2021-2022 Season
Chamber Conversations with Dr. Bill Everett
Chamber Music during La belle époque
During La belle époque, the period in French history that lasted from roughly 1880 to the First World War, chamber music flourished, especially chamber music featuring the piano. In this episode, we’ll explore the innovations that were taking place in how chamber music was being envisioned in France and how composers were striving to create something distinctively French in their chamber music. We’ll revel in performances of movements from Debussy’s luscious String Quartet and Ravel’s mesmerizing Piano Trio performed by the Parker String Quartet and the Gryphon Trio.
Available free on demand on our website.
Benjamin Bagby has captivated early music audiences for decades with his chilling presentation of the epic, Beowulf. Armed with only a six-string harp based on an instrument excavated from the 7th century, Beowulf will transport audiences to distant shores full of kings, monsters, and battles for love and honor.
Available with the Gold Subscription and the Early Music Series.
Stile Antico, scheduled for December 9, will now include an exciting partnership with the Kansas City Chorale at The Folly Theater! When our friends from Stile Antico were forced to cancel their 2021 tour, we commissioned them to record portions of the original program which will be interspersed with a LIVE PERFORMANCE by the KC Chorale.
Available with the Gold Subscription and the Early Music Series.
The Brentano Quartet, the first winners of the prestigious Cleveland Quartet Award, have appeared multiple times on the Friends stage. We are pleased to welcome them back as they celebrate 30 years. This concert opens with Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet in D-Major, Op. 71, No.2, the first work Brentano performed on their first recital plus Beethoven’s Op. 135 and works by Bruce Adolphe, and Steve Mackey.
Available with the Gold Subscription, Friends Folly Series, and the International Chamber Music Series.
When Garrick Ohlsson became the first American to win the International Chopin Music Competition in 1970, he made history. Since that historic victory, he has risen to prominence as one of the top pianists in the world. Garrick will be performing works by Chopin, Beethoven, and Prokofiev.
Available with the Gold Subscription, Friends Folly Series, and the Master Pianist Series.
Russian-American pianist Vladimir Feltsman, celebrated for his powerhouse performances, will perform works by Bach, Beethoven, and Schubert.
Available with the Gold Subscription, Friends Folly Series, and the Master Pianist Series.
Winners of the 2018 International Wigmore Hall String Quartet and the 2018 Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, The Goldmund Quartet is a rising star in the string quartet world. Goldmund will celebrate their Kansas City premiere with works by Schubert, Dvorak, and Beethoven’s Op. 59, No. 3.
Available with the Gold Subscription, Friends Folly Series, and the International Chamber Music Series.
This two-day festival presents the entire Beethoven Piano Trio Cycle performed by the Morgenstern Trio. This two-day event also features several panel discussions led by Dr. William Everett and much more!
This presentation is currently available as an add-on with any subscription package for an additional fee.
Sergei Babayan, one of the world’s most celebrated pianists and teachers, takes the Kansas City stage with an impressive array of works, including works Schumann’s dramatic Kreisleriana, Op. 16.
Included with the Gold Subscription, Master Pianist Series, and the Friends Folly Series.
Rafał Blechacz, winner of the 2005 International Chopin Piano Competition, has distinguished himself for his breadth of repertoire and intelligent interpretations. Blechacz will perform works by Bach, Beethoven, Franck, and conclude with Chopin’s Sonata No. 3 in b minor, Op. 58, considered one of his most difficult works technically and musically.
Master musicians Anne Azéma (voice) and Nigel North (lute) open their new collaboration with a program of intimate French songs spanning a century. Their lyrics celebrate, above all, love, its passions and pains. And their melodies, by turns lighthearted and wistful, go straight to the hearts of French people of all classes and stations.
Eckart Runge, founding cellist for the Artemis Quartet, and his duo partner Jacque Ammon have been breaking down concert barriers for more than 25 years. This genre-defying concert juxtaposes Beethoven with more contemporary revolutionary icons such as Paul McCartney, Miles Davis, Piazolla, Chick Corea, and more!
This presentation is currently available as an add-on with any subscription package for an additional fee.
Established a little over a decade ago, Ensemble Correspondances has quickly risen to prominence in the early music field, receiving numerous accolades and recording more than a dozen CDs. Their Kansas City premiere will feature the music of Charpentier, a contemporary of Jean Baptiste Lully.