artistry, Ensemble Wien-Berlin performs with a tonal and musical homogeneity that blends each soloist's personality and ideas into a vibrant whole -- joined in its Washington, D.C. debut by a frequent guest pianist of the world's leading orchestras.

* Mozart: Quintet in E-flat Major for Piano and Winds, K. 452
* Ligeti: Ten Pieces for Wind Quintet
* Nielsen: Quintet for Winds, F. 100, op. 43
* Poulenc: Sextet for Piano and Winds

In the world premiere of a new song cycle by William Bolcom with text by playwright Sandra Seaton, mezzo-soprano Florence Quivar's "burnished, seductive voice" (Houston Voice) brings to life this imaginative recreation of a complex, vital Sally Hemings who refuses to be identified merely as Jefferson's mistress.

CONCERTANTE CHAMBER PLAYERS with John Manasse, Clarinet and Randall Scarlata, Baritone

"An awesome display of energy, intensity, and musical ability" (Harrisburg Patriot-News) marks the performances of these musicians, one of ten young ensembles which Chamber Music America described as "plugged in, self-confident, and savvy" members of Generation X and beyond who are on the cutting edge of chamber music.

* Clarke: Prelude, Allegro, and Pastorale for Viola and Clarinet
* Barber: Dover Beach
* Steven Gerber: Spirituals for Clarinet and String Quartet (Washington premiere)
* Brahms: Sextet no. 2 in G Major, op. 36

TRIO WANDERER

Three young artists possessing a "near-telepathic musical sensibility and...an impressive display of ensemble, line, and dynamic" (The Strad), the members of this Parisian trio are brillliant musicians in their own right, whose collective performances are a "marvelous surprise" (Buenos Aires Herald).

* Haydn: Trio in C Major, Hob. XV 27
* Mendelssohn: Trio in C Minor, op. 66
* LeBaron: Devil in the Belfry (McKim commission)
* Chausson: Trio in G Minor. op. 3

JUILLIARD STRING QUARTET with Seymour Lipkin, Piano

For its final performance of the season, the Juilliard is joined by a pianist praised for his "wise, subtle, and assured playing" (Boston Globe) in the world premiere of a work by American composer Ralph Shapey, commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress.

* Mendelssohn: String Quartet in F minor, Op. 80
* George Rochberg: Sonata for Violin and Piano (Joel Smirnoff, violin)
* Dvorak: Piano Quintet in A Major, Op. 81

BEAUX ARTS TRIO

With a tradition of ensemble virtuosity that has remained unbroken since the group's original founding, the Library's trio-in-residence -- renowned for its "sensitive musicianship and enthusiastic drive" (Berkshire Eagle) -- returns with founding member Menahem Pressler, joined by his new partners, violinist Young Uck Kim and cellist Antonio Meneses.

* Haydn: Trio in A Major, H.XV, no. 18
* Luening: Opera Fantasia (McKim Commission)
* Beethoven: Trio in G Major, op. 1, no. 2
* Schubert: Trio in E Major, D. 929, op. 100

MUSIC OF IRVING FINE

An American composer "whose revival is long overdue" (New York Times), Irving Fine -- whose music struck Virgil Thomson with its "unusual melodic grace -- is paid tribute in this special concert by exceptionally talented violinist Ida Kavafian, the exciting Zéphyros Wind Quintet, and a chamber choir directed by Norman Scribner.

* Sonata for Violin - Ida Kavafian
* Violin Partita - Zephyros Wind Quintet
* Choral Selections - Chamber Choir, directed by Norman Scribner

FREDERICK FENNELL CONDUCTS MUSIC FOR WIND ENSEMBLE

For his special appearance at the Library of Congress, where he has recorded a landmark series of nineteenth-century band music using period instruments, Frederick Fennell -- founder of the famed Eastman Wind Ensemble -- will conduct music written for winds and brass in the intimate setting of Coolidge Auditorium.

* Grainger: Duke of Marlborough Fanfare
* Blackwood: Symphony no. 1 for Winds
* Wilder: Suite of selected wind works
* Hartley: Concerto for 23 Winds Music for Fife and Drums (F. Fennel, drums)
* Favorite Sousa Marches

SAN FRANCISCO CONTEMPORARY MUSIC PLAYERS

For thirty years a champion of new music, this West Coast ensemble has provided "nourishment for the mind and balm to the soul" (San Francisco Examiner) with vibrant performances that echo Paris in the early part of the twentieth century, including commissions from John Adams, John Cage, Oliver Lake, Mel Powell, Chen Yi and Julia Wolfe.

* Kui Dong: The Blue Melody
* Steven Mackey: Micro-concerto
* Andrew Imbrie: Chicago Bells (McKim Fund commission/premiere)
* George Edwards: The Isle is Full of Noises

NEW YORK FESTIVAL OF SONG directed by Michael Barrett and Steven Blier

"Wonderful singers always seem just that much more wonderful when they join up with NYFOS" (New York Times)