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October 4, 2015 – Richard Goode, piano JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897) Vier Klavierstücke (Four Piano Pieces), op. 119 October 4, 2015 – Richard Goode, piano Brahms began composing his Opus 119 Piano Pieces before completing the Opus 118 collection and published both sets in 1893. The Opus 119 pieces continue in the same predominantly introspective vein, except for the concluding Rhapsody of Opus 119, which ends Brahms’s solo piano output in heroic style. (Only the 51 Übungen, or Exercises, compiled over many years, were published later.) The three opening pieces of Opus 119 are titled “Intermezzo,” Brahms’s favored designation for a wide range of late piano pieces (see Opus 118 above). The first Intermezzo of Opus 119 is well-known for its characteristic falling thirds, which give it the resigned quality so often associated with Brahms’s works. The Andante of the F minor Two-Piano Sonata, op. 34b, the opening of the Fourth Symphony, and the Four Serious Songs provide notable examples of this characteristic. Brahms gave the first Intermezzo to Clara Schumann as a birthday present in 1893, though it actually marked his birthday by the time he sent it to her. He wrote: I am tempted to have a short piece of music copied for you, as I should very much like to know how you get on with it. It teems with discords. . . . It is exceptionally melancholy, and to say “to be played very slowly” is not sufficient. Every bar and every note must be played as if ritardando were indicated, and one wished to draw the melancholy out of each one of them, and voluptuous joy and comfort out of the discords. My God, how this description will whet your appetite! Clara wrote that “one actually revels in the discords” and also called the Intermezzo “a grey pearl. Do you know them? They look as if they were veiled, and are very precious.” Brahms also used the title “Intermezzo” for the second piece, an agitated piece in E minor that ingeniously employs the variation form. The central “waltz” section in E major provides a wonderful contrast, though it too is a variation. A wisp of the waltz returns at the close. The following quicksilver Intermezzo features the melody at the outset in the lower part of the right hand. Its scherzando character as abetted by the shifting melodic accents. The ebullient E-flat Rhapsody, probably not the last of the pieces in order of composition, is notable for its five-bar phrases, which Clara characterized as “Hungarian.” At the center occurs a lyrical section in A-flat major—perhaps suggesting the salon or café in its arpeggiations and grace notes—that is led up to and away from by a C minor/C major triplet idea. The following occurrence of the main theme is cleverly presented in a hushed staccato variation, lending all the more force to its return in its original guise at the close. This Rhapsody belongs to a small but significant group of works that open heroically in the major but close dramatically and darkly in the minor. Other notable such pieces include Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony and Brahms’s B major Trio. Brahms’s Rhapsody, however, accomplishes this unusual twist in one movement, thereby joining an even more select niche of the repertoire—Schubert’s E-flat Impromptu, op. 90, no. 2 is one of the few other such works that immediately comes to mind. © Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2016 AT 3 PM Mariko Anraku, harp; Emmanuel Ceysson, harp; Leading members of the Met Orchestra BUY TICKETS David Chan, violin CATHERINE RO, VIOLIN JERRY GROSSMAN, CELLO EMMANUEL CEYSSON, HARP “Ceysson is a rising star of the harp world…Both his technique and his musicianship are virtually flawless…It was an impressive and deeply involving evening.” – The Washington Post ÉRIK GRATTON, FLUTE GILAD COHEN, COMPOSER Rafael Figueroa, cello Principal Cello, Met Orchestra DOV SCHEINDLIN, VIOLA MARIKO ANRAKU, HARP “…a manifestation of grace and elegance.” – The Jerusalem Post INN-HYUCK CHO, CLARINET Principal Clarinet Met Orchestra MELINDA WAGNER, COMPOSER “Melinda Wagner’s “Pan Journal” is a work by a top professional who knows how to keep the ears and brains of her listeners engaged.” – Vance R. Koven, Boston Music Intelligencer FEATURING ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE BUY TICKETS On December 18 , The Met Orchestra’s exquisite harpists , Mariko Anraku and Emmanuel Ceysson , will join forces with seven principal players of the Met Orchestra for a celestial afternoon of music making. Their alluring program will include duos and ensemble works featuring the harp by Debussy and Ravel and engaging new music by the award-winning, Ridgewood-based composers Melinda Wagner and Gilad Cohen . PROGRAM Claude Debussy Danses sacree et profane, L. 103 for harp and strings Program Notes Maurice Ravel Ma mere l’oye arranged for two harps Program Notes Gilad Cohen Trio for a Spry Clarinet, Weeping Cello and Ruminating Harp Program Notes Melinda Wagner Pan Journal for harp and string quartet Program Notes Claude Debussy Suite Bergamasque, L. 75 arranged for two harps by Matthieu Martin Program Notes Maurice Ravel Introduction and Allegro for harp, flute, clarinet, and string quartet Program Notes Meet Met Harpists Emmanuel Ceysson and Mariko Anraku: Emmanuel Ceysson performs Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro: Mariko Anraku performs Fauré’s Impromptu, Op. 86:

November 19, 2017: Los Angeles Guitar Quartet MUSIC FROM THE TIME OF CERVANTES, ARRANGED FOR FOUR GUITARS Music from the Time of Cervantes (arr. W. Kanengiser) November 19, 2017: Los Angeles Guitar Quartet Jácaras – Anonymous (17th century) El Villano – Antonio Martín y Coll Diferéncias Sobre Las Folias – Antonio Martín y Coll Chacona (“La Vida Bona”) – Juan Arañéz Oy Comamos – Juan de Encina In March 2009, LAGQ debuted the theatrical production “The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote” with British actor/comedian John Cleese. Interweaving tales from the classic novel with arrangements of pieces that Cervantes could have heard in his lifetime, it melded music and storytelling. Tonight’s recital includes selections from this production. Jácaras is an anonymous canción (“No hay que decir primor”) from the 17th century. With raucous strumming and castanets imitating horses’ hooves, it accompanies Don Quixote’s departure from his farm to become an adventuring knight. El Villano (“The Rustic”) is a country dance from the anthology “Flores de Música” collected by Antonio Martín y Coll. It introduces Sancho Panza, Quixote’s trusty squire. Diferéncias Sobre Las Folias is a set of variations contrasting on the famous harmonic progression, Folias de Espana. It tells of the famous argument between knight and squire, and of their reconciliation. Chacona (“La Vida Bona”), from the Libro Segunda de Tonos y Villancicos (1624) by Juan Arañes, is one of the most celebrated early examples of the form. The chacona, which by Bach’s time had become one of the most noble and profound of all dance forms, was a suggestive and prohibited danza in 1500s Spain, almost their version of our macarena. It features the lines, “here’s to the good life, good little life: let’s do the Chacona”). Oy comamos y bebamos is a four-voice villancico from the Cancionero Palacio, written by Juan de Encina. The opening stanza is “Hoy comamos y bebamos, y cantemos y holguemos, que mañana ayunaremos” (Today we eat and drink, and sing and make merry, for tomorrow we must fast”). It serves as a fitting epilogue for Don Quixote’s quixotic character. Return to Parlance Program Notes

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2022 AT 3 PM PAUL HUANG AND DANBI UM, VIOLINS JUHO POHJONEN, PIANO BUY TICKETS JUHO POHJONEN, PIANO “Juho Pohjonen demonstrated his elegant musicianship, pearly touch, singing tone, and sensitivity throughout the program…everything about his recital was formidable” — The New York Times PAUL HUANG, VIOLIN Paul Huang possesses a big, luscious tone, spot-on intonation and a technique that makes the most punishing string phrases feel as natural as breathing.” — The Washington Post DANBI UM, VIOLIN “Danbi Um’s playing is utterly dazzling…a marvelous show of superb technique” — The Strad FEATURING ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE BUY TICKETS Two scintillating violinists, Paul Huang and Danbi Um , will collaborate with the superlative Finnish pianist Juho Pohjonen in an exhilarating afternoon of musical treasures by Beethoven, Erich Korngold, Pablo Sarasate, and others. The musical centerpiece will be Afterword , a mesmerizing new work created especially for the ensemble by the award-winning young American composer Chris Rogerson. PROGRAM Erich Wolfgang Korngold Suite from Much Ado about Nothing , Op. 11 Danbi Um, violin; Juho Pohjonen, piano Program Notes Moritz Moszkowski Suite for two violins and piano , Op. 71 Program Notes Ludwig van Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 3 in E-flat major. Op. 12, No. 3 Paul Huang, violin; Juho Pohjonen Program Notes Chris Rogerson Afterword for two violins and piano Program Notes Amy Barlowe Hebraique Elegie for two violins Paul Huang and Danbi Um, violins Program Notes Pablo Sarasate Navarra, Op. 33 for two violins and piano Program Notes Watch violinists Paul Huang and Danbi Um perform Sarasate’s Navarra: Watch this short documentary about violinist Paul Huang: Watch pianist Juho Pohjonen play Rameau’s Keyboard Suite No. 2:

SUNDAY, JANUARY 29, 2023 AT 4 PM DANISH STRING QUARTET BUY TICKETS THE DANISH STRING QUARTET “That mixture of casualness and control that comes out when they perform makes them the quartet I would most want to hear play just about anything. Chords all have a diamond edge, tunes pour like molten silver, staccato passages skip like stones across a lake.” — Justin Davidson, New York Magazine FEATURING ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE BUY TICKETS The long-awaited return of the charismatic Danish String Quartet promises to be a true highlight of the 2022-23 season. In their own words, “We are three Danes and one Norwegian cellist, making this a truly Scandinavian endeavor. The three of us, the Danes, met very early in our lives in the Danish countryside, and none of us have any memory of our lives without the string quartet. In 2008 Norwegian cellist Fredrik joined in. He looked like a character from Game of Thrones, and we thought he was a perfect match.” The Danish Quartet will bring their perfectly balanced personal and musical rapport to beloved works by Mozart, Britten, and Schubert. PROGRAM Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Divertimento in F, K. 138 Program Notes Benjamin Britten Divertimenti Program Notes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart String Quartet No. 16 in E-flat, K. 428 Program Notes Franz Schubert String Quartet No. 13 in A minor, D. 804, Op. 29 (“Rosamunde”) Program Notes Watch the Danish String Quartet perform Beethoven’s String Quartet in F, Op. 59, No. 1, at Parlance Chamber Concerts:

September 29, 2024: Edward Arron, Carter Brey, Rafael Figueroa, and Zvi Plesser, cellos Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) Allegro molto from Cello Concerto in C major: Hob. VIIb/1 September 29, 2024: Edward Arron, Carter Brey, Rafael Figueroa, and Zvi Plesser, cellos The discovery of Haydn’s C major Cello Concerto in 1961 among piles of manuscripts in the National Museum in Prague counts as one of the great musical finds of our time. With the Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia and Hungary after World War II, vast holdings from private libraries were carted away and deposited in the Museum, making them accessible to scholars—if they could wade through the enormous amount of uncatalogued material. The Cello Concerto was unearthed by O. Pulkert, one of the Museum’s librarians, as a set of manuscript parts once held by the counts of Kolovrat-Krakovský. Its authenticity was immediately confirmed by Haydn scholars, principally because of the entry in Haydn’s own Entwurf-Katalog, which included starting themes of his works. The first modern performance took place on May 19, 1962, by cellist Miloš Sádlo, with Charles Mackerras conducting the Czechoslovak Radio Symphony Orchestra. Haydn probably wrote the Concerto for Joseph Weigl, star cellist of the Esterházy orchestra from 1761 to 1769 and close friend of Haydn. Though the Concerto cannot be dated precisely, scholars have suggested c. 1761–65, based on its position in the catalog and the manuscript’s paper type. The Concerto’s opportunities for virtuosic display—like those of the solo cello parts in the three symphonies, “Le matin,” “Le midi,” and “Le soir”—speak well for Weigl’s skills as a cellist. Today’s version of the sparkling finale for four cellos, arranged by Douglas Moore, admirably allows the solo cello part to shine against the three-cello accompaniment, which itself emphasizes the instrument’s ability in range and varied character to mimic the entire orchestral accompaniment. A substantial opening tutti (section for the full ensemble) introduces the finale’s main theme, supported by repeated eighth notes, whose frequent recurrence provides much of the movement’s driving energy. The soloist’s entrance on a long held note eventually erupts into a rising scale. The movement contains no cadenza as had the first two movements, but the virtuosic writing in the solo episodes provides ample opportunity for display. —©Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes

SUNDAY, MARCH 6, 2016 AT 3 PM Escher String Quartet BUY TICKETS ESCHER STRING QUARTET “The Escher players seemed to make time stand still, effortlessly distilling the essence of this introspective music with expressive warmth and a natural confiding intimacy.” — Chicago Classical Review FEATURING ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE BUY TICKETS The Escher String Quartet is one of the fastest-rising young chamber ensembles. Championed by the Emerson Quartet, the Escher Quartet is one of the few ensembles to be awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant. Within months of its inception in 2005, the Escher Quartet was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and Itzhak Perlman to be Quartet in Residence at each artist’s summer festival. Today the quartet is in demand worldwide and serves as Artists of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. The Escher Quartet takes its name from the Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher. The quartet members were inspired by Escher’s method of intricate interplay between individual components to form a cohesive whole. PROGRAM Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Quartet in D, K. 575 (Prussian No. 1) Program Notes Leoš Janáček Quartet No. 1 (Kreutzer Sonata) Program Notes Franz Schubert Quartet No. 14 in D minor, D. 810 (Death and the Maiden ) Program Notes Escher String Quartet - Beethoven Quartet in A minor, Op. 132, Mvt 2 (CMS) Escher String Quartet - Shostakovich Quartet No. 8, Mvt. 2 (CMS)

April 23, 2017: Isabel Leonard, mezzo-soprano; Warren Jones, piano JULES MASSENET (1842-1912) Letter Scene and Va! Laisse couler mes larmes from Werther April 23, 2017: Isabel Leonard, mezzo-soprano; Warren Jones, piano At least as early as 1880 Massenet was considering writing an opera based on Goethe’s epistolary novel Werther (1774), whose protagonist commits suicide over unrequited love. Goethe’s tragic hero became one of the chief symbols of the Romantic movement in Europe. In Massenet’s factually challenged memoirs he was purposefully vague about the timing of the genesis of his opera saying it had stemmed from when dramatist Georges Hartmann handed him a copy of Werther in Wetzlar on their way back from a performance of Parsifal in Bayreuth. As Masssenet sat reading, he recounted, in a German beer hall in the town where Goethe’s story takes place, he was moved to tears, particularly by the Ossian quote “Pourquois me réveiller” (Why awaken me), which Werther would sing in one of the opera’s dramatic peaks. Scholars have determined that Massenet’s vagueness would lead readers to assume he was talking about the summer of 1882, and that he put aside the idea for his operas Manon and Le Cid, but other details confirm that this Parsifal journey must have occurred in 1886. In truth Massenet began composing Werther in 1885, based on a scenario by Hartmann but actually setting a libretto by Édouard Blau and Paul Millet, so the Wetzlar occasion would have simply spurred him on. Though Hartmann had not actually written part of the libretto, the composer no doubt gave him nominal credit to aid him financially when his bankrupt publishing firm was being absorbed by another. Massenet completed the opera in 1887, but Léon Carvalho, director of the Opéra-Comique, turned it down as too depressing. The theater burned down shortly thereafter, and, though there was a possibility of a premiere in 1889, Massenet’s next opera, Esclarmonde , was performed instead. As it turns out, the premiere took place on February 16, 1892, sung in German, at the Vienna Hofoper—the result of the management requesting another opera from Massenet after the great success of his Manon there in 1890. Somewhat surprisingly, the soprano who had sung the role of Manon in Vienna now took on the mezzo-soprano role of Charlottte, a performance fondly remembered there for decades. The Parisian premiere in 1893 met with only modest success, and it took until the 1903 revival by Albert Carré for Werther to achieve popular status and acclaim as one of Massenet’s greatest masterpieces. The story concerns Charlotte, whose care for her siblings after her mother’s death arouses the sympathy and love of Werther, even though he knows she is set to marry the absent Albert. Charlotte and Werther attend a ball and become entranced with each other, but the spell is shattered when they return to her house and hear that Albert has returned. Time passes, and Charlotte and Albert have been married for three years when the depressed Werther can’t help show his feelings for her. Charlotte says he must really go away until Christmas. Despairing, he contemplates suicide and leaves. On Christmas Eve, Charlotte rereads all the letters that Werther has sent to her, admitting that she really loves him. The desolate Werther appears suddenly and they reminisce tenderly, but she flees. Albert reads a letter from Werther saying he is going away and wants to borrow his pistols. Albert makes the agitated Charlotte bring them as she fully realizes Werther’s intention. She runs to Werther’s rooms, where he lies mortally wounded. He is happy to be united with her, and she admits she has always loved him before he dies in her arms. Massenet made certain changes in Goethe’s story, such as Charlotte’s marriage to Albert being the result of her dying mother’s wish rather than her own choice, having Albert know why Werther wanted to borrow his pistols, and having Werther actually conscious for a final duet with Charlotte. Nevertheless the story proved relatively unproblematic to adapt for the operatic stage, and provided Massenet with a perfect vehicle to show the full force of his ability to write inspired, fluid melodies as well as shrewd psychological character development. The Letter Scene (“Air des lettres”), in which Charlotte reads from letters that Werther has sent her, specifically connects with Goethe’s original story, which he tells in the form of letters. The music’s psychological drama draws from the fact that we experience both the emotions that Werther transmitted in writing the letters as well as Charlotte’s reaction to them. With incredible dramatic pacing, Massenet follows this (after an exchange in which Charlotte’s sister Sophie tries to cheer her up) with the remarkable “Air des larmes” (Aria of tears), in which Massenet famously uses a saxophone obbligato—nicely imagined here on piano—to aid in the aria’s mournful expressiveness. © Jane Vial Jaffe Texts and Translations Scène des lettres (Air des lettres) Werther! Werther! Qui m’aurait dit la place que dans mon coeur il occupe aujourd’hui? Depuis qu’il est parti, malgré moi tout me lasse! Et mon âme est pleine de lui! Ces lettres! . . . Ah! je les relis sans cesse . . . Avec quel charme, mais aussi quelle tristesse! Je devrais les détruire . . . je ne puis! «Je vous écris de ma petite chambre; un ciel gris et lourd de Décembre pèse sur moi comme un linceul, et je suis seul! seul! toujours seul!» Ah! personne près de lui! . . . Pas un seul témoignage de tendresse ou même de pitié! Dieu! Comment m’est venu ce triste courage, d’ordonner cet exil et cet isolement? «Des cris joyeux d’enfants montent sous ma fenêtre. Et je pense à ce temps si doux où tous vos chers petits jouaient autour de nous! Ils m’oublieront peut-être?» Non, Werther, dans leur souvenir votre image reste vivante, et quand vous reviendrez . . . Mais doit-il revenir? Ah! ce dernier billet me glace et m’épouvante! «Tu m’as dit: à Noël, et j’ai crié: Jamais! On va bientôt connaître qui de nous deux disait vrai! Mais si je ne dois reparaître, au jour fixé, devant toi, ne m’accuse pas, pleure-moi! Oui, de ces yeux si pleins de charmes, ces lignes, tu les reliras, tu les mouilleras de tes larmes, O Charlotte, et tu frémiras!» Va! Laisse couler mes larmes Va! laisse couler mes larmes . . . elles font du bien, ma chérie! Les larmes qu’on ne pleure pas, dans notre âme retombent toutes, et de leurs patientes gouttes Martèlent le coeur triste et las! Sa résistance enfin s’épuise; le coeur se creuse et s’affaiblit: il est trop grand, rien ne l’emplit; et trop fragile, tout le brise! Letter Scene (Letter aria) Werther! Werther! Who would have told me the place that he occupies in my heart today? Since he has gone, in spite of myself, I’ve been all weary! And my soul is filled with him! These letters! . . . Ah! I read them constantly . . . With what charm, but also what sadness! I should destroy them. . . I cannot! “I am writing to you from my little room; a sky gray and heavy of December weighs upon me like a shroud, and I am alone! Alone! Always alone!” Ah! No one near him! . . . Not a single testimony of tenderness or even pity! God! How did this this sad courage come to me, to order this exile and isolation? “Joyful cries of children rise from beneath my window. And I think of the time so sweet when all your dear little ones were playing around us! They will forget me, perhaps?” No, Werther, in their memory your image remains alive, and when you return . . . But will he return? Ah! This last note freezes and terrifies me! “You said to me: Christmas, and I cried: Never! We will soon know which of us was speaking the truth! But if I do not reappear, on the appointed day, before you, do not accuse me, weep for me! Yes, with those eyes so full of charms, these lines, you will reread them, and you will wet them with your tears, O Charlotte, and you will tremble!” Go! Let my tears flow Go! Let my tears flow . . . They do me good, my dear! The tears that we don’t cry all fall back into our soul, and their patient drops hammer on the sad and weary heart. Its resistance is finally exhausted; the heart grows hollow and weakens: it is too great, nothing fills it; and too fragile, everything will break it! Return to Parlance Program Notes

February 20, 2022 – Paul Huang, violin; Danbi Um, violin; Juho Pohjonen, piano PABLO SARASATE (1844-1908) Navarra, Op. 33 for two violins and piano February 20, 2022 – Paul Huang, violin; Danbi Um, violin; Juho Pohjonen, piano Pablo de Sarasate won international admiration for his violin playing, characterized by an unusually sweet and pure tone, technical perfection, and a wider vibrato than was common at the time. He dazzled audiences all over Europe, Russia, and North and South America. The esteem in which he was held by many composers is revealed by the large number of compositions dedicated to him: Bruch’s Second Violin Concerto and Scottish Fantasy, Saint-Saëns’s First and Third Violin Concertos and Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, Lalo’s First Violin Concerto and Symphonie espagnole, Dvořák’s Mazurek, Joachim’s Opus 11 Variations, and Wieniawski’s Second Violin Concerto. Sarasate was also one of the first violinists to make recordings—in 1904—which are remarkable despite the drawbacks of early recording techniques. Sarasate was at his best as a composer when he relied on folk tunes or other composers’ themes. His most popular compositions are his Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), four books of Spanish Dances, Fantasy on Themes from Carmen, his Introduction and Tarantella, and the present Navarra. He naturally drew on the folk dances of his native Spain, even when creating his own melodies in a folklike character. He generally did little to alter his basic presentation of these themes, but then subjected them to virtuosic variations to show off his skills. Most of his works begin with a slow, rhapsodic section followed by a lively section of showstopping brilliance. In Navarra, published in 1889, Sarasate pays tribute to his birthplace of Pamplona in the Navarre region of Spain. His motivation for composing for two violins and piano (the accompaniment was later orchestrated) is unknown, but both violin parts are extremely virtuosic, with the added dimension that all these pyrotechnic passages—whether in parallel thirds, trills, or contrary-motion arpeggios—require exact synchronization. Part of Sarasate’s inspiration was the Spanish music of the gaitas, a small recorder-like instrument whose range and style he imitates in harmonics, tremolo (fast repeated notes), and lightning passage work for the violins. Together the two soloists play an introductory recitative that launches a lively dance. The middle section changes key and adopts a singing style before breaking out in unabashed virtuosic filigree. The opening dance resumes in yet more brilliance to which Sarasate adds a showstopping coda. By Jane Vial Jaffe Return to Parlance Program Notes

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2022 AT 4 PM STEVEN BANKS, SAXOPHONIST-COMPOSER BUY TICKETS STEVEN BANKS, SAXOPHONE “One senses that Banks has the potential to be one of the transformational musicians of the twenty-first century.” — Seen and Heard International BENJAMIN BOWMAN, VIOLIN Concertmaster, Met Orchestra MILAN MILISAVLJEVIĆ, VIOLA Principal Viola, Met Orchestra XAK BJERKEN, PIANO RAFAEL FIGUEROA, CELLO Principal Cello, Met Orchestra FEATURING ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE BUY TICKETS Winner of the prestigious 2022 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Steven Banks is poised to become today’s leading ambassador for the classical saxophone. A compelling and charismatic performer and an innovative composer, Banks is committed to rethinking and expanding the boundaries of the instrument and classical music itself. His program will feature an eclectic range of music, ranging from Mozart’s lilting oboe quartet arranged for soprano saxophone and string trio to 20th-century saxophone classics by Debussy and Schulhoff to Steven Banks’ own powerfully expressive works, As I Am and Come As You Are . The afternoon will reveal the full gamut of his artistic persona, instrumental virtuosity, and creative spirit. PROGRAM Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Quartet for oboe (soprano saxophone) and strings, K. 370 Program Notes Erwin Schulhoff Hot Sonate for alto saxophone and piano Program Notes Steven Banks As I Am for baritone saxophone and piano Program Notes Claude Debussy Rhapsody for alto saxophone and piano Program Notes Astor Piazzolla Milonga del ángel for alto saxophone and piano Program Notes Steven Banks Come As You Are for tenor saxophone and piano Program Notes Watch Steven Banks perform Mozart’s quartet for oboe (arranged for soprano saxophone) and strings:

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MICHELLE KIM, VIOLIN Violinist Michelle Kim has been Assistant Concertmaster (The William Petschek Family Chair) of the New York Philharmonic since 2001. She has performed as soloist with orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, New Jersey Philharmonic, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, and Pacific Symphony. An active chamber musician, Ms. Kim has collaborated with violinists Cho-Liang Lin, Christian Tetzlaff, and Pinchas Zukerman; cellists Mstislav Rostropovich, Lynn Harrell, and Gary Hoffman; and pianists Lang Lang and Yefim Bronfman. She has performed at the Santa Fe Chamber Music, La Jolla Chamber Music, Strings in the Mountain, and Bravo! Vail Valley Music festivals. She has also served as the first violinist of the Rossetti String Quartet, and was a Sterne Virtuoso Artist at Skidmore College in 2007-08. A former Presidential Scholar, Ms. Kim attended the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music as a Starling Foundation scholarship recipient. She has been a member of the faculty at the USC Thornton School of Music; Colburn School of Performing Arts; and University of California, Santa Barbara. Michelle Kim currently teaches at the Mannes College of Music.