Music at Christ Church
The 37th Season
Coming up next:
THE MIAMI STRING QUARTET
Sunday, January 29, 2012, 4:00 pm
Benny Kim, Cathy Meng Robinson, violins
Scott Lee, viola Keith Robinson, cello
Special guest Lydia Artymiw, piano
Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet Op. 18, No. 4
Ernst von Dohnanyi: Piano Quintet No. 2, Op. 26
Franz Schubert: String Quartet in d, D.810 "Death and the Maiden"
If there can be anything called a Miami sound (apologies to Gloria Estefan), it is a vibrant, perfectly tuned blend, a matched virtuosity and the deep attention to every note and nuance of music. Take for instance, Beethoven's String Quartet in A, Op. 18, No. 5. All the textures from the buoyant opening movement to the stormy finale were carefully calibrated and spellbinding. Listen carefully to the chorale or chordal moments - as in one of the variations of the quartet's third movement - and you'd swear you never heard sweeter harmony. Like light playing on a fine jewel, the players brought to the music a luster that results only from careful listening and collegial ensemble. (Hartford CT Courant)
Whether playing in the intimate setting of a string quartet or performing a concerto on the stage of a concert hall, Benny Kim's "emotional depth and musical carriage are his real drawing cards. His is a style that touches the peak of romantic violin playing." (The Washington Post)
Lydia Artymiw is a compelling musical personality with the unusual ability to reach out and touch her listeners. She has a beautiful touch, a creative imagination, and a feeling for her instrument's possibilities of color and texture far in advance of that cultivated by most of the young virtuosos we hear. (New York Times)
Tickets: $20 / adults; $15 / students & active duty military.
Available at the Christ Church Office or the PSC Lyceum Box Office
or by phone at 850.432.5115.
CHRIST CHURCH
Wright St. & Palafox, DOWNTOWN PENSACOLA
www.christ-churcch.net
Previously:
Sunday, November 27, 4:00 pm
Mithril
"Welcome Yule" with the Gulf Coast's premier Celtic band.
Mithril is fast becoming one of the most sought after Celtic/World music groups on the concert series scene. The band's unique progressive style has its roots in traditional Celtic music but moves far beyond that, weaving such diverse influences as American folk, classical, and Middle Eastern melodies into their full tapestry of sound.
The four musicians - Andra Bohnet, Tom Morley, Ben Harper, and David Hughes - perform their all-instrumental shows on a wide array of traditional instruments, including Irish flute, whistle, fife, Celtic harp, fiddle, bouzouki, mandolin, guitar, bodhran (Irish frame drum), and harmonium, playing with the precision of their classical training and the enthusiasm that springs from their love of the music. The concert is free and open to the public; a $10 donation is suggessted.
Sunday, December 18, 5:00 pm
A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
The Choir of Christ Church
Sunday, February 19, 4:00 pm
Oboist Matt Fossa
in a chamber music performance with some of
Pensacola's finest.
Sunday, March 18, 4:00 pm
Echoing Air
A Baroque ensemble specializing in the music of
Henry Purcell.
Sunday, April 29, 4:00 pm
A ClassicFest Concert: The Variation Trio
with pianist Pedja Muzijevic. Violinist Jennifer Koh,
violist Hsin-yun Huang and cellistWilhelmina Smith perform.
Sunday, May 20, 4:00 pm
Organist Faythe Freese
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa.
Earlier this season:
Sunday, October 23, 4:00 pm
Co-sponsored with the Pensacola Chapter,
American Guild of Organists
Organist Jean-Baptiste Robin
Versailles, France
“Music at Christ Church” is the concert series that essentially began with the dedication of the Kney Organ in 1975. In the thirty-plus years since, more than 400 concerts have been presented here, the majority of them free, because of the generosity of audience members and Christ Church.If you would like to make a contribution to Music at Christ Church, you can print this contribution form and mail it to Music at Christ Church, PO Box 12783, Pensacola, FL 32591. /files/0000/0848/contrbution.pdf
In the early years, concerts mostly presented organ artists. Choir concerts from the musicians at Christ Church began to remind us what a wonderful musical instrument Christ Church itself is, and the content of the concerts became more varied. Contributions from the church, parishioners, and community members kept apace with expenses.
Music at Christ Church continues to present organ artists from all over the world. Some of the world’s finest made their way to the Great Kney, including Marie-Claire Alain and Olivier Latry of France; Dame Gillian Weir, Christopher Herrick, and Thomas Trotter from Great Britain; and Felix Hell and Johannes Unger from Germany. Organists including David Craighead, Joan Lippincott, Gerre Hancock, Marilyn Keiser, Todd Wilson, and the new young generation of Paul Jacobs and Ken Cowan have brought American artistry to Pensacola audiences. Hymn festivals featuring the likes of Paul Manz and John Ferguson have also been part of the mix.
Some of the highpoints of Music at Christ Church before and after the new millennium were performances by choral artists including Anonymous IV (three performances at Christ Church), the American Boychoir (also three) and Chanticleer, whose sold-out performance in 1998 was surely a memorable evening.
As we approach the 35th birthday of the Kney Organ in 2010, we look forward to the music this great instrument will continue to bring!