Concert Program II

THE ENGLISH VOICE

With the death of Henry Purcell in 1695, English music entered a long era of silence. The country became known for the next two centuries as “a land without music” until Sir Edward Elgar reawakened England’s composers to the richness of their musical heritage with his iconic Enigma Variations for orchestra in 1896. With Elgar leading the way, subsequent generations of English composers cultivated a distinct national identity and revitalized their country’s musical landscape. “The English Voice” spotlights the rebirth of England’s musical culture in the first half of the twentieth century. William Walton’s Piano Quartet and Elgar’s Piano Quintet represent the country’s finest chamber works from this period. The program begins with A Charm of Lullabies, an enchanting song cycle by Benjamin Britten, the heir apparent to the twentieth-century English renaissance.

PROGRAM

Benjamin Britten (1913–1976)
A Charm of Lullabies, op. 41 (1947)

William Walton (1902–1983)
Piano Quartet (1919)

Edward Elgar (1857–1924)
Piano Quintet in a minor, op. 84 (1919)

Sunday, July 25

6:00 p.m., Stent Family Hall, Menlo School
Tickets: $72 adult; $35 student

Monday, July 26

8:00 p.m., Stent Family Hall, Menlo School
Tickets: $72 adult; $35 student

Prelude Performance*
6:00 p.m., Martin Family Hall
Free Admission

Tuesday, July 27

8:00 p.m., St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
Tickets: $52/$38 adult; $25/$10 student

Prelude Performance*
5:30 p.m., St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
Free Admission

ARTISTS

Sasha Cooke, mezzo-soprano
Inon Barnatan, piano
Wu Han, piano
Ani Kavafian, violin
Lily Francis, viola
David Finckel, cello
Miró Quartet
   Daniel Ching, violin
   Sandy Yamamoto, violin
   John Largess, viola
   Joshua Gindele, cello

*Learn more about Prelude Performances »