The chamber scene in LA is in high gear this week, filled with fantastic music from the very best ensembles that Los Angeles has to offer. The LA Phil’s Chamber Music Concert will be a great way to begin on Tuesday, and any of the competing weekend concerts from Musica Angelica, Da Camera Society, California String Quartet, Salastina Society, or Le Salon de Musiques will be worthwhile.
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LA PHIL CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERT
This week’s Los Angeles Philharmonic Chamber Music Concert leans French. The Debussy quartet has been a popular selection on local programs in recent times, and Ebène will be a tough act to follow. Culture Spot LA reviewed the phenomenal French Ebène Quartet a few weeks ago at the Colburn Chamber Society season opening concert; I am curious to hear the LA Phil players and to compare the performances.
Program
• Françaix: Quartet for English horn, violin, viola, and cello
• Poulenc: Sextet
• Debussy: String Quartet in G Minor, Op.10
Tuesday, Nov. 8, 8 p.m.
Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., LA
Tickets: $32.25 – $61.50. For information, call (323) 850-2000.
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MUSICA ANGELICA
JOHN SCHNEIDERMAN director, lute, DANIEL C. PLASTER tenor, HIDEKI YAMAYA lute, JANET WORSLEY STRAUSS and SUSAN FELDMAN violins, WILLIAM SKEEN violoncello, DENISE BRIESE viola da gamba
Program – In Memory of the Masters
• Mark Chatfield (1953-1998): Suite for Gamba Alone
• Karl Kohaut (1726-1784): Concerto for Lute in F Major
• Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741): Concerto for Lute in D Major
• Silvius Leopold Weiss (circa 1687-1750): Sonata for Lute in D Minor
• Francesco da Milano (1497-1543): Lute Duets
• John Dowland (1563-1626): Lute Duet, Lute Songs
MUSICA ANGELICA is an internationally acclaimed period-instrument ensemble dedicated to historically informed performances of Renaissance and Baroque music. Schneiderman is currently a member of the Faculty at the University of California, Irvine, Irvine Valley College, and Orange Coast College.
Read Culture Spot LA’s review of Musica Angelica as the musicians departed on their South American tour last year.
Saturday, Nov. 12, 8 p.m.
The Neighborhood Church, 301 N. Orange Grove Blvd., Pasadena
Sunday, Nov. 13, 3 p.m.
First Presbyterian Church of Santa Monica, 1220 Second St.
Tickets: $49, $39, $29/ seniors $44, $35, $26/ students $15
Members of KUSC and SCEMS receive $10 off the single ticket price.
For information and to purchase tickets, call (310) 458-4504.
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DA CAMERA SOCIETY
Chamber Music in Historic Sites
TANYA TOMKINS cello, ERIC ZIVIAN fortepiano
Program – Beethoven and the Fugue
• Beethoven: Cello Sonata in D Major, Op.102 No.2
• Beethoven: Piano Sonata No.31 in A-flat Major, Op.110
• Beethoven: Cello Sonata No.3 in A Major, Op.69
Enjoy an all Beethoven concert with the Tomkins-Zivian Duo in the main salon of this unique Mediterranean villa, one of noted Southern California architect Wallace Neff’s most graceful and inviting homes.
Sunday, Nov. 13, 2 and 4 p.m.
Thorne House (1928), Linda Vista Hills, Pasadena
Tickets: $89, $79, includes light reception. For information, call (213) 477-2929.
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CALIFORNIA STRING QUARTET
KATIA POPOV and LORAND LOKUSZTA violins, ALMA-LISA FERNANDEZ viola, ARMEN KSAJIKIAN cello
Program
• Haydn: String Quartet in D Major, Op.20 No.4
• Brahms: String Quartet No.1 in C Minor, Op.51
• Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No.2
“Musical Sunday Afternoons” brings the Los Angeles-based CALIFORNIA STRING QUARTET, founded by members of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, to the familiar Studio City’s First Christian Church seen in motion pictures, television shows, music videos, and commercials.
Sunday, Nov. 13, 2 p.m.
First Christian Church, 4390 Colfax Ave., Studio City
Tickets $25 / $10 seniors / children free. For information, call (818) 763-8218.
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SALASTINA MUSIC SOCIETY
MAIA JASPER and KEVIN KUMAR co-artistic directors and violinists, with guest artists MEREDITH CRAWFORD viola, XIAO-DAN ZHENG cello, STEVEN VANHAUWAERT piano
Program
• Joaquín Turina: La Oracion del Torero (Matador’s Prayer) for String Quartet
• Orlando Gibbons: Fantasias
• Alexander Borodin: Trio in G Minor for two violins and cello, based on Russian folk tune “What Have I Done to Hurt You?”
• Matos Rodriguez: La Cumparsita (Tango)
• Benjamin Godard: Forsaken
• Jeremy Cavaterra: Andante – World Premiere
• Johannes Brahms: Scherzo from Piano Quintet in F Minor
The Salastina Music Society is a new nonprofit organization in its second season dedicated to innovative programming in a unique format with broad audience appeal. Mingle with the artists at the reception on the grounds immediately after the performance. Culture Spot LA reviewed a performance last season, and we highly recommend this ensemble.
Sunday, Nov. 13, 3 p.m.
Hannon Theater, Mount St. Mary College, 12001 Chalon Rd., Brentwood
Tickets: $15 advance / $25 at the door / $10 students and children. Concert information is available here.
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LE SALON DE MUSIQUES
ANTONIO LYSY cello, FRANÇOIS CHOUCHAN piano
Program
• Schubert: Sonata in A Minor for cello and piano, D821, “Arpeggione”
• Grieg: Cello Sonata in A Minor, Op.36
Le Salon de Musiques features leading Southland ensemble artists. The Impresario Room in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion has a beautiful view of the mountains, and after the performance guests are invited to mingle around a gourmet buffet with French Champagne. Culture Spot LA reviewed concerts last season, and both reviewer Henry Schlinger and I were impressed.
Sunday, Nov. 13, 4 p.m.
Impresario Room (fifth floor) Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., LA
Tickets: $65. Full concert and artist information is available here.
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~Theodore Bell/Culture Spot LA
Culture Spot LA recommends Jim Eninger’s Clickable Chamber Music Newsletter, an extensive calendar of upcoming music events, large and small, happening all around Los Angeles.