The Westside Chamber Series of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra opens with “Strings for the Ages”, a cross-genre program that will take place on Saturday the 8th on the wide stage in Santa Monica.
Under the direction of chamber music director and concertmaster Margaret Batjer, the program includes five works, including Britten’s Simple Symphony Op.4, which premiered in 1934 and is based on material written by the composer between the ages of nine and twelve; and Corelli’s cheerful Concerto Grosso in D major op. 6, no. 4, composed around 1712 and is considered a key work of the baroque instrumental music canon.
LACO also performs Arvo Pärt’s Summa for string orchestra, originally written in 1978 as an a cappella vocal work inspired by medieval chants and Renaissance polyphony, in a style the Estonian composer calls “tintinnabulation”. The program ends with Geminiani’s Concerto Grosso in D major op.5, No. 1 (based on Corelli’s Sonata op.5, No. 1), a work that was inspired by Corelli, Geminiani’s teacher; and Grieg’s beloved Holberg Suite for String Orchestra, a five-movement French baroque dance suite composed for piano in 1884 and re-orchestrated for string orchestra in 1885, combining the traditional baroque structure with the lush, romantic sound of the era.
Batjer, praised for her “brilliant warmth” (Los Angeles Times), “soaring” performances and her ability to “make her instrument purr and float … with a captivating combination of intensity and technical fluency” (San Francisco Classical Voice) She was “downright exciting to see and hear” (Violinist.com). Since 1998 she has been concertmaster of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, which she has presented on numerous world premieres and CDs, including a Deutsche Grammophon recording of Bach’s Concerto for two violins with violinist Hilary Hahn.
Tickets are $ 58 and can be purchased online at laco.org or by calling LACO at 213 622 7001 x1. For seniors aged 65 and over and for students, discounted tickets are also available by telephone.
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