#Dillon, Colorado.
The Breckenridge Music Festival’s Encore Winter Series presents an afternoon of sonatas and trios with pianist Michael Linville, violinist Kate Hatmaker and cellist Alex Greenbaum in a program entitled Beethoven, Debussy and Mendelssohn. The program features Beethoven’s Third Cello Sonata, the Debussy Violin Sonata and the Piano Trio in D Minor by Mendelssohn.
The program begins with Beethoven’s Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major. The A major cello sonata of 1808 dates from the most productive period of Beethoven’s life. It was written during the same time period as his Fifth and Sixth symphonies and several of his most important compositions, including three of his most well-known solo piano works, the Moonlight, Appassionata and Waldstein sonatas.
The Violin Sonata in G Minor was Debussy’s final composition before his death from cancer in 1918 and forms the third in a projected series of six solo sonatas — the first two being the Cello Sonata of 1915 and the Sonata for Flute, Viola and Harp of 1916. The work received its premiere in May 1917 with Debussy at the piano — his last public performance. This music, while rather more serious than some of his earlier works, is still overflowing with Debussy’s characteristic inventiveness, lyricism and color.
Closing the program is Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor. The D minor piano trio was completed in July 1839.The trio is full of driving energy, from the restless agitation of the first movement to the animated dance of the scherzo to the powerful forward rush of the finale. The work has remained one of Mendelssohn’s most popular and beloved instrumental creations.
About the musicians
Pianist, percussionist, conductor, arranger and educator Linville is currently the director of chamber music activities for the New World Symphony. Linville is also the artistic coordinator of the New World Percussion Consort, an ensemble dedicated to the performance of contemporary chamber music that features percussion. As a soloist, Linville has performed with the San Francisco Symphony, the New World Symphony, the BMF and the National Repertory Orchestra. He has also performed with the Honolulu and Pasadena symphonies, the Florida Orchestra and the Florida Philharmonic. His playing can be heard on a number of recordings, including “New World Jazz,” “A Night in the Tropics,” “Orchestral Music of Bernstein” and “White Mares of the Moon,” which Linville also produced.
Born in New York, cellist Greenbaum enjoys a diverse and adventurous musical life.
As one of the principal cellists of The Knights, he has performed and recorded throughout the United States and Europe and collaborated with some of his musical heroes. An avid chamber musician and advocate for the music of our time, Greenbaum’s affiliations include San Diego New Music and the Tarab Cello Ensemble, and he often appears on San Diego’s Art of Élan series. His varied interests have led to collaborations with dance companies, studies of baroque cello and performances throughout Mexico. He lives in San Diego.
Hatmaker is currently a violinist with the San Diego Symphony, in addition to being the co-founder and artistic director of San Diego’s newest chamber music organization, Art of Élan. Hatmaker has played with a wide variety of American orchestras, including the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and the New World Symphony, and has been a featured soloist with the San Diego Symphony and the Breckenridge Music Festival Orchestra. She completed her Master of Music at Carnegie Mellon University and her undergraduate training at both the University of Iowa and the Sorbonne University in Paris, earning degrees in both political science and French.
Courtesy of the Summit Daily News.
