Four great artists with a passion for chamber music have formed an exciting new quartet that is bound to become an audience favorite. Anna Polonsky (piano), Jaime Laredo (violin), Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt (viola), and Sharon Robinson (cello) are all known for wonderfully expressive playing, so ESPRESSIVO! was the perfect name for this new quartet of piano and strings. HVCMC is delighted to have our Artistic Directors, Jaime and Sharon, kick off the season with their new quartet and the following program:

• Rebecca Clarke:  Morpheus for viola and piano
• Gabriel Fauré:  Piano Quartet No. 1 in C minor, Op. 15
• Johannes Brahms:  Piano Quartet No. 2 in A major, Op. 26

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our 70th Anniversary Gala at the magical Astor Dairy Barns ! With your help and support, the Hudson Valley Chamber Music Circle can continue its mission of bringing exceptional chamber music to the Hudson Valley, celebrating works from the chamber music canon and championing young musicians and composers.

We are grateful to violinist Jennifer Koh for her performance of works by J.S. Bach and Missy Mazzoli, and to our sponsors, Board of Directors, and brave guests who, despite the weather, made the day a shining success! Indeed, in the words of Kevin McEneaney of The Millbrook Independent :

“This concert was nearly an out-of-body experience.”

Featuring Jamie Laredo (violin), Sharon Robinson (cello), Benjamin Hochman (piano), and Nokuthula Ngwenyama (viola)

Mozart: Piano Quartet in E–flat Major, K.493
Nokuthula Ngwenyama: ELEGY
Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 1, Op.25

“The Keyboard Reimagined”

• Julia Wolfe – Dark Full Ride (Part I)
• Caroline Shaw – Taxidermy
• Jason Treuting – Nine Numbers 4
• Kendall Williams – Melodic Concept III
• Darian Donovan Thomas – Stephon Clark
• Vijay Iyer – Torque

• Bach:  Art of the Fugue (selections)
• Borodin:  Quartet No. 2 in D Major
• Bartok:  String Quartet No. 1 in A Major

This summer would have marked HVCMC’s 70th June Concert Series. So it is with enormous regret that we have decided to cancel our June concert series this year. The reason is obvious and it is the responsible thing to do. We hope to have the same performers from this year appear in our June Concert Series next year, because our scheduled program would have been spectacular. Take solace in the next best thing — recorded performances by the esteemed performers we’ll be missing this year that you can view by clicking the “Learn More” button below.

OUR PREVIOUSLY SCHEDULED LINEUP:
•  The Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio plus guests Nokuthula Ngwenyama, violist and composer, and Harold Robinson, double bass
• The Omer Quartet
• Matt Haimovitz, cello, and Andrea Lam, piano

We at HVCMC were thrilled to co-sponsor a performance by our very own Artistic Directors, cellist Sharon Robinson and violinist Jaime Laredo, along with CameraMusic, a program of the Chamber Music Society of Detroit, designed to keep audiences engaged, and artists employed, by connecting them to each other live over the internet.  Viewers enjoyed the program by joining us here on the homepage of HVCMC.org where we livestreamed the concert on Saturday, May 30 — “doors opened” a half hour before the performance began at 8pm EST and included:

• Handel/Halvorsen: Passacaglia for Violin and Cello
• Mozart: Duo for Violin and Cello, after KV 423 in G major
• Erwin Schulhoff: Duo for Violin and Cello
• Andy Stein: Tango, from Suite for Two for Violin and Cello

Click the “Learn More” button to watch a recording of this exquisite performance.

Thanks to our loyal friends and some welcome newcomers, our Annual Fall Benefit Concert at Joan Davidson’s beautiful Germantown estate was a great success!  It was a beautiful day, the Bard Conservatory musicians organized by our estimable Advisory Director Joan Tower were spectacular, and we trust all enjoyed their performance and the after-concert refreshments.

with guest flutist Tara Helen O’Connor

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:  Flute Quartet in C major, K.Anh.171/285b
• Fritz Kreisler:  String Quartet in A minor
• Franz Schubert:  String Quartet No. 14 in D minor, ‘Death and the Maiden’

• Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Pas de Trois (Local Premiere, Co-Commissioned by HVCMC)
• Robert Schumann: Six Études in Canonic Form, Op. 56
• Maurice Ravel: Piano Trio
• Felix Mendelssohn: Piano Trio in D minor

with guest violist Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: String Quartet No.23 in F major, K.590
• Erich Wolfgang Korngold: String Quartet No. 3, Op. 34
• Antonín Dvořák: String Quintet No.3, Op.97

Please join us at the home of our esteemed board member Dennis and his generous partner Bing for our annual autumn concert & reception to benefit HVCMC. The event will be held in their renovated barn which features a music room that is adjacent to Bing’s art studio. The barn of creativity faces west, providing guests with stunning views of a fall sunset while you enjoy wine & hors d’oeuvres. Our own talented, well-loved birthday celebrant, Joan Tower, has planned a memorable musical afternoon for all.