2020-21 Season: Rediscover
Starting this October and continuing through April of 2021, we’re thrilled to be able to share 6 all-new concert experiences with you. Concerts will air Thursday evenings both online and on public access TV. Each month will also feature additional music, interviews and conversations across the artistic spectrum.
Thanks to Season Sponsor Dignity Health and the generous support of sponsors and individuals like you, all concert events are FREE and open to ALL!
Upcoming Concerts
Past 2020-21 Concerts {now available to view on demand}
MOZART & MORE
Thursday, October 29th at 7:00 pm
Works by Mozart and Rimsky-Korsakov for strings. Special Guest Artist: Bruce Belton, clarinet.
Program:
MOZART String Quintet in G minor, 1st Movement
MOZART Clarinet Quintet in A major, 1st Movement
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV/LYADOV/BORODIN/GLAZUNOV String Quartet "B-la-f"
More details about this concert:
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- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Concert from Thursday, October 29th.
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Pre-Concert Talk from Tuesday, October 27th.
- "Mozart and More" begins with Mozart's String Quintet in G minor, K. 516, movement I - featuring two violins, two violas, and one cello. The second piece on "Mozart and More" will be the first movement of his Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581 (Mozart's only clarinet quintet), featuring two violins, viola, cello, and clarinet. The main feature on our premiere virtual concert will be a String Quartet "B-la-f" by Rimsky-Korsakov AND Lyadov AND Borodin AND Glazunov! A true collaboration! The name "B-la-f" is a word play of the name of the quartet's benefactor, Mitrofan Belaiev.
GYPSY STRINGS
Thursday, November 19th, 2020, 7:00pm
Works by Brahms, Schumann, and Klughardt for trio, quartet, and quintet. Special guest artist: John Chernoff (piano).
Program:
BRAHMS Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25, IV
SCHUMANN Piano Trio No. 3 in G minor, Op. 110, IV
KLUGHARDT String Quintet in G minor, Op. 62
More details about this concert:
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- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the concert Concert Premiere from Thursday, November 19th at 7PM
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Pre-Concert Talk from Tuesday, November 17th at 7PM.
- "Gypsy Strings" is a two-city collaboration. From Humboldt County, in the beautiful rotunda of the Morris Graves Museum of Art, violinist and NSS concertmaster Terrie Baune, principal cellist Carol Jacobson, and pianist John Chernoff recorded a movement from Schuman's lively Piano Trio #3 in G Minor. They returned to Shasta County's historic Old City Hall to record a high-energy movement from Brahms' Piano Quartet in G minor, joined by NSS principal violist Leah Carl. The full length feature of "Gypsy Strings" is a string quintet by German composer August Klughardt, composed in 1890. Terrie, Leah and Carol are joined by violinist and assistant concertmaster LiYuan Ho and cellist Anthoni Polcari for Klughardt's quintet, which ranges from warm, rich moods to foot-tapping rhythms.
BEETHOVEN 250
Thursday, December 24th at 7:00pm
A complete Beethoven string quartet, brought to you by NSS principal section leaders. Plus a little holiday surprise. Artists: Terrie Baune (violin), LiYuan Ho (violin), Leah Carl (viola), Carol Jacobson (cello).
Program:
BEETHOVEN String Quartet Op. 18, No. 2 (Allegro, Adagio, Scherzo, Allegro molto quasi presto)
More details about this concert:
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- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the concert Concert Premiere from Thursday, December 24th at 7PM
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Pre-Concert Talk from Tuesday, December 22nd at 7PM.
- "Beethoven 250" is North State Symphony's deferred celebration of Beethoven's 250th birthday year (1770). Originally the symphony was to perform Beethoven's powerful 9th Symphony, complete with large orchestra, vocal soloists and full chorus, for our May 2020 season finale which was cancelled due to Covid-19.
- Beethoven wrote six Opus 18 string quartets which were published during his early period and grounded in the 18th century musical tradition of artists like Haydn and Mozart, but as with all things Beethoven, staking out bold new ground.
- String quartet: A composition for solo string instruments, usually two violins, viola, and cello; it is widely regarded as the supreme form of chamber music. —Grove Music Online
Our 3 Fall concerts are generously sponsored by Sam and Sam Hillaire, Nena Perry and Dan Purtzer, James Malin, Patty and Gary Mullett, Ailsie McEnteggart, and Community Foundation of the North State. Thank You!
CONVERSATIONS
Thursday, February 18th at 7:00pm
“Music can name the un-nameable and communicate the unknowable.” - Leonard Bernstein.
In a slightly more intimate format, North State Symphony musicians will converse with each other and with you as they explore the special language of classical music through solos, duets, trios, and a unique quartet performed by a single player. This concert features many musicians who we've not been able to hear from this season so far, and they are happy to be back sharing their music with you.
Program:
Anthony PLOG Concert Duets for Trumpet (Ian Cochran & Ayako Nakamura, trumpet)
Heitor VILLA-LOBOS Jet Whistle, II & III (Ruth Polcari, flute & Anthoni Polcari, cello)
Harold OWEN Chamber Music for 4 Clarinets (Bruce Belton, clarinet)
Marc MELLITS Extra Sensory Perception - Roasting Petunia (Bruce Belton, clarinet)
Friedrich von FLOTOW Selections from Martha (Nathan Bastuscheck, tuba & Julia Bastuscheck, viola)
Daniel LEVITAN Variations on a Ghanaian Theme (Matthew Timman, Brian Simpson, Eric Whitmer, percussion)
Nikolai KAPUSTIN Duo for Alto Saxophone and Cello, Op. 99, I (Anthoni Polcari, cello & Scott Seaton, alto saxophone)
More details about this concert:
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- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the concert Concert Premiere from Thursday, February 18th at 7PM
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Pre-Concert Talk from Thursday, February 18th at 6:30PM.
CONVERSATIONS - for Schools!
Week of March 22nd, 2021
In our first-ever all virtual Youth Concerts, NSS musicians will present excerpts from the music performed at our February 18th concert with introductions about their instruments and the pieces they'll perform, in specially created videos designed to educate, inform, and entertain. Maestro Scott Seaton will curate the variety of videos for our audiences and take live questions from students in their classrooms.
More details about this concert: CLICK HERE
TO THE FORE!
Thursday, May 6 at 7:00pm
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the the Pre-Concert Talk from Tuesday, May 4th.
- CLICK HERE to watch a replay of the Concert Premiere from Thursday, May 6th.
"To The Fore," includes our largest chamber music ensembles of the season. We'll feature three exciting full works. All three pieces use exotic instrument combinations and orchestral colors to tell unique stories. And all three pieces are conducted - we're beyond thrilled to welcome Maestro Seaton back to the podium after far too long!
Program:
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's Chamber Symphony, for Flute, Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello & Piano
Jennifer Higdon's Dark Wood, showcasing NSS Principal Bassoon Jarratt Rossini and a string trio
Bohuslav Martinu's jazzy La Revue de Cuisine suite from his ballet of the same name, featuring Clarinet, Bassoon, Trumpet, Violin, Cello & Piano
Details / Program Notes:
In this finale of our 20th season, we bring to the spotlight composers and works that have everything from exotic combinations of instruments and orchestral color to unique storylines. The sampling begins with Ellen Taaffe Zwilich and her Chamber Symphony, a work whose elaborate melodic writing and rich and varied sonorities explore a profound world of “grief, outrage, and bewilderment” (New York Times). Jennifer Higdon then takes the programmatic reins with her Dark Wood, a work that features principal bassoonist Jarratt Rossini and a dizzy whirlwind of fast-paced chromatic lines competing against an array of rhythmic and percussive elements from the whole ensemble. Higdon encourages the listener to form their own impressions while being shown the bassoon’s extraordinary sonic versatility that stems from the beauty of its “dark wood”. The program and our season conclude with the light-hearted suite from the ballet La Revue de Cuisine by Bohuslav Martinu, a witty jazz-inspired toe-tapping comedy with a bizarre story where kitchen utensils come to life in a romantic culinary soap opera.
Our 3 Spring concerts are generously sponsored by Merchants Bank of Commerce, Barbara Enochian and Jack Kimple, Red Emmerson and Maria Escosa Emmerson, Sierra Pacific Foundation, First Five Shasta, Community Foundation of the North State, and Rush Lenroot. Thank You!