Sinfonia's 2024-25 season
“Le Monde de la Musique has named Luis Gustavo Carvalho as one of the most promising pianists of his generation…”
The intrigue surrounding the relationship between Clara Wieck Schumann and Johannes Brahms is well known, but nobody really knows the true extent of the purported “love” they had for each other. What is known, however, is the deep and mutual respect they each had for each other’s musical abilities. Clara Wieck completed her Piano Concerto at sixteen years of age and premiered this virtuosic composition with Felix Mendelssohn conducting the Leipzig Gewandhaus. Internationally acclaimed Brazilian pianist Luis Gustavo Carvalho will make his debut with the Sinfonia. Dedicated to Clara, Brahms’ five moment Serenade No. 2 omits violins, giving a distinctly darker quality characterized by dance themes, lush harmonies, rhythmic complexity, and a folksy style that is predictive of more mature works.
Saturday, March 15, 2025, 7:30 pm
First Presbyterian Church 3231 W. Tilghman Street, Allentown, PA 18104 Idyllic Richard Wagner- Siegfried Idyll, WWV 103 Ludwig van Beethoven-Symphony No. 6 "Pastoral" in F Major, Op. 68 An “Idyll” is “an extremely happy, peaceful, or picturesque episode or scene” and our program features Sinfonia musicians depicting these lyrical and poetic works. Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll was written as a birthday present for his wife, Cosima, after she gave birth to their son Siegfried. Originally scored for one person per part, he expanded the orchestration to 35 instrumentalists after selling the work to a publisher. Beethoven describes his Pastoral Symphony as “more of an expression of feeling than painting.” Come and be moved by these elegant works and leave your worries behind!
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Sunday, Feb. 2, 3 pm
Wesley Church 2540 Center Street, Bethlehem, PA 18017 Winter Vivaldi Father Sean Duggan, piano Georg P. Telemann- Overture- Suite for Viola da Gamba in D Major J. S. Bach- Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 in B-flat Major, BWV 1051 Francesco Geminiani- Concerto Grosso in D Major ,Op. 3 No. 1 J. S. Bach- Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major, BWV 1050 Sinfonia concertgoers wait all year for this signature program: the incomparable Father Seán Duggan, an expert ensemble of principals, a crisp February day, and sparkling Baroque repertoire. Sublime.
A primary component of the Sinfonia mission is advocating for the value of the arts; in particular, we believe artistic training promotes collaboration, creative problem solving, abstract systems thinking, and the ability to manage ambiguity – all valuable life skills. Our collaboration over the academic year with Lafayette student composers will showcase their skill and creativity, culminating with performances of their compositions preceded by the composers’ observations of their creative process at the pre-concert talks. Their compositions will be complemented by the effervescent “Overture” to the Mozart opera The Marriage of Figaro and the dynamic and energetic Symphony #7 by Ludwig van Beethoven.
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Past performances this season
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Saturday, Sept. 14, 7:30 pm
First Presbyterian Church 3231 W. Tilghman Street, Allentown, PA 18104 Spurious Works (Who wrote that, anyhow?) Remo Giazotto - Adagio for Strings and Organ (Albinoni) Johann Friedrich Eck - Violin Concerto No. 6 in Eb Major (Mozart) Paul Chou, violin soloist Friedrich Witt - Symphony No. 14 in C Major "Jena Symphony" (Beethoven) Come discover! |
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Photo Credit: Dr. Mark Gittleman
