3 March 2018, 6pm
Duration: 1 hour
Price: €5,00 - €11,00
Venue: Vilnius Congress Hall (Vilniaus Str. 6-1, Vilnius)
Flute Andrius Radziukynas
Violin Zbigniev Levicki, Vytautas Martišius, Toma Bandzaitytė
Viola Benediktas Valeika, Rolandas Romoslauskas, Ričardas Vytas, Asta Jankauskienė
Cello Povilas Jacunskas, Arnas Kmieliauskas
Double bass Arūnas Kučinskas
Klavesinas Vaiva Eidukaitytė-Storastienė

G. Ph. Telemann. Concerto for Two Altos and Chamber Ensemble in G major

G. F. Händel. Sonata for Two Violins and Basso Continuo No. 6, op. 2 (version for alto, cello and chamber ensemble)

W. A. Mozart. Quartet for Flute, Violin, Alto and Cello No. 1 in D major, K. 285

J. S. Bach. Brandenburg Concerto for Two Altos and Chamber Ensemble No. 6, in B-flat major

 

The musicians of the Lithuania State Symphony Orchestra shall greet the spring with warm and sensuous sounds of altos. It is universally thought that first altos appeared in the 16th century in Italy. As time went by, the music for this instrument gradually gained popularity – the low, luxurious and colourful sound of altos became more and more appreciated.

 

On this evening the four pieces of music, performed by the talented soloists of the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, shall introduce four different images of altos in the German musical tradition of the 17-18th century. At first we shall hear the Concerto for Two Altos and Chamber Ensemble in G major by Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767), one of the most productive composers in history, who was also an alto player. This piece showcases a set of intstruments that was rare during the time of its conception. The Concerto shall be followed by Georg Friedrich Händel’s Sonata for Two Violins and Basso Continuo No. 6, op. 2, which is considered to be the queen of the genre of trio sonatas – tonight, it will be interesting to witness it coloured with the sounds of alto. The concert shall continue with a slightly later piece by genius of the Classical epoch Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) – the Quartet for Flute, Violin, Alto and Cello No. 1 in D major, K. 285, in which the alto will blossom along with the light, bright and poetic sound of the flute. The entire concert will be concluded with Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685-1750) Brandenburg Concerto for Two Altos and Chamber Ensemble No. 6 – a true revolution in the hierarchy of musical instruments, created by the composer’s decision to proudly bring forth the soft and lush timbre of alto.