Gold Coast concert: CONVICTIONS

Convictions, the fourth concert of Gold Coast Chamber Player’s 2015-2016 series, showcases music by Felix Mendelssohn, Richard Strauss, and David Popper, all with Jewish connections. The concert will be held on Saturday, March 12, 2016 at 7:30 PM at the Lafayette Library Community Hall, 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette. A pre-concert talk will start the evening at 7:00 PM.

Youthful works by composers often display raw talent and impressive musical instincts. At the beginning of their careers, Felix Mendelssohn and Richard Strauss experimented with different types of ensembles, writing for piano trios, string quartets, solo piano, and others. Strauss and Mendelssohn would both go on to write their masterpieces, but the two quartets featured on Convictions were written when the composers were just starting out. Felix Mendelssohn was featured prominently in Gold Coast’s October concert, Prodigies, and wrote his Piano Quartet No. 3 when he was only 15 years old. Richard Strauss’ Piano Quartet in C Minor is truly an early work; Strauss also completed the score as a teenager. This quartet owes many of its stylistic touches to Johannes Brahms, especially its dark sonority and dramatic scope. David Popper, a great cello virtuoso, wrote the Spanish Serenade for Cello and Piano. Although Popper was a Czech Jew, he clearly shows an affinity for the Spanish, from the rhapsodic cello melodies to the gracefully embellished piano parts.

Highly acclaimed Chicago-based pianist Yana Reznik has appeared regularly with Gold Coast Chamber Players since 2012, and her exquisite musicality has captivated audiences. Cellist Eugene Lifschitz is the Principal Solo Cello of the Kassel Orchestra in Germany. The San Jose Mercury wrote of Mr. Lifschitz that he gave a “richly varied and impressively musical” and played with “amazing virtuosity.” Violinist Moni Simeonov serves as Adjunct Instructor of Violin and Chamber Music at University of Southern California and performs and coaches alongside Midori for her Orchestra Residencies Program American and International tours. Artistic Director and violist Pamela Freund-Striplen was recently presented with a 2015 Arts Recognition Award by the Contra Costa County Arts Commission.

The Gold Coast Chamber Players are known for their engaging and vibrant performances. Audiences have been responding with such enthusiasm that tickets are in great demand.

Ticket price includes complimentary champagne, a pre-concert talk at 7:00 PM, and a reception with the musicians following the performance. Tickets are available at www.gcplayers.org and by phone at (925) 283-3728. Limited seating, please reserve early.