We were invited to
the Pacific Symphony's Cafe Ludwig concert on Sunday from our friends, and it was an awesome concert! :)
Pianist Orli Shaham hosted this chamber music event, themed with "dance", and everybody was dancing to the music (just kidding). The pastry was delicious, too.
The first half was very contemporary. Principal cellist Timothy Landauer opened the concert with Kodály's Cello sonata with his lower two strings "prepared" a half note lower.
Followed by Adams' work, with a live "prepared" piano! The piano had lots of gadgets attached to make funny sounds, which is usually played with just a recording. She said before the piece that you will rarely hear the piano play a "piano" sound, but all I could tell was the first "A" to tune the quartet!
The second half was more "classical". Orli and principal trumpeter Barry Perkins started with three works for piano and trumpet. Apparently, it's very difficult to find chamber music for trumpet. :)
Followed by Brahms's waltzes, and finished with the Strauss' Kaiser Waltz, arranged by Schoenberg for a septet.
Zoltán Kodály: Sonata in B Minor for Solo Cello, Op. 8
John Adams (arr. Frisch): Suite from John’s Book of Alleged Dances for String Quartet and Prepared Piano
Leonard Bernstein: Rondo for Lifey
Maurice Ravel: Pièce en forme de Habanera for Trumpet and Piano
Astor Piazzola (arr. Mahpar): Milonga del ángel
Johannes Brahms: Waltzes for Solo Piano, Op. 39
Johann Strauss, Jr. (arr. Schoenberg): Kaiser Waltz, Op. 437 for Flute, Clarinet, String Quartet and Piano
