Saturday, January 30th, 2010, at 4 PM
A Far Cry, the "talented and intrepid" (as described by the Boston Globe) self-conducted string orchestra, presents "The Lover," the second concert cycle in their season, "The Lunatic, The Lover, The Poet," inspired by the quote from A Midsummer Night's Dream, "The lunatic, the lover, and the poet/ Are of imagination all compact." Tickets are $10 general admission at the door. You can also purchase tickets in advance on the web at www.afarcry.org or by phone 1-800-838-3006. Children under 12 receive free admission for either series.
"The Lover" celebrates the romance of Italy as seen through the eyes of a German, Hugo Wolf, and a Russian, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, as well as investigating the passionate and sensuous music of Alberto Ginastera's Argentina. Wolf's mercurial and offbeat "Italian Serenade" opens the concert. Written as Wolf was writing the song "Der Soldat," about a soldier who falls for a noble lady, this work tears through the archetypes of courtly romance at lightning speed and with biting wit. Next on the program is Ginastera's monumental Concerto for Strings, op. 33. This piece started its life as his Second String Quartet (1958) and was recreated into a work for string orchestra in 1965. This was a substantial revision that cut one movement out entirely and rearranged the other three, a true reworking of the material into a new shape. The final work is Tchaikovsky's "Souvenir de Florence," his beloved string sextet op. 70, written in part during a sojourn to Florence and here recast as a work for string orchestra. All three of the pieces on the program are thus also chamber compositions, presenting a welcome challenge to A Far Cry, which by its very nature is always striving to unite the intimacy and versatility of a string quartet with the power of an orchestral sound.
Three young artists, Gergana Haralampieva and Abe McWilliams, violin, and Rosie Salvucci, bass, all from NEC's Preparatory Division, will be joining the orchestra for the Tchaikovsky piece. These players are the winners of A Far Cry's annual competition, which takes place as part of its educational partnership with NEC.
Note: It was previously announced that the Israeli-New York pianist & composer Omer Klein would be premiering his new work for piano & strings, at this concert and would be joining A Far Cry as soloist. This project is currently on hold.
A Far Cry is a cooperatively-directed group of 17 young professional musicians in the Boston area. The new season's highlights include a subscription series at NEC's Jordan Hall, the inaugural season of a community series in partnership with JP Concerts in Jamaica Plain, collaborations with spectacular soloists, world premiere works written for the ensemble & tour dates in Vermont and New Hampshire. Operating with rotating leadership and no conductor, A Far Cry is generating enthusiasm not only in the concert hall, but also with its innovative model. The New England Conservatory of Music, having recognized A Far Cry's cutting edge blueprint, has been a formidable advocate since the ensemble's inception, and the fruitful partnership which began last season, has already garnered accolades. A Far Cry offers the students, staff and faculty of NEC insight into its methods, behind-the-scenes work and strategies to improve and integrate the arts in smaller communities.
Next year A Far Cry will become the Chamber Orchestra in Residence at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. A Far Cry will present four concerts during its inaugural season at the Gardner, and will work with the Education Department to create a new music education outreach initiative. A copy of the complete Gardner press release is available upon request, and can be accessed through the "Press Room" section of our website, www.afarcry.org.
A Boston Globe review of A Far Cry's season opener concluded "It is hard to imagine a more brilliant reading than the one A Far Cry offered." (David Weininger, 11/2/09) "The Lunatic" featured a program of concerti grossi by Heinrich Biber, Francesco Geminiani, Alfred Schnittke & a world premiere by the Montréal-based composer, Christopher Hossfeld. Boston harpsichordist, Andrus Madsen joined the ensemble for the program, along with the two violinists from the young & decorated Jupiter String Quartet, Nelson Lee and Meg Freivogel, as soloists in the haunting first Concerto Grosso by the late Soviet composer Alfred Schnittke. The season finale "The Poet" will feature Richard Strauss's "Metamorphosen," the 2nd Symphony of Arthur Honegger, and "An Unexpected Encounter," a world premiere by the Boston composer, Howard Frazin. In addition, the acclaimed jazz singer Dominique Eade & drummer Richie Barshay will join A Far Cry in a set of World War II era cabaret songs from both sides of the Atlantic. The cycle will be performed on Friday, April 2, 2010 at 8pm in Jordan Hall and repeated on Saturday, April 3, 2010 at 2pm in Jamaica Plain at St. John's Episcopal Church.
A Far Cry's first studio album "Debut" was released in the spring of 2009. The CD features Osvaldo Golijov's Last Round for Double String Quartet and Bass, George Frideric Handel's Concerto Grosso in G Minor, op.6 no.6 (with the South African harpsichordist, Leon Schelhase), and the impassioned Serenade for Strings in C Major, op.48 by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky. The CD was produced by the highly respected team of Terry King and Roger Tapping. Jesse Lewis of Sound Mirror, engineered, edited, mixed and mastered the project. The album is available on A Far Cry's website & CDBaby.com to purchase in the CD format, and as a digital download from the websites of iTunes, Instant Encore, Napster & Rhapsody.
A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, A Far Cry is also committed to social change and harmony. The Criers have collaborated with visual artists in Jamaica Plain, donated proceeds from concerts to homeless shelters in the Boston area, and have partnered with other non-profits such as Elderhostel, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Bikes Not Bombs, JP Centre/South, and the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC). A Far Cry has expanded its commitment this season by inaugurating its own community concert series in the town of Jamaica Plain. The Series will be presented in conjunction with JP Concerts & St. John's Episcopal Church, with a mission of bringing world class performances at an affordable price to local families, businesses & first-time concertgoers.