The 2016 Festival Series gets underway with the first performance at the Gesa Power House Theatre. As is our tradition, we begin with the World Premiere of a work commissioned for the occasion, a set of duos for two violins by composer, John Berners. Each piece is a miniature paying homage to the collections of violin duos by Béla Bartók and Luciano Berio respectively.

Next, we encounter an American masterpiece of minimalism by Steve Reich, Different Trains for string quartet and tape. Words become melodies that weave together in sometimes hypnotic repetitions. However, the repetitions change subtly, and Reich creates an emotional documentary of heartbreakingly different journeys by train during the 1940’s in America and Europe.

To bring the performance to a close, WWCMF is delighted to welcome back the Volta Piano Trio for the Brahms Piano Trio in B, Op. 8. Nowhere is the Romanticism of Brahms as optimistic or unbridled as in this early masterpiece. Though Brahms revisited the work later in life to correct the “mistakes” of his 21 year-old self, the youthful exuberance of the work’s origin shines through all the same.

Artists: John Berners, Composer; Jennifer Caine, violin; Timothy Christie, violin/viola; Oksana Ezhokina, piano; Andrew Jennings, violin; Norbert Lewandowski, cello; Christina McGann, violin; Stephen Miahky, violin; Maria Sampen, violin; Sally Singer Tuttle, cello; and Volta Piano Trio.

Steve Reich (b. 1936)
Different Trains (1988)
1   America — Before the war
2   Europe — During the war
3   After the war

The 2016 Tasting Music Series begins with a minimalist multimedia masterpiece by American composer, Steve Reich. His work, Different Trains for string quartet and tape, explores his childhood riding the rails between New York and Los Angeles. When his parents separated, the young Reich traveled with his nanny back and forth across the country from 1939 to 1942. As a Jew, Reich realized much later in life that had he been living in Europe during that time, he would have been riding a very different train.

Through minimalist techniques and the innovative exploration of speech melody, Reich conceived an incredibly moving score that feels like documentary on one hand and a very personal statement on the other. Tonight’s event will explore minimalism in music, and how a work inherently tied to recorded media can feel alive and resonant. The modern space at Charles Smith Wines provides the perfect setting to take this journey through time and sound.

Artists: Timothy Christie, viola; Norbert Lewandowski, cello; Christina McGann, violin; and Stephen Miahky, violin.

Commentary: Timothy Christie

The table is set, and you are invited to the feast. Come hungry… for great music. Founder and Artistic Director, Timothy Christie, will be joined by Festival Artists Maria Sampen, Meta Weiss, and special guests, Third Coast Percussion for an evening of unparalleled variety.

Beethoven headlines the first half with his ingenious String Trio in G Major, Op. 9, No. 1. Among Beethoven’s many musical innovations is the ability to transform a persistent rhythm into a musical theme. Just think of the Fifth Symphony, side 1, track 1.

What better way to celebrate rhythmic innovation than to welcome Third Coast Percussion to the stage. Called “sonically spectacular” by the Chicago Tribune, Third Coast Percussion champions the awe-inspiring music of John Cage, Steve Reich, George Crumb, Arvo Pärt, Gérard Grisey, Philippe Manoury, Wolfgang Rihm, Louis Andriessen, Toru Takemitsu, and Tan Dun, among others. Their set on the 2015 January Festival Series will rock the rafters of the Gesa Power House Theatre, and change the way you see chamber music forever.

Kevin Schempf, Clarinet

Clarinetist Kevin Schempf is making his sixth WWCMF appearance. It’s about time we got to know him better. Sure, he seems to make the cover of the Walla Walla Union Bulletin each season, but what drives this incredible performer?

Long Shadows Vintners will open its doors to WWCMF for this final Portrait event of the 2014 Season. Music will include selections by Poulenc, Reich, Villa-Lobos, and Milhaud.

Artists: John Jamison, Sarah Brady, Philip Payton, and Paul Rafanelli.