This preview has been provided by Mallarmé Chamber Players.
Durham-based Mallarmé Chamber Players continues in its 2017/18 Concert Season with a presentation of Violins of Hope on Thursday, November 9, 2017 at 7:30 pm at the Judea Reform Congregation (located at 1933 W Cornwallis Rd, Durham, NC).
This compelling program finds its inspiration from Violins of Hope by author James Grymes, a novel that tells the remarkable stories of violins played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust, and the Israeli violin-maker Amnon Weinstein. Weinstein restored the violins of the Holocaust as a tribute to those who were lost, including four hundred of his own relatives.
The moving concert line-up features Schoenberg’s Verklarte Nacht for string sextet and guest choral group SONAM singing excerpts from Allan Friedman’s Holocaust Cantata “With Perfect Faith” (2001). Two additional short works by Hans Krása and Gideon Klein, both composers who perished in the holocaust, will also be heard.
Also for this occasion, Mallarmé has commissioned a new work from David Kirkland Garner, All That There Was for strings, choir and percussion. Garner notes, “The work is a reflection and meditation on the horrific events during the Holocaust. The piece is created around two main threads: (1) first-person accounts of the events of the “Night of Broken Glass,” which took place on November 9-10, 1938 when Jewish Synagogues, homes, and businesses across Nazi Germany were demolished and set ablaze, and (2) the story of the Violins of Hope, a 2014 book by author James A. Grymes, which tells the stories of violins played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust…”
Mallarmé’s Artistic Director Suzanne Rousso says, “Through the horrors of the holocaust great art was being created. Our aim is to connect concert-goers with some of those stories both tragic and hopeful in the shared community of a live performance. We are especially grateful to the wonderful guest musicians performing on the concert, including violinist Janet Sung from DePaul University in Chicago and violist Sheila Browne from the University of Delaware, as well as SONAM (Singers of New and Ancient Music), conducted by Judea Reform’s music director, Allan Friedman.”
As this concert has such connection to the novel of the same name, Mallarmé Chamber Players is hosting an intimate book reading event with the author James Grymes on Thursday, November 2, at 7:00 pm at The Regulator Bookstore in Durham (720 9th St, Durham, NC). Don’t miss this event as another point of connection to the music and performance the following week. This event is free and open to the public.
VIOLINS OF HOPE
Book Reading by author James Grymes FREE
Thursday, November 2, 2017 at 7:00 pm
Regulator Bookshop, 720 Ninth St. Durham
Concert Performance
Thursday, November 9, 2017 at 7:30 pm
Judea Reform Congregation, 1933 W Cornwallis Rd, Durham
PROGRAM
Hans Krása – Passacaglia and Fugue for String Trio
Allan Friedman – Excerpts from Holocaust Cantata “With Perfect Faith”
Gideon Klein – Duo for Violin and Cello
David Kirkland Garner – “All That There Was” WORLD PREMIERE
Arnold Schoenberg – Verklärte Nacht
ARTISTS
Janet Sung, Nicholas DiEugenio – violin
Sheila Browne, Suzanne Rousso – viola
Bonnie Thron, Nathan Leyland – cello
SONAM Chorus – Allan Friedman, director
TICKETS
Individual tickets for all 2017/18 Season concerts are just $25 (inclusive of sales tax plus a $2 handling fee) and are general admission seating. Special $5 tickets are available for children and students at the door with I.D. Tickets can be purchased on the web at www.mallarmemusic.org, by phone at 919.560.2788, or at the door 30 minutes in advance of the concert.
ABOUT MALLARMÉ CHAMBER PLAYERS:
The Mallarmé Chamber Players are a flexible ensemble of professional musicians based in Durham, North Carolina, whose mission is to enrich the lives of their community through outstanding chamber music. The ensemble distinguishes itself by its innovative educational programs, its commitment to creative collaboration with other organizations, its creation of significant new work, and its dedication to serve a diverse population.
Mallarmé annually presents a series of concerts that features great, diverse, and multidisciplinary chamber music. Mallarmé performs everything from Bach with period instruments to commissioned new works. In 2010, Mallarmé released, to great acclaim, a cd on Albany/Videmus records of chamber music by African American composers.
Mallarmé is unique in that we do not work with a small core of musicians, but instead use the wonderful musical talent North Carolina has to offer to perform with the ensemble depending on the needs of the repertoire. Most of Mallarmé’s musicians are members of professional organizations like the NC Symphony, free-lance players or faculty members of the numerous institutions of higher learning.
Mallarmé is a non-profit, tax-exempt, 501(c) 3 organization. The 2017/18 concert season is made possible in part by grants from the Durham Arts Council‘s Annual Arts Fund and the North Carolina Arts Council.
