The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will include State College in its 20-city tour with a performance that combines Baroque music and the upcoming winter festivities into a holiday-esque show.
At 7:30 tonight in Schwab Auditorium, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center will perform its program "Baroque Inspirations." The program features music by George Frideric Handel, Arcangelo Corelli, Antonio Vivaldi and Johann Sebastian Bach. The pieces are selections from the Chamber Music Society's annual winter Baroque Festival, which has become a treasured holiday tradition at Lincoln Center in New York, said George Trudeau, director of the Center for the Performing Arts.
With pieces including Corelli's "Christmas Concerto," Vivaldi's imitation of birdcalls in "The Goldfinch" and Bach's Brandenburg concertos No. 4 and No. 5, the program is a rare masterpiece of Baroque music, Trudeau said.
Twelve touring musicians from the society will perform at tonight's concert.
"These artists are some of the finest in the world today," Trudeau said. "It is a wonderful collaboration."
This evening of Baroque music will showcase various artists in the group, violist Paul Neubauer said.
"This performance is very diverse, and it is great to see how the different styles influence each other," flutist Tara Helen O'Connor said. "To hear some of the greatest chamber players all on one stage collaborating is just amazing."
The performance will last a little less than two hours, Trudeau added.
"This is not the most demanding performance, but it is joyous music and it's fun to play," Neubauer said.
The music that will be performed is very lighthearted and uplifting, and will put a smile on every face in the audience, Neubauer said.
"I try to make the piece I am playing at the moment my favorite piece," Neubauer said. "It is not always easy, but it's my philosophy."
The society has played at Penn State before and looks forward to returning to State College, Neubauer said.
Students should come to the performance and learn about the composers through the music being played, Trudeau said.
