Civitas Ensemble to Perform All-Czech Concert on Oct. 16

Civitas Ensemble, a non-profit chamber music group, is pleased to present a concert of chamber music all written by Czech composers at its season opener on Sunday, Oct. 16 at 3 p.m. at Ganz Hall at Roosevelt University, 730 S. Michigan Ave., 7th floor, Chicago. Tickets are $30. Student tickets are free and are limited to two per customer.

The concert will feature the following works:

· Bohuslav Martinu (1890-1959): Quartet, H. 315

Bohuslav Martinu was a Czech composer who moved to Paris in 1923 and developed a neo-classical style, similar to Stravinsky’s. This piece — originally written for oboe, violin, cello and piano — was composed in 1947, after Martinu had emigrated to the United States.

· Zdenek Fibich (1850-1900): Quintet Op. 42

Created for violin, cello, clarinet, French horn and piano, this piece was written in 1893. Fibich was known for his Wagnerian-style operas, as well as his chamber pieces and symphonies.

· Leos Janacek (1854-1928): String Quartet #1, “Kreutzer Sonata.”

Inspired by Leo Tolstoy’s novella about a young woman in an unhappy marriage, who plays a Beethoven sonata with a handsome violinist, this piece, written in 1923, captures the drama and pathos of the original story.

The all-Czech program was chosen in part to celebrate the ensemble’s plans to collaborate later this season with the Czech violinist Pavel Šporcl and his Gipsy Way Ensemble, including performances in Prague on Jan. 4, 2017, and in Chicago on May 21, 2017.

“Later in the year, we will look at music that European’s thought sounded ‘Czech’ or from the gypsy or Romani tradition,” said Yuan-Qing Yu, the group’s violinist. “In this concert, however, we wanted to explore music that Czech composers wrote themselves. We hope our audience will enjoy learning more about all aspects of the Czech culture through this juxtaposition this year.”

Civitas is comprised of four artists, three of whom are members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra — Yuan‐Qing Yu, violin and assistant concertmaster; Kenneth Olsen, assistant principal cello; and J. Lawrie Bloom, clarinet and bass clarinet. The fourth member is Winston Choi, head of the Piano Department at Roosevelt University’s College of the Performing Arts.

Joining the group for this concert will be three special guest artists: Czech brothers Matous Michal (violin) and Simon Michal (viola), as well as Oto Carillo (horn), all of whom are members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

DATE: Oct. 16, 3 p.m.

VENUE: Ganz Hall at Roosevelt University, 730 S. Michigan Ave., 7th Floor, Chicago, 60605

TICKETS: $30. Student tickets are free and limited to two tickets per request. Purchase tickets at http://www.civitasensemble.org/

CIVITAS ENSEMBLE’S MISSION

Civ­i­tas is a cham­ber music ensem­ble with a three­fold mis­sion: to present engag­ing live per­for­mances of new and tra­di­tional works; to inspire a young gen­er­a­tion of clas­si­cal musi­cians; and to bring the heal­ing power of music to those with lim­ited access to live performances.

ABOUT CIVITAS ENSEMBLE

Civitas Ensemble was founded by three members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2011. The ensemble presents repertoire spanning four centuries of music history and also nurtures relationships with living composers, to introduce audiences to exciting new works.

Civitas has performed at various venues, including the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park and with Yo-Yo Ma at the 2012 Chicago Humanities Festival. The group’s performance on WFMT was selected by the station as the one of the “Best of Live Broadcasts in 2012,” and the ensemble has received rave reviews from the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Classical Review, and Chicago on the Aisle.

Civitas Ensemble is the recipient of grants from the Driehaus Foundation MacArthur Arts Fund, the Albert Pick Jr. Fund, the Leslie Fund, the Dolores Kohl Educational Fund, The Sage Foundation, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, the Illinois Arts Council, and is supported by Judy and Scott McCue and the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation.