Cellist

Artistic Director

With the passage of time, artists can disappear into obscurity while some emerge as immortal. The American George Crumb, who passed away in 2022, is undoubtedly in the pantheon of composers whose legacies are eternal. In this program, his cataclysmic Black Angels, a passionately anti-war statement for amplified string quartet, balances Olivier Messiaen’s Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time), a devoutly spiritual, mystical work composed in a prisoner of war camp. And to open, J. S. Bach consecrates the concert hall with two of his most deeply felt, final works.

EPSG:4326

Concert Program Vii Renascence (livestream)

Online

Concert Program Vii Renascence

Stent Family Hall 

Menlo School Campus

Vocal Exchange juxtaposes treasured songs from three cultures. Without needing to understand a single word, listeners will experience national flavors through the very sounds of the languages. Russian-American soprano Erika Baikoff (a fluent French speaker) offers her unsurpassed vocal skill and bewitching personality, with instrumental contrasts and reflections rounding out this multidimensional program.

Concert Program Vi Vocal Exchange (livestream)

Concert Program Vi Vocal Exchange

Vienna and Paris have long been cultural powerhouses, from the visual to the literary to the musical. Joseph Haydn, the founder of the Classical style, and W. A. Mozart, who refined and augmented it, are represented in this program by beloved works for traditional chamber ensembles. After the intermission, French composers offer their different, effervescent perspectives on mixed ensembles and the piano trio.

Concert Program II: Vienna to Paris (Livestream)

Concert Program II: Vienna to Paris

The golden age of the Baroque saw musical explosions of invention across Europe; mathematical precision in Germany contrasted French flights of fancy in Versailles. In this opening program, J. S. Bach’s classic double concerto for oboe and violin is followed by a dramatic shift in style from French luminaries François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau, with Jean-Féry Rebel’s Les Élémens providing a provocative and lively finale.

Concert Program I Baroque Tableau

Concert Program I Baroque Tableau (livestream)

Join us for an unforgettable evening as the Manchester Music Festival kicks off its Thursday Nights Season with the spectacular opener, "Lighting the Torch - Beethoven, Schubert." This event marks the beginning of our 50th Anniversary Season, a milestone celebration of music, mastery, and memorable performances.

**Date and Time:**  
Thursday, July 11, 2024  
7:30 PM - 9:30 PM

**Location:**  
SVAC Arkell Pavilion  
860 Southern Vermont Arts Center Drive  
Manchester, VT, 05254

**Program Details:**  
The evening will commence with the profound compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven, featuring his Piano Trio in B-flat, Op. 97 "Archduke," a masterpiece that encompasses a range of emotions through its four movements: Allegro moderato, Scherzo. Allegro, Andante cantabile, ma però con moto, and Allegro moderato.

Following an intermission, the night will continue to enchant with Franz Schubert's Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat, Op. 100 D.929. This composition, known for its lyrical beauty and complex emotions, will be performed in its entirety, promising an immersive experience through its movements: Allegro, Andante con moto, Scherzando. Allegro moderato, and Allegro moderato.

**Featured Artists:**  
- Wu Han, piano  
- Philip Setzer, violin  
- David Finckel, cello

These renowned musicians will bring to life the intricate compositions of Beethoven and Schubert, ensuring an evening of exquisite music and artistic brilliance.

**Tickets:**  
Available for purchase online. Secure your spot for this season opener and be part of the Manchester Music Festival's historic 50th anniversary celebration.

**Note:**  
Artists and programs are subject to change without notice.

Don't miss this opportunity to witness the magic of classical music under the stars at the beautiful SVAC Arkell Pavilion. "Lighting the Torch - Beethoven, Schubert" promises to be a night of musical excellence, setting the tone for a season of unforgettable performances.

MMF Thursday Nights Season Opener: Lighting the Torch - Beethoven, Schubert

Southern Vermont Arts Center

**Event: Summer Evenings I - Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center**

**Date and Time:** Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at 7:30 pm  
**Duration:** 2 hours, including intermission  
**Venue:** Alice Tully Hall, 1941 Broadway at W 65th St, New York, NY 10023  

**Overview:**  
The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center is thrilled to announce the return of its beloved summer tradition, "Summer Evenings I." This much-anticipated event promises an enchanting evening featuring a selection of beloved chamber works performed in the cool, inviting atmosphere of Alice Tully Hall. Attendees are invited to stay after the performance for a unique opportunity to meet the artists in the lobby, complemented by a complimentary glass of wine.

**Program Highlights:**  
- **Antonín Dvořák:** Drobnosti (Miniatures) for Two Violins and Viola, Op. 75a, showcasing his fondness for folk melodies inspired by Czech folk music.
- **Giacomo Puccini:** Crisantemi for String Quartet, a hauntingly beautiful funeral elegy expressing profound sorrow and grief.
- **Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:** Quintet in C minor for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, K. 406, demonstrating Mozart's exceptional ability to adapt compositions across different instrumental ensembles.
- **Antonín Dvořák:** Selections from Cypresses (Echo of Songs) for String Quartet, B. 152, offering a glimpse into Dvořák’s deeply personal reflections on love.
- **Johannes Brahms:** Quintet in G major for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, Op. 111, intended as his last piece of music, showcasing the interplay of strings with robust support from the cello.

**Featured Artists:**  
- **Chad Hoopes**, Violin
- **Kristin Lee**, Violin
- **Matthew Lipman**, Viola
- **Paul Neubauer**, Viola
- **David Finckel**, Cello

These renowned musicians will bring to life the intricate melodies, harmonies, and emotional depth of the selected works, making for an unforgettable evening of chamber music.

**Tickets:**  
Tickets for "Summer Evenings I" are not yet on sale. Please check back for availability and secure your spot for this highlight of the summer cultural calendar in New York City.

**Plan Your Visit:**  
Alice Tully Hall is located at 1941 Broadway at W 65th St, New York, NY 10023. For directions and more information on planning your visit, please visit the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's website.

Join us for an evening of exquisite music and camaraderie, celebrating the enduring beauty and complexity of chamber music.

Summer Evenings I

Lincoln Center

Join us at the Spa Little Theater for an exquisite afternoon of chamber music with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's "Musical Mosaics" on Sunday, June 23, 2024, at 3:00 pm. This captivating concert will feature two string quintets that showcase the elegance of Mozart and the lyricism of Brahms. Additionally, attendees will be treated to Dvořák’s miniatures for two violins and viola, selections from his early-career song cycle arranged for string quartet, and Puccini’s "I Crisantemi (The Chrysanthemums)," composed in memory of a lost friend.

The program includes:
- Dvořák: Drobnosti (Miniatures) for Two Violins and Viola, Op. 75a (1887)
- Puccini: Crisantemi for String Quartet (1890)
- Mozart: Quintet in C minor for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, K. 406 (1782, arr. 1787)
- Dvořák: Selections from Cypresses (Echo of Songs) for String Quartet, B. 152 (1865, arr. 1887)
- Brahms: Quintet in G major for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Cello, Op. 111 (1890)

The performance will feature an ensemble of renowned musicians, including Chad Hoopes and Kristin Lee on violin, Paul Neubauer and Matthew Lipman on viola, and David Finckel on cello.

This event is presented by Charles Schwab & Maureen Parker and will take place at the intimate, 500-seat Spa Little Theater, located at 19 Roosevelt Drive, across from the Hall of Springs. It's an opportunity to experience the artistry of CMS musicians in a close and personal setting.

Tickets are available for purchase now. Don't miss this opportunity to immerse yourself in the beauty of chamber music performed by some of the most talented musicians in the field.

Musical Mosaics

Saratoga Performing Arts Center

Pleasant Hill, KY

Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Artistic Directors Wu Han and David Finckel return to end the season with guest violinist Chad Hoopes.

Wu Han, David Finckel, and Chad Hoopes

Spa Little Theatre

A memorable evening is certain when the "power couple of chamber music," Han and Finckel, team with Setzer, of Emerson renown!

Han-Setzer-Finckel Trio

Alice Pratt Brown Hall

SMF favorites David Finckel and Wu Han return with a program entitled Three Cultures. Recipients of Musical America‘s “Musicians of the Year” award, David Finckel and Wu Han enjoy a multi-faceted musical life that encompasses performing, recording and artistic direction at the highest levels. Join us on stage at the Lucas Theatre for the Arts for this opening night concert.

David Finckel, Cello & Wu Han, Piano

Lucas Theatre For the Arts

In her only appearance at The Barns this season, Artistic Advisor Wu Han is joined by husband and cellist David Finckel, Emerson String Quartet’s Philip Setzer, and masterful violist Paul Neubauer for an evening of works showcasing great friendship and musical influences.

Wu Han, David Finckel, and Friends

The Barns At Wolf Trap

In high demand year after year among chamber music audiences around the world, David Finckel and Wu Han, recipients of Musical America’s Musicians of the Year award, and directors of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Music@Menlo, appear each season at the most prestigious venues, festivals and concert series across the United States and around the world -- including InConcert!

Wu Han, piano & David Finckel, cello

Seventh-day Adventist Church

Across decades and continents, the chamber music power couple of cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han has been plumbing the depths of Beethoven’s five spectacular cello sonatas, rediscovering and reinventing them through each probing and committed performance. The works elevate musical interaction and communication to its highest level, and in some ways, the deeply collaborative repertoire mirrors the duo’s lives as dedicated artistic partners and co-artistic directors of Music@Menlo and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, where vision, dedication, and creative chemistry have made them beloved by audiences on both coasts. “Finckel and Han played with just the right combination of abandon and care, paying as much attention to the dramatic pauses as to the tumultuous cascades and swirling arpeggios” (San Francisco Classical Voice).

David Finckel, cello Wu Han, piano

University of California, Berkeley

Co-Artistic Director of CMS since 2004, cellist David Finckel’s dynamic musical career has included performances on the world’s stages in the roles of recitalist, chamber artist, and orchestral soloist. The first American student of Mstislav Rostropovich, he joined the Emerson String Quartet in 1979, and during 34 seasons garnered nine Grammy Awards and the Avery Fisher Prize. His quartet performances and recordings include quartet cycles of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Dvorák, Brahms, Bartók, and Shostakovich, as well as collaborative masterpieces and commissioned works. In 1997, he and pianist Wu Han founded ArtistLed, the first internet-based, artist-controlled classical recording label. ArtistLed’s catalog of more than 20 releases includes the standard literature for cello and piano, plus works composed for the duo by George Tsontakis, Gabriela Lena Frank, Bruce Adolphe, Lera Auerbach, Edwin Finckel, Augusta Read Thomas, and Pierre Jalbert. In 2022, Music@Menlo, an innovative summer chamber music festival in Silicon Valley founded and directed by David and Wu Han, celebrated its 20th season. As a young student, David was winner of the Philadelphia Orchestra’s junior and senior divisions, resulting in two performances with the orchestra. Having taught extensively with the late Isaac Stern in America, Israel, and Japan, he is currently a professor at both the Juilliard School and Stony Brook University, and oversees both CMS’s Bowers Program and Music@Menlo’s Chamber Music Institute. David’s 100 online Cello Talks, lessons on cello technique, are viewed by an international audience of musicians. Along with Wu Han, he was the recipient of Musical America’s 2012 Musicians of the Year Award.

Calidore String Quartet Seminar - David Finckel String Quartet Masterclass

University of Delaware

In a concert celebrating the range of the cello-piano duo repertoire, Debussy’s groundbreaking late sonata—the first truly modern work on the genre—leads seamlessly to the dreamy opening of Bruce Adolphe’s Couple, composed for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s own David Finckel and Wu Han. Mendelssohn’s Second Sonata, a masterpiece of his extensive instrumental output, is a prime example of everything we associate with Mendelssohn, from racing, virtuosic outer movements to a magical scherzo and a slow movement based on a Christian hymn.

An Evening with David Finckel and Wu Han

Harris Theater

Haydn & Beethoven; The Birth & Flowering of the Piano Trio with Wu Han, Arnaud Sussmann and David Finckel

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Washington Irving Campus

fter 44 seasons comprising thousands of concerts on multiple continents, dozens of recordings, and definitive performances of the greatest works in the literature, the Emerson String Quartet says goodbye to its listeners from the CMS stage.

Emerson String Quartet: Farewell Performance

This farewell concert will be held on Staller Center's Main Stage. It will celebrate the Quartet's almost 25-year-long history as Artists in Residence here at Stony Brook. Following the performance, a celebratory reception for all attendees will be held in the Main Lobby.

Emerson String Quartet Grand Finale At Stony Brook

Staller Center for the Arts

As the Romantic movement matured, music became more about art, nature, and experiences. The French rallied behind the sensuous music of their country following the Franco-Prussian War; Russians told sad tales from their vast and cold land; Bohemians mined the folk traditions of their countrymen; and composers such as Brahms shared their most personal thoughts with the world.

Concert Program IV: Romantic Twilight

A straight line leads from Bach, the musical monarch of the Baroque, to Beethoven, the composer who would reinvent the art in its entirety. Along the way, many composers made weighty contributions: Bach’s sons attained fame with more populist music; Haydn invented the symphony and string quartet; and virtually everything that Mozart created was of unearthly beauty. Riding on all this momentum, a youthful Beethoven broke from the starting gate, stunning the musical establishment with works of unimagined daring, invention, and excitement. 

Concert Program II: Bach To Beethoven

Music from the Baroque era stimulates the senses, lifts the spirits, and inspires faith in all things good. The evolution of everything in music—from the art of counterpoint to the invention of new forms—transformed Baroque composers into unstoppable creators as they experimented with new musical styles and combinations of instruments. In this opening concert, we’ll experience six trailblazing composers showing their skills in a colorful collection of instruments and ensembles.

Concert Program I: Baroque Splendor

Winds, strings, and piano comprise the chamber music family’s essential members. Combine them, and one hears chamber music at its richest, most multi- dimensional level. Brahms’s pairings of clarinet with cello, and horn with violin, create deeply inspired variations of the traditional piano trio format, each work a unique masterpiece of extreme beauty. Brahms serves as this program’s point of arrival and departure, as an outstanding work by the Hungarian Ernst Dohnányi gathers all the instruments for a dazzling close.

Brahms and Dohnányi

Johannes Brahms laid an inspirational groundwork for a generation of composers to come. One such composer was Hungarian Erno˝ Dohnányi, whose Sextet in C major owes its formative elements to Brahms. Pair this work with two Brahms trios of profound originality, and you will not be able to help but feel moved.

The Brahms Effect

University of Georgia Performing Arts Center

The San Diego Union-Tribune praised the trio’s “wonderful…resonant…and compelling” artistry, and the St. Paul Pioneer Press noted that this ensemble is also “almost as much fun to watch as to hear.”

Wu Han, Philip Setzer, and David Finckel

Beckman Auditorium

Cal Performances favorites David Finckel and Wu Han return to Berkeley with a ravishing program curated with their signature thoughtfulness and flair. As co-directors of both the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Music@Menlo, “these two powerhouses have, over a period of decades, had an enormous, worldwide impact on chamber music—old and new—and have actually helped shape how people think about it in the 21st century” (The Berkshire Eagle). They grace Hertz Hall with their revelatory ensemble playing, honed over years of sold-out tours and acclaimed recordings. The program includes Shostakovich’s athletic D minor sonata, Brahms’ passionate Sonata No. 2 in F major, and a recently commissioned work by Pierre Jalbert that is vivid with instrumental color and rhythmic interplay.

David Finckel, cello; Wu Han, piano

Bruce Adolphe will explore how Beethoven’s last string quartet, Opus 135, was inspired by the composer’s personal experiences ranging from a humorous conversation to the tragedy of his deafness.

Inside Chamber Music: Beethoven’s String Quartet in F major, Op. 135

Rose Studio

As preludes to the Beach, fanciful works by Beethoven and Schumann lead to the intense sonic and rhythmic world of Erwin Schulhoff, whose bracing duo for violin and cello rivals those by his contemporaries Ravel and Kodály.

Beethoven to Beach

Great works have been inspired not only by lofty ideals, but also by the colorful music composers heard played as entertainment outside the concert hall. Among the most mesmerizing performers heard by composers such as Joseph Haydn and Johannes Brahms were the itinerant Roma, whose musical skills combined almost supernatural virtuosity with visceral excitement. Later, before tragically perishing in a Nazi prison, Erwin Schulhoff composed stunning, eclectic music that drew on idioms from folk to jazz, and the Spanish virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate provided violinists with ideal vehicles for simply showing off. Music@Menlo’s twentieth season appropriately closes with Brahms’s first piano quartet, its Rondo alla Zingarese finale, perhaps the greatest chamber music crowd-pleaser of them all.

This concert is preceded by a free afternoon Koret Young Performers Concert (KYPC) at 12:30 p.m. by the 2022 Young Performers Program artists. KYPC programs will be announced in May.

CONCERT PROGRAM VIII Folk Spirit

Haydn is well-known for his 104 symphonies and 68 string quartets, but his piano trios supply equal delight for listeners and inspiring challenges for performers. In this program, we hear the direct effect of Haydn’s genius on Beethoven, as three familiar and formidable Music@Menlo musicians tackle a four-work juxtaposition of seminal trios by both composers. We will hear each composer’s trios evolve, as they did side by side in Vienna, where Haydn and Beethoven enjoyed a cordial if somewhat competitive relationship. Beethoven’s Ghost Trio concludes, its eerie slow movement reportedly inspired by the witches’ scene from Macbeth.

This concert is preceded by a free afternoon Koret Young Performers Concert (KYPC) at 12:30 p.m. by the 2022 Young Performers Program artists. KYPC programs will be announced in May.

Concert Program VII From Haydn

Haydn is well-known for his 104 symphonies and 68 string quartets, but his piano trios supply equal delight for listeners and inspiring challenges for performers. In this program, we hear the direct effect of Haydn’s genius on Beethoven, as three familiar and formidable Music@Menlo musicians tackle a four-work juxtaposition of seminal trios by both composers. We will hear each composer’s trios evolve, as they did side by side in Vienna, where Haydn and Beethoven enjoyed a cordial if somewhat competitive relationship. Beethoven’s Ghost Trio concludes, its eerie slow movement reportedly inspired by the witches’ scene from Macbeth.

This concert is preceded by a free afternoon Prelude Performance at 5 p.m. by the 2022 International Program artists. Prelude programs will be announced in May.

CONCERT PROGRAM VII From Haydn

Bestowing possibly the greatest music review in history, Joseph Haydn remarked to Leopold Mozart in 1785, “Before God and as an honest man, I tell you that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by name.” In this program, you will hear the exact quartet by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart that inspired these words, preceded by one of Haydn’s finest works that inspired Mozart to dedicate quartets to the elder master. French composers Reynaldo Hahn, Paul Dukas, Vincent D’Indy, and Charles-Marie Widor contribute colorful homages to Haydn, for solo piano, written on the hundredth anniversary of his death. Concluding the concert is a bracing juxtaposition of the defining giants of Impressionism, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, bringing their mutual respect—and perhaps even rivalry—to life on stage.

This concert is preceded by a free afternoon Prelude Performance at 5 p.m. by the 2022 International Program artists. Prelude programs will be announced in May.

CONCERT PROGRAM V Admiration

This eclectic program celebrates both a beloved instrument and classical music’s most rigorous contrapuntal form. Arguably the king of musical innovators, Joseph Haydn took from the past and created the future, as in his Opus 20 Quartet which begins with a cello solo (a historical first) and concludes with a lively fugue that could have come straight from the pen of J.S. Bach. From cellist-composers Luigi Boccherini and Michael Finckel (David Finckel’s cousin) to the Frenchman Alexandre Tansman and the Russian Aleksandr Glazunov, we will hear cellos throughout this concert in delightful combinations, even cello quartets, with exhilarating fugues popping up unexpectedly.

CONCERT PROGRAM IV Cellos And Fugues

The festival begins on a celebratory note, connecting Joseph Haydn, the father of the Classical style, with the Baroque era’s greatest master, Johann Sebastian Bach. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, son of Johann Sebastian, composed his dashing A major Cello Concerto only three years after his father’s death, setting a new standard of instrumental brilliance. In Haydn’s dramatic cantata, the heroine Ariadne is abandoned during the night on the island of Naxos by her lover Theseus, whom she had saved from the Minotaur. Haydn’s ever popular C major Violin Concerto follows, and the evening closes with Johann Sebastian Bach’s secular cantata Be still, stop chattering (in essence, a short comic opera), which tells the humorous, cautionary tale of a young woman addicted to coffee.

CONCERT PROGRAM I Concertos and Cantatas

Concert Program II brings together three works that contrast brooding tempers with light, lyricism, and optimism. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Quartet in G minor, the first significant work of its kind, would inaugurate a rich repertoire tradition, nurtured in subsequent generations by Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms, Antonín Dvorák, and many others. Franz Schubert’s sublime Fantasy in F minor likewise adopts a genre closely associated with Mozart–four-hand piano–but which the Prince of Song makes unmistakably his own. The program concludes with the mesmerizing Piano Trio in F-sharp minor by the twentieth-century Armenian composer Arno Babajanian.

Concert Program II

Music@Menlo’s nineteenth season offers nine programs presented over three weekends, three trios of concerts comprising mini-festivals in their own right. The festival’s opening weekend, “Coming Together,” combines timeless classics of the past with voices of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Concert Program I features the world premiere of Patrick Castillo’s Gather for cello and piano, written to commemorate the opening of the Spieker Center for the Arts, Johannes Brahms’s fiery Scherzo “FAE” for violin and piano, and Franz Schubert’s Trout Quintet, penned in a matter of days to be enjoyed at a chamber music soirée.

Concert Program I

Launching our residency is a return engagement that will make the grass greener! Award-winning violinist Arnaud Sussman joins forces again with cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han – who are co-directors of both CMS and Music@Menlo and among the most influential classical musicians in the world. The program includes celebrated trio performing works by Haydn, Shostakovich, and Mendelsohhn. Wu Han will be delighted to perform on our new Steinway!

David Finckel, cello • Wu Han, piano Arnaud Sussmann, violin

Join us for an exquisite afternoon of chamber music at Hertz Hall on February 9, 2025, at 3:00 pm, featuring the stellar ensemble of Wu Han on piano, Arnaud Sussmann on violin, and David Finckel on cello. This special recital showcases piano trio masterworks by Haydn, Shostakovich, and Mendelssohn, brought to life by the unparalleled synergy of these renowned musicians.

Wu Han and David Finckel, celebrated for their dynamic performances and artistic direction at both Music@Menlo and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, join forces with the French-born violinist Arnaud Sussmann. Sussmann, known for his "old-school sound" that combines sweetness and smoothness into a hypnotic blend, is the perfect addition to this powerful trio. Together, they promise an afternoon of virtuosic music-making that will leave audiences spellbound.

The program for the event includes Haydn's Piano Trio in E major, Hob. XV:28, Shostakovich's Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor, Op. 67, and Mendelssohn's Piano Trio No. 2 in C minor, Op. 66. These pieces, each a cornerstone of the chamber music repertoire, will showcase the technical prowess and deep musicality of the performers.

Tickets for this not-to-be-missed performance start at $86, with season subscriptions available now and single tickets going on sale at noon on August 6. This performance is made possible in part by Daniel Johnson and Herman Winkel, and promises to be a highlight of the 2024-25 season at Cal Performances.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit the Cal Performances website. Don't miss this opportunity to experience the magic of chamber music performed by some of the world's leading musicians in the intimate setting of Hertz Hall.

Wu Han, piano Arnaud Sussmann, violin David Finckel, cello

Through the centuries, the trio ensemble structure has created opportunities for compositional ingenuity through its enormous musical range and variety of texture and color. These qualities come through in Haydn’s greatly admired Trio in E Major and the inspiring trios of Shostakovich and Mendelssohn in a program curated for the audiences at Wolf Trap and performed by three of chamber music’s greatest virtuosos.

Wu Han, David Finckel, & Arnaud Sussmann

Six string players join forces in the Chamber Music Society’s final Harris Theater performance of the season. After beginning with Bach, who used six voices to compose his fugue-on-demand for Frederick the Great, the group divides in two for string trios by Haydn and Schubert, before re-combining in two blockbuster works for sextet by Strauss (the opening from his opera Capriccio) and Tchaikovsky (Souvenir de Florence).

Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence

After beginning with Bach, who used six voices to compose his fugue-on-demand for Frederick the Great, the group splits for Classical and Romantic string trios by Haydn and Schubert. Then, the musicians recombine for Strauss’ Sextet from Capriccio and Tchaikovsky’s blockbuster Souvenir de Florence.

Join us for an unforgettable evening at Alice Tully Hall as the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center presents "Tchaikovsky's Souvenir de Florence." This captivating performance is scheduled for Sunday, May 4, 2025, at 5:00 pm and promises to immerse you in the rich tapestry of chamber music spanning from the Baroque to the Romantic periods.

The program begins with Johann Sebastian Bach's intricate "Ricercar a 6 from Musical Offering, BWV 1079," a masterpiece composed in 1747. The journey continues through the Classical era with Joseph Haydn's "Trio in G major for Violin, Viola, and Cello, Hob. XVI:40, Op. 53, No. 1" from 1784, and into the Romantic period with Franz Schubert's "Trio in B-flat major for Violin, Viola, and Cello, D. 581" composed in 1817. The evening will also feature Richard Strauss's "Sextet for Strings from Capriccio, Op. 85" from 1941, leading up to the highlight of the night, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's "Sextet for Two Violins, Two Violas, and Two Cellos, Op. 70, Souvenir de Florence," a vibrant and emotional work from 1890.

The performance will showcase the talents of renowned musicians, including violinists Paul Huang and Danbi Um, violists Matthew Lipman and Timothy Ridout, and cellists David Finckel and Sihao He. Each artist brings their unique expertise and passion to the stage, promising a night of exquisite music and unforgettable memories.

The concert will last approximately 2 hours, including an intermission, allowing you to fully savor the beauty and complexity of chamber music. Tickets are not yet on sale but keep an eye out for this must-see event. Whether you're a long-time classical music enthusiast or new to the genre, "Tchaikovsky's Souvenir de Florence" is a perfect opportunity to experience the depth and breadth of chamber music performed by some of the world's leading musicians.

David Finckel

Cellist, Artistic Director

Events

Upcoming events

Feb 8, 2025

David Finckel, cello • Wu Han, piano Arnaud Sussmann, violin · InConcert Sierra

Feb 9, 2025

Wu Han, piano Arnaud Sussmann, violin David Finckel, cello · Cal Performances

Feb 16, 2025

Wu Han, David Finckel, & Arnaud Sussmann · Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts

Apr 23, 2025

Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence · Harris Theater

Apr 25, 2025

Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence · Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts

Past events

Aug 10, 2024

Concert Program Vii Renascence (livestream) · Music@Menlo

8 - 10 Aug, 2024

Concert Program Vii Renascence · Music@Menlo

Future and recently performed repertoire

Cello in Piano Trio by Smetana

Spac Saratoga Performing Arts Center

Cello in Cello Sonata No. 2 by Mendelssohn

Spac Saratoga Performing Arts Center

Cello in Piano Trio No. 3 by Beethoven

Peoples' Symphony Concerts

Cello in Gather by Castillo

Music@Menlo

Cello in Piano Trio No. 2 by Schubert

Manchester Music Festival

Cello in Piano Trio in A major by Haydn

Peoples' Symphony Concerts

Cello in Piano Trio (Ghost) by Beethoven

Peoples' Symphony Concerts

Cello in String Quintet by Schubert

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Cello in Crisantemi by Puccini

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Cello in String Trio in B-flat major by Schubert

Harris Theater

Cello in Cello Sonata by Poulenc

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Cello in Cello Sonata by Grieg

Savannah Music Festival

Cello in Souvenir de Florence by Tchaikovsky

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Cello in Piano Trio in B-flat major by Beethoven

Manchester Music Festival

Cello in Sonata for Cello & Piano in D minor by Shostakovich

Savannah Music Festival

Cello in Cello Sonata No.2 by Mendelssohn

Savannah Music Festival

Cello in Quintet in C minor by Mozart

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Cello in Quintet in G major by Brahms

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

About

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