Whitman College philosophy professor Julia Ireland will delve into the nitty gritty of Tolstoy's novella. WWCMF Founder and Artistic Director, Timothy Christie, will guide an exploration of Janáček’s unique musical voice.

Bar and Piece: WWCMF is proud to return to the incomparable jimgermanbar in Waitsburg, WA, for our Special Event: Kreutzer Sonata. Tolstoy, famous for his epic novel War and Peace also published a novella called The Kreutzer Sonata in 1889. It was almost immediately banned in Russia, and similar instances of censorship took place in the United States in 1890. Czech composer, Leoš Janáček, wrote his string quartet of the same name in 1923. It has not yet been banned. These two works, both examples of what can happen if exposed to the music of Beethoven, wrestle with issues of morality, feminism, and the institution of marriage.

For this special event, Whitman College philosophy professor Julia Ireland will delve into the nitty gritty of Tolstoy's novella, and WWCMF Founder and Artistic Director, Timothy Christie, will guide an exploration of Janáček’s unique musical voice. Barman extraordinaire Jim German will create yet a third work of art inspired by Beethoven's Op. 47, Kreutzer Sonata, a cocktail to be so named. There will be only one opportunity to discuss, listen to, and sip. The Kreutzer Sonata. Tickets are extremely limited.

Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)

String Quartet No. 1, “The Kreutzer Sonata”

I. Adagio - Con moto

II. Con moto

III. Con moto - Vivo - Andante

IV. Con moto - (Adagio) - Più mosso

Artists: Timothy Christie, Julia Ireland, Christina McGann, Stephen Miahky and Meta Weiss

The Schumann Piano Quartet in E flat plus music by Janacek and Shostakovich

The Janacek Sonata for Violin and Piano calls to mind vibrant colors discreetly hidden amid the ancient shadowy cobbled streets of Prague. The Shostakovich Prelude and Scherzo for String Octet stands as a work of virtuosity from this giant of the 20th Century. The lyricism of the Schumann Piano Quartet in E Flat is unmatched. In its slow movement we find one of the most glorious melodies in all of music. Triumphant in its outlook the Piano Quartet is one of Schumann’s best-loved compositions. The performance will feature the Icicle Creek Piano Trio’s Oksana Ezhokina at the keyboard, violinist Maria Sampen, violist and Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival Founder and Artistic Director Timothy Christie, and cellist Norbert Lewandowski.