Continuing its commitment to ongoing year-round programming, Newport Classical today announced that it will present its next Chamber Series concert featuring the internationally acclaimed violinist William Hagen in an evening of virtuosic chamber music.
Joined by renowned pianist Orion Weiss, Hagen takes the stage in downtown Newport at Newport Classical’s home venue, Newport Classical Recital Hall (42 Dearborn St.) on Friday, November 3, 2023, at 7:30 pm.
In this performance, Newport audiences will hear the “captivating” (The Dallas Morning News) chamber music of Hagen and the “powerful technique and exceptional insight” (The Washington Post) of Weiss. The third-prize winner of the 2015 Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition, William Hagen is an established international soloist, performing with conductors such as Marin Alsop, Christian Arming, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Michel Tabachnik, and Hugh Wolff. Known for his affinity for chamber music, Orion Weiss has performed in recent seasons with the Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and New York Philharmonic. He is the recipient of the Classical Recording Foundation’s Young Artist of the Year, Gilmore Young Artist Award, and an Avery Fisher Career Grant.
In the duo’s Newport debut, Hagen and Weiss bookend their program with the music of Dvořák and his mentor, Brahms. Written and published in 1887, Dvořák’s Four Romantic Pieces, Op. 75 were adapted from his Bagatelles for String Trio. The resulting miniatures for violin and piano combine Dvořák’s charming lyricism with the passion and expressiveness of the Late Romantic period. Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 7 in C minor, Op. 30, No. 2 is one of the most imperious works in the repertoire. Quasi-symphonic in scope, the piano and violin interplay with one another as foils, culminating in a work of drama and power.
The sonata is a favorite among many musicians and audiences alike. Among the last pieces that Clara Schumann ever wrote, her Three Romances, Op. 22 were composed in 1853 and premiered in 1855. The work was dedicated to her close friend and violinist, Joseph Joachim, who she performed the piece with on countless occasions. Also written for violinist Joseph Joachim, Brahms’ Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Op. 108 was composed in 1888 and was his last contribution to piano-violin duo literature. A contrast from his previous two works in the genre, Brahms’ Third Sonata is grand in scale, technically demanding, and tempestuously dramatic. The piece was quickly accepted as part of the standard repertoire and remains so 130 years later.
Newport Classical’s next performance on December 3 features Handel’s iconic oratorio Messiah performed by Rhode Island’s premier vocal powerhouse, Ensemble Altera and the Professional Choristers of The Choir School of Newport County.
Newport Classical will also present a community concert of holiday chamber music on December 16 in Emmanuel Church.
On January 26 in the next Chamber Series concert, rising-star pianist Eric Lu, who has been described by The Guardian as “a veritable poet of the keyboard,” will make his Newport Classical debut in a program featuring music by Schubert, Mendelssohn, Bach, and Chopin.
The Galvin Cello Quartet, which burst onto the scene after capturing the Silver Medal at the 2021 Fischoff Competition and the 2022 Victor Elmaleh Competition, will perform on February 23.
Bassoonist Eleni Katz and pianist Evren Ozel take the stage on March 22 in a program celebrating the many facets of the bassoon, featuring music by Debussy, Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Coleridge-Taylor, and more.
On April 26, the award-winning Balourdet Quartet, which recently won the Grand Prize at the 2021 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, will present a program featuring Hadyn, Kurtág, and Schubert.
Polish-American soprano Magdalena Kuźma, praised as a “standout” with “star quality” by Opera News, performs a program spanning from Chopin to Rachmaninoff to Rodgers and Hammerstein on May 17.
On June 7, pianist Asiya Korepanova closes the Chamber Series with music by Rachmaninoff, Mussorgsky, Beach, Chopin, and more.
For Newport Classical’s complete concert calendar, visit www.newportclassical.org/concerts
