I had the wonderful opportunity yesterday to play a community concert in La Cañada Flintridge. Hopefully the first of many concerts that my friends and I will be playing in La Cañada.
The concert was scheduled only a few days ago when a lovely woman from La Cañada asked my friend, Sequoyah, if we were able to play a concert in her backyard this past weekend. With such short notice we were only able to put together a short program but it contained some fun and beautiful music.
Program:
- Bach, Cello Suite 4 in E-Flat Major BWV 1010
Prelude
Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Bourree I & II - Bach, Violin Sonata no. 2 in A minor BWV 1003 (transcribed for viola)
Andante
Allegro - Sequoyah, Fantasia for Solo Viola
- Beethoven, Serenade in D major for Violin, Viola and Cello, Op. 8
Marcia: Allegro
Menuetto: Allegretto
Adagio - Scherzo: Allegro molto - Adagio - Allegro molto - Adagio
Allegretto alla polacca
Andante quasi allegretto
Marcia: Allegro
The Beethoven trio was a quaint little piece, written in the early stages of his life, it didn't contain many of the aspects that Beethoven was renowned for. Instead it had many small resemblances and characters similar to Haydn and Mozart, such as light bass parts with running eighth-notes, quick dynamic surprises, and brilliant violin passage work. But there were also a couple small passages that laid groundwork for some of his later larger more substantial works. One of the passages that I thought may have been an inspiration for a later work was in the Menuetto of the Serenade.
Beethoven Serenade - Menuetto: Allegretto
The cello line draws out a light melodic line while the other instruments dance around it. In almost the same fashion, shown below exhibited in Beethoven's later work String Quartet Op. 59, the cello plays a beautiful melody that sings above the other voices that have off beat rhythms.
Beethoven String Quartet Op. 59 No. 2 - Allegretto
My friends and I haven't played together since 2014 so this little concert for us was quite fun. We had 3 rehearsals to put together the Beethoven Serenade and honestly, it worked out pretty well for such short notice.
Sound checking the day before the concert.
The setting for an outdoor concert was actually perfect. The host's backyard had a covered patio with tiled floors that really projected the sound out into the rest of the yard.
View from the back of the yard.
We are experiencing a heat wave right now in Los Angeles and although it wasn't as hot yesterday as it was on Saturday, It was still almost 90 degrees when we started performing. I had sweat running down my forehead into my eyes by the 3rd movement of Bach, my fingerboard was a slip-n-slide, and all that sweat was making me a beacon for mosquitoes. It was certainly one of the most challenging performances I have given.
Myself, playing Bach Suite 4
Despite the pandemic, I have given quite a few performances this summer and although this is my last live performance for a while, I'm hoping to play a couple concerts online through GroupMuse.