Two concerts featuring oboist Lindsay Flowers, clarinetist JJ Koh, and pianist Garret Ross introduce Midsummer Music’s first Autumn Music Fest series.
Among chamber music organizations, Midsummer’s Music is a leader in presenting provocative works by lesser-known composers, typically alongside brilliant pieces by household names like Mozart and Mendelssohn. With its first Autumn Music Fest program – titled “The Lovers” – three diverse and relatively unfamiliar composers are paired with the great Johannes Brahms, all of whom will be introduced by the knowledgeable Wisconsin Public Radio host Lori Skelton at the opening night concert.
Belgian composer Paul Gilson’s rhythmically inventive Trio in G Minor makes full use of tone color and is filled with enticing modulations. Gilson was fond of polyphony, and he used it cleverly in this trio to interlace the oboe, clarinet, and piano voices. Frigyes Hidas, a Hungarian composer who made significant contributions in the field of compositions for wind instruments, wrote Oboe Concerto No. 2, which premiered in 2000 at Valdosta State University in Georgia. It is first and foremost considered a challenging piece to perform, which rewards listeners with an awe-inspiring experience. Written in 2018, South Korean singer and musician Eun-Chul Oh’s The Lovers tells the story of beauty and happiness between two lovers, with its two movements being simply titled “Beauty” and “Joy.” Johannes Brahms’ Clarinet Sonata No. 2, Op. 120, is recognized for establishing the clarinet sonata form. It is the last chamber music piece Brahms wrote before his death and – along with his first Clarinet Sonata – one of the greatest masterpieces of the clarinet repertoire.
The program’s musicians are oboist Lindsay Flowers, clarinetist JJ Koh, and pianist Garret Ross. The Opening Night Gala at 7:00pm, Saturday, September 30, is an exclusive Salon Concert with limited seating and a sumptuous post-concert reception with the musicians and Skelton at the Trenchard residence in Sister Bay. The second performance of The Lovers program is at 4:00pm, October 1, at the Kress Pavilion in Egg Harbor.
Ticket prices vary by concert and range from donate-what-you-will, to $38 for adults, $17 for students, and children 12 and under free when accompanied by a paying adult. The opening night salon concert is $79 for adults and $30 for students. Tickets can be ordered at www.midsummersmusic.com or by phone at 920-854-7088.
The complete Autumn Music Fest calendar can be viewed at www.midsummersmusic.com.
Autumn Music Fest – running September 30 through October 15 – features six concerts with world-class musicians, drawing on the extraordinary talent of artists from the Chicago Symphony, Madison Symphony Orchestra, New Mexico Philharmonic, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, China National Symphony, the Apollo Music Festival, and the Ravinia Festival, among others. Additional concerts in the series include performances by Wisconsin’s renowned Pro Arte Quartet and Midsummer Music’s professional ensemble in residence, the Griffon String Quartet, at venues in Egg Harbor, Sturgeon Bay, and Green Bay.
Midsummer’s Music was co-founded in 1990 by Jim and Jean Berkenstock, long-time Door County summer residents and principal orchestral players with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. What began as two concerts among friends has become one of the Midwest’s most anticipated chamber music series, bringing thousands of chamber music enthusiasts from around the globe to the magical Door County Peninsula.
High-resolution photos can be downloaded at https://www.midsummersmusic.com/photos/.
Lindsay Flowers: https://midsummersmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Lindsay-Flowers-Koh-LargeWeb.jpg
JJ Koh: https://midsummersmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/JJKoh_CMYK.jpg
Garret Ross: https://www.midsummersmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/garret-ross.jpg
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For calendar listings:
Autumn Music Fest, September 30 to October 15
Lindsay Flowers, Oboe; JJ Koh, Clarinet; Garret Ross, Piano
Trio in G Minor by Paul Gilson
Oboe Concerto No. 2 by Frigyes Hidas
Clarinet Sonata No. 2, Op. 120 by Johannes Brahms
The Lovers by Eun-Chul Oh
September 30, 7:00pm: Opening Night Gala, Salon Concert Trenchard Residence, Sister Bay
October 1, 4:00pm: Kress Pavilion, Egg Harbor
Pro Arte Quartet
String Quartet No. 22 in B-flat Major, K. 589 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
String Quartet No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 110 by Dmitri Shostakovich
String Quartet No. 12, Op. 96, “American” by Antonín Dvořák
October 7, 7:00pm: Hope United Church of Christ, Sturgeon Bay
Pro Arte Quartet/Griffon String Quartet
Mendelssohn Octet in E-flat Major, Op. 20
String Quartet No. 22 in B-flat Major, K. 589 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
String Quartet No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 110 by Dmitri Shostakovich
October 8, 3:00pm: Tarlton Theater, Green Bay
Griffon String Quartet
String Quartet D Minor, No. 15, K. 421 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
String Quartet No. 3 by Elizabeth Maconchy
String Quartet in F Major by Maurice Ravel
October 14, 7:00pm: Hope United Church of Christ, Sturgeon Bay
October 15, 3:00pm: Kress Pavilion, Egg Harbor