Story by Marshal Clemmer
Sunday night, a collection of classical and pop music put to a live orchestra played at the Hinton Music Hall over at that Wright Music Building, featuring Carly Brown (violin), Franco Galetto (cello) and Emma Maguire (piano) of Graduate Piano Trio. The event also featurded saxophone soloist Eric Fung and Dennis A. Hawkins conducting the Chamber Orchestra.
The Graduate Piano Trio performed Felix Mendelssohn’s “Molto Allegro Agitato” from Piano Trio No. 1, Op 49 in D minor. In 1839, German composer Felix Mendelssohn wrote “Molto Allegro Agitato,” a musical piece for a violin, cello and piano, and one of Felix Mendelssohn’s most famous works. Maguire, Brown, and Galetto beautifully played this piece of music together. Their work and dedication to this piece expresses Robert Schumann’s claim that it’s “the master trio of the age.”
Chamber Orchestra musical selections are as interesting as the songs themselves. Eric Fung on saxophone and the Chamber Orchestra gave Cristobal de Morales’ “Parce mihi Domine” a soft jazzy touch of elegance, giving the piece a relax smooth feel. While their rendition of Ariana Grande’s “thank u, next” is a upbeat, bouncy, pop number that shifts us away from the calm mood of “Parce mihi Domine” to a more energetic, yet self-reflective attitude.
Moving from Ariana Grande to Mozart’s fourth movement of String Quartet No. 14, K. 387, “Molto Allegro,” completes this sonic journey from slow jazz relaxation to playful happiness.
With Conductor Hawkins guidance, Chambers Orchestra starts a second journey of magic and mystery from Stephinie Ann Boyd’s “Beyond the Gate, Op 07.” She wrote this musical number when she went on nature walks with children, as an employee at the Fresh Air and Fairies summer art day camp.
For “Beyond the Gate, Op. 07) Chamber Orchestra opens with the first stanza from Boyd’s “Beyond the Gate” poem. The following three stanzas (The Mirror Pond, The Hosta Garden, And the Fountains, Aqua Blue) accompanied with three movements of “Beyond the Gate, Op. 07.) Both stanzas and movements build a picture of Boyd’s experiences on these nature walks that make you wish you were there.
Through Hawkins’ baton, Chamber Orchestra ended the night on a positive note with Taylor Swift’s “Wildest Dreams” from her “1989” album. A perfect selection of a farewell song for the audience members to hopefully one day remember this night’s musical journeys.
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