STRINGS RETUNED: Inside Quintessential Strings Performances Strings Music Festival, based in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, presents a new podcast. Music Director Michael Sachs curates a weekly highlight of previously unreleased performances and is joined by principal players from across the nation in conversation and commentary about each piece.
Pieces PerformedMOZART Serenade No. 9 in D Major, K.320 “Posthorn” I. Adagio maestoso – Allegro con spititoStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015MOZART String Quartet No. 7 in E-flat Major, K.160 II. Un poco adagio Vijay Gupta, ViolinLaura Albers, ViolinMark Jackobs, ViolaJoel Noyes, CelloPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019MOZART Serenade in G Major, K.525 “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik” II. Romanze: Andante Strings Festival Orchestra/Sheryl Staples, Concertmaster and LeaderPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016CHEVALIER DE SAINT GEORGES Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op.11 III. PrestoStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2018MOZART Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major, K.453 I. Allegro Kenny Broberg, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2018MOZART Overture to Le Nozze di Figaro, K.492Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and an in-school education program called Strings School Days. This offering cultivates music appreciation and ability in Northwest Colorado’s K-12 students.StringsMusicFestival.com/donateFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestivalInstagram @stringsmusicfestival
8/27/20 • 62:04
Pieces PerformedBACH Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major, BWV 1050 III. Allegro Nurit Bar-Josef, ViolinJennifer Steele, FluteMark Robson, HarpsichordStrings Festival OrchestraPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019DOHNÁNYI Piano Quintet in C minor, Op. 1III. Adagio, quasi andante IV. Finale. Allegro animato-Allegro Nurit Bar-Josef, ViolinChee-Yun, ViolinLynne Ramsey, ViolaTanya Ell, CelloWendy Chen, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016ROSSINI Sonata No. 3 for Strings in C Major I. AllegroLaura Albers, Violin Vijay Gupta, Violin Joel Noyes, Cello Owen Levine, BassPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019MENDELSSOHN Concerto for Violin in E minor, Op. 64 III. Allegro molto vivace Chee-Yun, ViolinStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and an in-school education program called Strings School Days. This offering cultivates music appreciation and ability in Northwest Colorado’s K-12 students.StringsMusicFestival.com/donateFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestivalInstagram @stringsmusicfestival
8/19/20 • 52:04
Famous musician Billy Joel has said, “I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity.” Seeing the humanity in each other is an essential part of sharing music. In this episode, relax to a soothing soundscape of strings, piano, and percussion from works by Claude Debussy, Joe Tompkins, Arvo Pӓrt, and Gustav Mahler. We recommend looking at the stars while you listen to Episode 4. Meet your host, Music Director Michael Sachs.@1:00 Jamey Lamar reflects on meditation, or meditates on reflection. How do musicians listen to their music to understand? “[Mindfulness] is opening yourself up to the world, truly, by stopping all of that inner noise. The same can be true when we stop to listen to a piece of music.”@04:56 Jump to the Debussy, performed by Joyce Yang @08:18 Percussionist Joe Tompkins talks about composing for a place as unique as The Tank, and the experience of driving hours through Colorado to arrive at the one-of-a-kind recording space. “In my opinion it was like walking into Mad Max beyond the Thunderdome, and saying we’re going to record a piece here in the middle of the desert. You kind of expected Mel Gibson to come around the corner in a crazy truck.”@13:18 Jump to 4Round@23:06 Did you know Arvo Pärt combined numerology and harmony? Vijay Gupta, violinist and founder of Street Symphony, discusses the form of the piece, which is “a kind of musical miracle … that fluttering light that is constant in all of us, all the time.”@26:35 Jump to the Pärt, performed by Vijay Gupta and the Strings Festival Orchestra@37:57 Michael Sachs’ favorite piece of music ever written: Mahler’s Adagietto movement in Symphony No. 5. “Being married to a harpist … I always take this moment to reflect on our many years together, how much we’ve shared, and like this is my love letter to my own wife.”@39:38 Jump to the Mahler, conducted by Brett Mitchell and performed by the Strings Festival Orchestra Pieces PerformedDEBUSSY Préludes - Book 2, No. 5, BruyèresJoyce Yang, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016TOMPKINS 4Round Marc Damoulakis, PercussionJeremy Epp, PercussionJoseph Tomkins, Percussion and ComposerKevin Watkins, PercussionPerformed at The Tank in Rangely, CO in 2018PÄRT Fratres (for Solo Violin, Strings, and Percussion) Vijay Gupta, ViolinStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2017MAHLER Symphony No. 5 IV. Adagietto Strings Festival Orchestra/Brett Mitchell, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2018About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and an in-school education program called Strings School Days. This offering cultivates music appreciation and ability in Northwest Colorado’s K-12 students.StringsMusicFestival.com/donateFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestivalInstagram @stringsmusicfestival
8/13/20 • 52:04
Relationships are how we understand the past and bring it into our future. In episode three, travel over one hundred and fifty years of musical relationships between composers. How have the greats, Mozart and Haydn, inspired the more modern composers Stravinsky and Prokofiev? The heart of the music is always in our relationships, and the artists who join this episode talk about the connections between composers and amongst themselves. Pieces PerformedGRIEG Holberg Suite for Strings, Op. 40 I. Praeludium Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019HAYDN String Trio No. 21 in G Major, Hob V:G1 II. Gavotte Nurit Bar-Josef, Violin Amy Lee, Violin Joel Noyes, CelloPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 1, Op. 25 “Classical Symphony” III. Gavotte: Non troppo allegroStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015HAYDN Concerto for Trumpet in E-flat Major, Hob.Vlle: I II. Andante Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, Conductor and TrumpetPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015GRIEG Holberg Suite for Strings, Op. 40 II. SarabandeStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019MOZART Flute Quartet No. 1 in D Major, K.285 III. RondoSharon Sparrow, FluteNurit Bar-Josef, ViolinMark Jackobs, ViolaJoel Noyes, CelloPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 1, Op. 25 “Classical Symphony” I. Allegro Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015MOZART Serenade No. 9 in D Major, K.320 “Posthorn” II. MinuettoStrings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015STRAVINSKY Pulcinella Suite VIII. (a)Minuetto - (b)Finale Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, ConductorPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and an in-school education program called Strings School Days. This offering cultivates music appreciation and ability in Northwest Colorado’s K-12 students.StringsMusicFestival.com/donateFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestivalInstagram @stringsmusicfestival
7/29/20 • 52:58
Since we cannot travel anywhere right now, naturally, all we can think about is … travel. When our music director decided to send everyone on a journey to France, he compiled the most beautiful French pieces ever recorded at Strings Pavilion. So, pour yourself a glass of Provence rosé for this episode, and imagine lavender fields. Music Director Michael Sachs hosts the program, and is joined by commentator Jamey Lamar, concertmaster of the LA Phil Martin Chalifour, and principal keyboardist of the LA Phil Joanne Pearce Martin.@01:15Meet your host, Music Director Michael Sachs. Michael Sachs talks about the connections between the four French composers. “When you think of French music with its intimate colors and lush fragrant elegance, all of these men were at the forefront of that golden age of French romanticism.”@ 03:18 Jump to the Debussy performed by Joyce Yang@ 06:13Joanne Pearce Martin explains just why Fauré wrote such beautiful music. “I’m issuing a spoiler alert here: but really, it’s one of the most dream-like and gorgeous 24 bars…”@ 08:29 Jump to the Fauré@ 24:30Jamey Lamar tells us about César Franck’s compositions that rekindled the public’s passion for “that rocketship of an instrument,” the organ. Lamar guides the listener through Franck’s early years, and Broberg’s “a real poet’s sensitivity and balance.”@ 28:22 Jump to the Franck, performed by Kenny Broberg @ 38:38Saint-Saëns was an accomplished pianist, but also loved the trumpet, Martin Chalifour says. Focusing on the “luscious” piece of music, Chalifour also shares how each player is highlighted in a special way in Saint-Saëns’ music. “A good composer will make use of players sporadically and just engage them in the flow of the conversation but … like a zoom call, you know? Not everyone can speak at once!”@ 40:57Jump to the Saint-SaënsPieces PerformedDEBUSSY Préludes - Book 1, No. 12, MinstrelsJoyce Yang, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2016FAURÉ Piano Quartet No.1 in C minor, Op. 15 III. Adagio IV. Allegro molto Martin Chalifour, ViolinRobert Vernon, ViolaMark Kosower, CelloJoanne Pearce Martin, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015FRANCK Prélude, Fugue et Variation, Op. 18 Kenny Broberg, PianoPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2018SAINT-SAËNS Septet in E-flat Major for Trumpet, Piano, and Strings, Op. 65 IV. Gavotte et Final Martin Chalifour, ViolinJun-Ching Lin, ViolinRobert Vernon, ViolaMark Kosower, CelloTimothy Pitts, BassJoanne Pearce Martin, PianoMichael Sachs, TrumpetPerformed at Strings Music Festival in 2015About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and an in-school education program called Strings School Days. This offering cultivates music appreciation and ability in Northwest Colorado’s K-12 students.StringsMusicFestival.com/donateFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestivalInstagram @stringsmusicfestival
7/22/20 • 47:28
The Beethoven 250 episode celebrates his quarter-millenium birthday with a string quartet, cello and piano duo, and two chamber orchestras performing Symphonies Nos. 2 and 4. Music Director Michael Sachs hosts the program, and is joined by commentator Jamey Lamar, violinist John Macfarlane, bassoonist William Short, and cellist Joel Noyes. Meet your host, Music Director Michael Sachs: @ 00:29Jamey Lamar shares a clever overview of Ludwig’s life and attitudes, and how Beethoven, “you beet farmer,” changed the image of the classical composer forever, from the staid image of “Papa Haydn” to a man who couldn’t care less what the aristocracy thought about him, and offered a vision of classical music that was wild and inclusive. “You believed in us. You kept reorienting us to our shared humanity. Nobody’s left out of your vision from the world.” @ 05:45John Macfarlane offers insight to the early, middle, and late string quartets of Beethoven, and a deep-dive into the keys, moods, and melodies of String Quartet No. 5, Op. 18.“This [No. 5] shows a young brash man who you could imagine would show up at a fancy dinner party announcing himself and be charming and witty, and at the same time, be a really rude presence in the room.”@ 08:32Jump to String Quartet No. 5 performed by the Attacca Quartet @ 15:23Michael Sachs provides an intense look into Beethoven’s emotions as the composer pours his soul into Symphony No. 2.“Reflecting on his struggle, I think we can all relate to difficult times and acute uncertainty.”@ 16:45Jump to Symphony No. 2 @ 28:14Joel Noyes speaks to Beethoven’s variation on Mozart’s opera, and demos multiple melodies on his 1860 J.B. Vuillaume cello for the audience to catch in the performance. The piece is performed by Joel and pianist Benjamin Hochman.“This an exceptional piece .. the joy of playing it is Beethoven’s mastery of the material and his ability to combine Mozart’s genius with Beethoven’s fingerprints all over it.”@ 32:52Jump to 7 Variations @43:32Meet William Short, and hear his explanation of the most fearsome bassoon solo in the classical repertoire. “But those few measures of music just stretch on forever because you’re intimately aware through the hundreds and thousands of hours you’ve practiced them of every single thing that can go wrong.”@45:22Jump to Symphony No. 4 Pieces PerformedBEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 5 in A Major, Op.18 I. Allegro Attacca String Quartet | performed at Strings Music Festival in 2018BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36 II. Larghetto Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, Conductor | performed at Strings Music Festival in 2016BEETHOVEN 7 Variations on “Bei Mannern, Welche Liebe Fuhlen” in E-flat Major Wo046, from Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte Joel Noyes, CelloBenjamin Hochman, Pianoperformed at Strings Music Festival in 2019BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4 in B-flat Major, Op. 60 IV. Allegro ma non troppo Strings Festival Orchestra/Michael Sachs, Conductor | performed at Strings Music Festival in 2019About Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado: Strings Music Festival presents music of the highest quality in an intimate mountain setting. Our summer festival includes a genre-spanning lineup featuring classical musicians from the nation’s top orchestras and chart-topping popular contemporary artists, all of whom perform in an intimate, 569-seat Pavilion nestled at the base of Steamboat’s mountains. Outside of our venue, we serve the community with a variety of free programming and a free in-school education program called Strings School Days.StringsMusicFestival.comFacebook.com/stringsmusicfestival Instagram @stringsmusicfestival
7/15/20 • 54:16
