Arts and Entertainment

Le Consort ensemble lifts up the sonata genre in events Oct. 21–22 at Penn State

Oct. 22 ‘From Naples to London’ explores genre throughout Europe; Oct. 21 Classical Coffeehouse event will include musicians’ favorites

The artists of Le Consort approach the violin trio sonata genre with youthful energy, a fresh ear and the excitement in discovery of a new favorite band. Credit: Julien Benhamou. All Rights Reserved.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Le Consort will guide their instruments in singing praise of the sonata form with the program “From Naples to London.” The chamber ensemble’s debut Penn State concert, presented by the Center for the Performing Arts (CPA), will take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22, in Recital Hall.

The artists of Le Consort approach the violin trio sonata genre with youthful energy, a fresh ear and the excitement in discovery of a new favorite band. A performance by Le Consort is like a journey through England and Europe, examining the various styles of violin trio sonatas.

Call 814-863-0255 or visit Le Consort online on the Center for the Performing Arts' website for more information about the ticketed event and a Classical Coffeehouse performance.

The myth is that the sonata form is a dead genre. The raison d'être for Le Consort is to raise awareness of the vibrancy in the music, regardless of its age and place in pop culture, and to create a mental picture of the music and the context of the time.

“It's really a music that is so much alive and so much closer to our different emotions and so much connected to us as human beings,” Le Consort cellist Hanna Salzenstein said in a recent artist conversation with the CPA team.

“It's very modern,” Salzenstein said. “We always like to introduce the pieces we are playing. …  They are travelling in the time in a musical context. And we are trying to paint and to tell this story about Europe in the beginning of 18th century, and how musicians … traveled and how all the different aesthetics just mixed up.”

The “From Naples to London” program includes:

  • John Eccles’ “The Mad Lover”
  • Nicola Matteis’ “Sarabanda Amorosa—Preludio in C sol faut—Andamento—Bore—Diverse bizarrie sopra la vecchia o pur sarabanda”
  • Antonio Vivaldi, Sonata Op. 1, No. 1, in G minor
  • Arcangelo Corelli, Violin Sonata, Op. 5, No. 12, “Folia”
  • Francesco Maria Veracini’s Violin Sonata in A Major, Op. 1, No. 7
  • Henry Purcell’s Ground for Harpsichord, “Here the Deities” Sonata of Four Parts in F minor, Z. 807
  • Mrs. Philarmonica, Sonata Sesta in G Major
  • Johann Sebastian Bach, Larghetto BWV 972
  • Vivaldi, “La Follia,” Op. 1, No. 12

Classical Coffeehouse

Le Consort will perform additional Baroque and Renaissance works during an intimate Classical Coffeehouse at 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21, in Robb Hall, Hintz Family Alumni Center.

Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and refreshments will be served. The event is free for Penn State and K–12 students. A $15 donation is suggested for each person who isn’t a student.

Visit Classical Coffeehouse online for more information. Registration is required for entry.

The event is presented in partnership with the Penn State Alumni Association, the Blue & White Society and the Penn State Coffee Club.

Acknowledgments

Support provided by the Dotty and Paul Rigby Classical Music Endowment.

Accessibility services supported by the William E. McTurk Endowment for Program Support.

Support for Classical Coffeehouse is provided by the Pieter and Lida Ouwehand Endowment.

A grant from the University Park Fee Board makes student prices possible.

Thank you to the Penn State School of Music for hosting the concert.

Find the Center for the Performing Arts

For more information about the season, visit the Center for the Performing Arts online, Facebook and Instagram.

Last Updated September 26, 2024

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