Music Chamber

Timothy Schwarz (violin) Jane Beament (piano) with composer David Osbon

 

Amy Beach (1867-1944) Romance

 

A precocious musical talent, Beach made her professional debut in 1883 but following her marriage to a man 24 years her senior, agreed to limit her performances to one a year and concentrate on her composition. Following her husband's death in 1910 she developed a distinguished career as a composer and teacher.

 

David Osbon (b. 1963) Five  Hommages 

1)  Hommage a Edward Elgar 2)  Hommage a Ludwig van Beethoven 3)  Hommage a Olivier Messiaen

4)  Hommage a George Crumb 5)  Hommage a Nigel Kennedy

 

Each of these miniatures represents a musical portrait of 5 musicians whose styles, sounds, character and teaching have made a significant influence on the composer's work. Although there are some obvious musical references these are most definitely not pastiche but hommages in the true sense. Composed in 1999 they were premiered at the Mustafa Kemal Anfisi in Istanbul. David is Head of Music at Kingston University and conductor of the Thames Gateway Orchestra. They will appear soon on a new Music Chamber album of David's chamber music. David and Jane's current album can be heard here.

 

Steven Sametz (b.1954) Fantasia

 

The Fantasia on Lama badaa yatasana was commissioned in 2011 by Timothy Schwarz and sponsored by a grant from the Center for Global Islamic Studies at Lehigh University. The purpose of the piece was to form a bridge between Arabic and Classical European styles of violin playing. The Fantasia is a theme and variations from the Arabic love song Lama badaa yatasana.

 

John Corigliano (b. 1938) Sonata for Violin and Piano

1) Allegro 2) Andantino 3) Lento 4) Allegro

 

This work won the 1964 Spoleto Festival and was first performed on July 10th 1964 at the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy by violinist Yoko Matsuda and pianoist Charles Wadsworth. It is dedicated to the composer's parents.

 

Timothy Schwarz’s recording career spans 15 years, with solo and chamber music albums distributed by EMI, Marquis Classics, and Centaur Records. An upcoming CD of chamber works by Jennifer Higdon will be released by Naxos in 2012. Concerto performances include performances of the Brahms Violin Concerto with orchestras in Philadelphia (PA), Wilmington (DE) and Fort Meyers (FL). As a member of the Serafin String Quartet, Schwarz will release a CD of works by Jennifer Higdon on the Naxos label in 2012. In 1995 he won the Artistic Ambassador Competition in Washington, DC, which resulted in a nine-week solo tour of the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The United States Government appointed him Artistic Ambassador for a total of three tours between 1996 and 2001. As a concerto soloist he has appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Richmond Philharmonic, the Rome Symphony Orchestra, the Brazilian Chamber Orchestra, and numerous regional orchestras. Schwarz is currently Head of the String Department at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA. In 2006 Schwarz was appointed Music Director of the Wilmington Community Orchestra. He is also a founding member of the clarinet trio Tripod.

 

Jane Beament has an international reputation as a contemporary music specialist. She has given more than fifty premieres and has had many works written for her. Whilst living in Philadelphia, she gave the US premiere of Spectrum, gave several performances on WFLN Radio and was director of the Quintet:Essentials concert series. She also appeared at the Tampa Bay Composers’ Forum. Jane has appeared at the Istanbul Film Festival and was a guest performer in the American Adventures Festival promoted by the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. In London Jane has performed at the Wigmore Hall, Blackheath Concert Halls and St Martin’s in the Field. She has featured as concerto soloist with the Dartford Symphony Orchestra and the Blackheath String Orchestra. Most recently she appeared at the Tete-a-tete opera festival and made a live appearance on Radio 3’s In Tune programme.