The upcoming April 4 and 5 concert, Perfectly Paired, features music that highlights pairs of instruments in entertaining ways. Jung-Ho selected these links especially for you. Enjoy!
Our special guests for the weekend will be twin pianists Christina and Michelle Naughton. To see how immensely talented they are, watch as Christina and Michelle perform one of the Mozart Variations and Variations on a Theme by Paganini by Witold Lutoslawski. The fascinating Juillard-trained sisters will perform Francis Poulenc’s “Concerto for Two Pianos” with the Cape Symphony.
Take a look at two other famous sisters, Katia and Marielle Labeque, performing the Poulenc Concerto. The Labeque sisters are French pianists who began playing repertoire for two pianos in the late 1960s. In this Concerto, the pianos exchange “conversational” interludes, and the pianists play almost continuously for nearly 20 minutes. We’re excited to hear the Naughton twins performing this incredible piece for two pianos – as only sisters can do!
Old Wine in New Bottles is a suite for pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, French horns, and trumpets, performed here by the University of North Texas Wind Symphony. It’s a delightful interpretation of four Old English folk songs by composer Gordon Jacob. After fighting in World War I, and being taken as a prisoner of war by the German army, Jacob studied at the Royal College of Music. He wrote over 700 compositions from symphonies to ballet to film scores, and was commissioned to write an arrangement of the British national anthem for the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
Bela Bartok’s “Concerto for Orchestra” fits nicely into our theme of pairs, and is one of Bartok’s most crowd-pleasing works. The second movement, popularly known as “Game of Pairs,” features pairs of instruments, each pair having its own section in which to shine. Orchestra Solti performs the Concerto for Orchestra in Bartok’s homeland of Hungary, which is especially meaningful since Bartok composed the piece after fleeing for America during World War II.
Join us in April for Perfectly Paired, a captivating concert which proves that two is better than one! Visit capesymphony.org or call 508.362.1111 to get your tickets today.
