News Release

Back to Newsroom

---

08.01.2005

Media Contact: Sally Corbett, Arts at Emory, 404-727-6678, sacorbe@emory.edu

Variety is Key to Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta’s 2005-2006 Season

The Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta (ECMSA) has announced its 2005-2006 season. Since 1992, ECMSA has brought together some of Atlanta’s finest resident musicians with internationally known guest artists. The 13th season offers 19 highly-varied programs including 10 free concerts and virtuoso performances by the acclaimed Vega String Quartet, trumpeter Christopher Martin and former Atlanta Symphony Orchestra concertmaster, Martin Chalifour. Tickets go on sale on Sept. 8, 2005 and will be available through the Arts at Emory Box Office at 404-727-5050 or online at www.arts.emory.edu.

“Variety is the key to this season of ECMSA concerts,” says ECMSA founder and Artistic Director William Ransom. “The programs on the Emerson, Noontime, and Family series bring together a wide range of performers, instruments and repertoire, from standard chamber music configurations to programs with organ and jazz instruments.”

Repertoire highlights of the Emerson Series in the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts include Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” performed by Emory faculty and students, Schoenberg’s ultra-romantic “Transfigured Night,” and the rarely-heard “Serenade” by Benjamin Britten. “To my knowledge, this beautiful work by Britten hasn’t been performed in Atlanta in over 20 years, and I suspect this is due to its unique combination of instruments and difficult parts for the horn and tenor soloists,” says Ransom. Patrons purchasing the entire Emerson Series will receive a 20% series discount.

The Noontime Series at the Michael C. Carlos Museum will feature performances by the Vega String Quartet, Argentinian-born Belgian pianist Aquilles Delle Vigne and the artist who will be winner of the Emory Prize at Japan’s 2005 Kamisaibara Piano Festival. The Family Series at the Carlos Museum offers programs for young children, including the “Halloween Concert” and dramatic reading of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” performed by Emory’s director of orchestral studies, Richard Prior; an annual program of classical music for the holidays with an audience sing-along; and a performance of works by Beethoven, with entertaining commentary by Ludwig himself.

ECMSA Artistic Director and pianist William Ransom has appeared as a recitalist, soloist with orchestras, and chamber musician in Eastern and Western Europe, Japan, South America and Mexico, and throughout the United States. He is currently the Mary L. Emerson Professor of Piano and head of the piano faculty at Emory University.

EMERSON SERIES
Emerson Series in Emerson Concert Hall, Schwartz Center for Performing Arts
Tickets: $20 (except for the free concert on Mar. 5, 2006)
Emory and non-Emory students free with ID

Saturday, Oct. 29, 2005 at 8:00 p.m.
“Jazz Meets Classics”
The Gary Motley Jazz Quartet with Dwight Andrews and the Vega String Quartet
This program features classical music by Bach, Beethoven, Ravel and Stravinsky that influenced jazz composers, and jazz by Bud Powell, Brubeck, Gershwin and Hancock that was influenced by classical music. It also features the Atlanta premiere of “Highlands Summit: A Suite for String Quartet and Jazz Quartet” by Gary Motley.

Saturday, Nov. 19, 2005 at 8:00 p.m.
The Vega String Quartet
The Vega String Quartet takes up full-time residence in Atlanta this fall and showcases their brilliant new first violinist, Wei Wei Le, a protégée of the late Sir Yehudi Menhuin, in a program of Mozart, Shostakovich and Beethoven.

Sunday, Feb. 26, 2006 at 4:00 p.m.
“Bach, Barber and Britten”
The Society Chamber Orchestra
Jun-Ching Lin and Wei Wei Le, violin soloists
Brice Andrus, French horn
Sumner Thompson, tenor
Atlanta’s finest string players join forces in a conductorless chamber orchestra for a concert featuring Bach’s “Concerto for Two Violins,” Barber’s beautiful “Adagio” and one of Benjamin Britten’s rarely heard works, the “Serenade” for horn, tenor and strings.

Sunday, Mar. 5, 2006 at 4:00 p.m., Free
“J. S. Bach: The Goldberg Variations”
A unique performance of one of the greatest works for keyboard, this concert features the entire Emory piano, organ and harpsichord faculty; the Emory Concert Choir; and a string trio dividing up the Variations. Leading Bach scholar (and chair of the music department) Dr. Stephen
Crist speaks about the work prior to the performance.

Sunday, Apr. 9, 2006 at 4:00 p.m.
“Virtuoso Concerti”
The Society Chamber Orchestra
Christopher Martin, trumpet
Martin Chalifour, violin
William Ransom, piano
The second program by the Society Chamber Orchestra welcomes virtuoso trumpeter Christopher Martin back to Atlanta (from Chicago, where he is the new principal of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra) for Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto #2.” The program features the ultra-romantic “Transfigured Night” for String Sextet by Schoenberg and ends with Mendelssohn’s delightful “Concerto for Violin and Piano” with violinist Martin Chalifour and ECMSA artistic director William Ransom as soloists.

NOONTIME SERIES
Noontime Series in the Michael C. Carlos Museum Reception Hall
Fridays from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m., Free

Sept. 30, 2005
The Vega String Quartet

Oct. 14, 2005
The Serafin String Quartet from Delaware makes its Atlanta debut.

Nov. 11, 2005
Richard Luby, violin
Luby’s program includes works by Strauss and Saint-Saëns.

Dec. 2, 2005
“Emory’s Young Artists”
Annual program featuring Emory’s most talented music department students

Jan. 27, 2006
“Bach’s Lunch”
This program of solo strings and piano features members of the Vega String Quartet and pianist William Ransom.

Feb. 24, 2006
Trio Soleil
Violinist William Fitzpatrick of California and cellist Grace Bahng of Florida join fellow Juilliard alum and pianist William Ransom for Trio Soleil’s Atlanta debut, performing Schoenfield’s “Café Music.”

Mar. 3, 2006
Aquiles Delle Vigne, piano
The Argentinian-born Belgian pianist plays Liszt and Chopin.

Apr. 7, 2006
Martin Chalifour, violin
Former Atlanta Symphony Orchestra concertmaster and current Los Angeles Philharmonic concertmaster returns to Atlanta.

May 5, 2006
The winner of the Emory Prize at Japan’s 2005 Kamisaibara Piano Festival performs works for solo piano.

FAMILY SERIES
Family Series in the Michael C. Carlos Museum Reception Hall
Sundays from 4:00 to 4:45 p.m.
Tickets $4 - Free for Museum members

Oct. 30, 2005
“Halloween Concert”
Richard Prior, Emory’s director of orchestral studies, gives a dramatic reading of Poe’s “The Raven” with improvised accompaniment.

Dec. 11, 2005
“Annual Holiday Concert and Sing-Along”
Jan. 29, 2006
“Chinese New Year Celebration”
The Vega String Quartet (originally from Shanghai) performs arrangements of Chinese folk songs.

Feb. 19, 2006
“Atlanta’s Young Artists”
Upon recommendation of their teachers, some of Atlanta’s most gifted pre-college musicians perform selected works.

Mar. 26, 2006
“Beethoven in Bluejeans”
Ludwig himself makes an appearance to hear and talk about his music.

---

Back to top