The Phillips Collection 2013/2014 Music Season
Highlights include Ivana Gavrić (piano), the Heath Quartet, William Barton (digeridoo), Pekka Kuusisto (violin), and composer Arvo Pärt
Washington, D.C.—The 2013/2014 music season at The Phillips Collection presents an international roster of performers from October through May in its intimate Music Room. The 73rd season of the critically-acclaimed series welcomes a range of emerging to established musicians and composers, from concerts celebrating the centennial of Benjamin Britten and a didgeridoo performance, to discussions with innovative composers from Slovenia and Estonia.
“Our music program, praised by The Washington Post as ‘currently the best in Washington,’ showcases an exemplary range of talent,” says Director Dorothy Kosinski. “Music has been a critical part of the Phillips since the museum opened, and the concert series continues to reinforce the bond between music and art.”
SUNDAY CONCERTS
Resident ensemble The Phillips Camerata opens the Sunday Concerts season (Oct. 6) with a program inspired by the exhibition Van Gogh Repetitions, featuring works by Debussy, Bizet, and Saint-Saëns. Harpist Bridget Kibbey and fellow members of The Phillips Camerata conclude the season (May 25) with the Washington premiere of a Harp Concerto by award-winning composer Vivian Fung. The Camerata welcomes three new members: Assistant Principal Viola of the National Symphony Orchestra Abigail Evans, Associate Principal Horn of the Philadelphia Orchestra Jeffrey Lang, and Principal Bassoon of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Patricia Rogers.
Demonstrating the Phillips’s commitment to presenting world class chamber music, the season is stacked with distinguished musicians making their Phillips debut. Highlights include the Calder Quartet (Nov. 24), pairing traditional repertoire with contemporary works; the Heath Quartet (April 13), recipient of the 2012 Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artists award; and Polish violinist Bartosz Woroch (April 27), making his U.S. debut. Newcomers to classical music are sure to enjoy marimbist Ian Rosenbaum and the Dover Quartet (March 23), and Australian didgeridoo player William Barton (Feb. 16), who has been influential in carrying the instrument’s ancient heritage into the modern age. Two young musicians with an affinity for genre-defying performance, Finnish classical and jazz violinist Pekka Kuusisto and the American composer and pianist Nico Muhly (Jan. 5) offer a range of music from Bach to traditional Finnish fiddle music.
A core of solo piano music throughout the season includes emerging artists alongside seasoned performers. Boris Giltburg (Nov. 3) performs at the Phillips, fresh from his victory at the 2013 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. Ivana Gavrić (Oct. 20), in her U.S. debut, presents a program that includes Janáček’s In the Mists, her sensational recording of which earned her the 2011 BBC Music Magazine Newcomer of the Year award. Anne-Marie McDermott (Dec. 1), widely recognized as one of the great American pianists of her generation, performs a piano sonata written for her by American composer Charles Wuorinen, alongside works by Haydn and Prokofiev.
Reflecting the major exhibition of the Phillips’s American art collection in spring 2014, the International Contemporary Ensemble (April 6) performs the music of Brazilian American composers Felipe Lara and Marcos Balter, who exemplify the multicultural dimension of American art today.
LEADING EUROPEAN COMPOSERS
In collaboration with embassies in Washington and the George Washington University’s Music Department, the Leading European Composers series, now in its fifth season, presents Slovenian composer Dušan Bavdek (Dec. 12) and the eminent Estonian composer Arvo Pärt (May 29). In a rare visit to the U.S., Pärt offers a program of his chamber music, as well as a panel discussion and seminar on the subject of spirituality and art.
THE PHILLIPS CAMERATA: UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
Sun., Oct. 6, 2013, 4 p.m.
Debussy: Quartet in G minor, Op. 10
Bizet: L/Arlesienne, Suite No. 1
Saint-Säens: Quartet in E minor, Op. 112, No. 1
Sun., May 25, 2014, 4 p.m.
Vivian Fung: Harp Concerto (Washington premiere)
THE PHILLIPS CAMERATA MUSICIANS*
Anastasia Petanova, flute
Katherine Needleman, oboe
Ricardo Morales, clarinet
Patricia Rogers, bassoon
Jeffrey Lang, French horn
Randall Scarlata, baritone
Timothy Hoft, piano
Edvinas Minkstimas, piano
Abigail Evans, viola
Olivia Hajioff, violin/viola
Marc Ramirez, violin/viola
Steven Honigberg, cello
Charlie Powers, cello
David Teie, cello
Jeffrey Weisner, bass
Irina Nuzova, piano
Thomas Pandolfi, piano
Bridget Kibbey, harp
Nurit Bar-Josef, violin
Karen Johnson, violin
Odin Rathnam, violin
Miranda Cuckson, violin/viola
*A selection of these musicians performs at each Camerata concert.
SUNDAY CONCERTS 2013/14 SEASON
Oct. 6, 2013 The Phillips Camerata, string quartet
Oct. 13, 2013 Dublin Guitar Quartet, guitar quartet
Oct. 20, 2013 Ivana Gavrić, piano
Oct. 27, 2013 Sophie Shao and Ieva Jokubaviciute, cello and piano
Nov. 3, 2013 Boris Giltburg, piano
Nov. 10, 2013 Moran Katz and Amy Yang, clarinet and piano
Nov. 17, 2013 Misha Keylin and Robert Koenig, violin and piano
Nov. 24, 2013 Calder Quartet, string quartet
Dec. 1, 2013 Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Dec. 8, 2013 Behzod Abduraimov, piano
Dec. 15, 2013 Barry Banks, tenor
Jan. 5, 2014 Pekka Kuusisto and Nico Muhly, violin and piano
Jan. 12, 2014 Raphael Trio, piano trio
Jan. 19, 2014 Dénes Várjon, piano
Jan. 26, 2014 Fusion: Eclisses Quatuor, guitar quartet
Feb. 2, 2014 Andreas Brantelid and Gloria Chien, cello and piano
Feb. 9, 2014 Mivos Quartet, string quartet
Feb. 16, 2014 William Barton, didgeridoo
Feb. 23, 2014 Gould Piano Trio, piano trio
March 2, 2014 English Suites Project: Jory Vinikour, harpsichord
March 9, 2014 Asiya Korepanova, piano
March 16, 2014 Matthew Zalkind, cello
March 23, 2014 Ian Rosenbaum and the Dover Quartet, marimba, string quartet, and cello
March 30, 2014 Philip Higham, cello
April 6, 2014 International Contemporary Ensemble, ensemble
April 13, 2014 Heath Quartet, string quartet
April 27, 2014 Bartosz Woroch and Sam Armstrong, violin and piano
May 4, 2014 Amit Peled, Eli Kalman, and Peabody Cello Students, cello ensemble
and piano
May 11, 2014 Joanna Kurkowicz and Gloria Chien, violin and piano
May 18, 2014 Tanya Bannister, piano
May 25, 2014 The Phillips Camerata, harp and ensemble
LEADING EUROPEAN COMPOSERS 2013/2014 SEASON
Dec. 12, 2013 Dušan Bavdek
6:30 p.m. Slovenian Composer Bavdek’s compositions have been performed by Slovenian orchestras and choirs, throughout Europe and internationally. He has been a professor at the Ljubljana Academy of Music since 2002. In partnership with the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Washington, D.C.
May 29, 2014 Arvo Pärt
6:30 p.m. Estonian composer Pärt has been a leading figure in classical music since the 1960s. Under the auspices of the The Arvo Pärt Project, Pärt offers a program of his chamber music as well as a panel discussion and seminar on the subject of spirituality and art. In partnership with the Embassy of Estonia in Washington, D.C., and St. Vladimir’s Seminary.
CONCERT INFORMATION AND TICKETING
Concert tickets are $30, $15 for members and students with I.D., and include museum admission for the day of the concert. Reservations are strongly recommended; online reservations available two months in advance until 12 hours before each concert. Tickets, concert programs, and past concert podcasts available at: www.phillipscollection.org/music
Sunday Concerts are held in the Music Room at 4 p.m. Leading European Composers are held in the Music Room at 6:30 p.m. and conclude with informal conversations between audience and performers. Seats are unreserved, and early arrival is recommended.
Introducing the Phillips Chamber Society Season Subscription, with enhanced benefits including free admission to all concerts, priority seating, and invitations to a fall and spring salon concert in private art-filled homes. For more information, contact development@phillipscollection.org or 202-387-6577.