Our first recital of the year was held in the cozy auditorium of Jordan Kitt’s Music in Fairfax, Virginia.
We had a substantial audience and a full and varied program. The first half was devoted to performances of seven of the 12 pieces that make up Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons, Op. 37. They were performed by six of our members.
Carol Barth started out with “January: At the Fireside.” Dale Dean played “March: Song of the Lark,” Judith Block played both “April: Snowdrop” and, at the end, “December: Christmas.” Joan Magagna played “May: Starlit Nights,” followed by Tom Haug playing “June: Barcarolle.” Sondra Mills played “October: Autumn Song.”
Following their performance, it was explained to us that the idea of writing 12 pieces, one for each month of the year, was the idea of the publisher, who commissioned them from Tchaikovsky and serialized the pieces over the course of a year in his monthly music magazine.
After the intermission, DuEwa Kamara performed two of the pieces from Debussy’s Suite Bergamasque: “Clair de Lune “and “Passepied”.
Hala Tomey performed Mozart’s Fantasy in D minor, K. 397 and Chopin’s Etude, Op. 25, No. 7.
Louis Reichwein introduced most of us to the composer Vincent D’Indy (1851–1931), playing two waltzes from Helvetia, Op. 17: No. 1, “Aarau,” and No. 3, “Laufenberg.”
The concert was completed by Jack Stabile, who performed Chopin’s Andante spaniato and Grade Polonaise, Op. 22.
It was a lovely afternoon of beautiful music, beautifully performed.
