Vista Philharmonic Chamber Players

What’s true, however, is that this is one of Bach’s most often performed concertos for the keyboard (probably harpsichord originally), and is a favorite the world over with pianists and audiences. Composed in the prototypical 3 movements (fast-slow-fast), the work is a true tour de force for the soloist, and gives the orchestral musicians an opportunity to play extraordinary chamber music accompanying the piano. We are really excited to bring back to the Vista Philharmonic stage, friend and keyboard artist, Jenny Tang.

The Prelude to Afternoon of a Faun (1894) of Claude Debussy (1862-1918) is a significant pivotal point in classical music history, and is the first example of music impressionism. Nothing had ever been composed like this before — a relatively programmatic composition with vague harmonies, no real “tunes” to speak of, but remarkably changing colors (timbres) and moods. This also is probably the most important work on this program. Originally orchestrated by the composer himself, the composer Arnold Schoenberg arranged it for the smaller ensemble you see in today’s program.

Ernest Bloch (1880-1959) is one of those composers deserving of so many more performances than one sees in present day programming. Born in Geneva of Jewish parents and educated in Belgium, Bloch immigrated to the USA in 1916 and became a US citizen in 1924. His compositions include opera, symphonic and chamber music, much of which is infused with reflections of his Jewish heritage, and all of which is of an extremely high quality. The Four Episodes (1926) is a thoroughly delightful four-movement chamber orchestra work: Humoresque Macabre, Obsession, Calm and Chinese.

It was 50 years ago that the music of Scott Joplin (1868-1918) took the musical and entertainment world by storm. The Entertainer (1902) was released in its original solo piano version in 1970 by pianist Joshua Rifkin. Two years later, Gunther Schuller, then president of the New England Conservatory, released an album of ensemble arrangements of many of Joplin’s works under the title, The Red Back Book. And a year after that, Marvin Hamlisch arranged The Entertainer as a sound-track for the movie, The Sting. The piece and its arrangements instantly became standard repertoire for keyboardists and small ensembles like ours. We’re happy to finish this concert program with this light-hearted composition.