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17TH SEASON 2021 to 2022

OfcersJennifer Cable, PresidentMary Boodell, Vice PresidentJames Wilson, TreasurerPhyllis McCafferty, SecretaryFlexible in personnel and repertoire, the Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia strives to empower our audience, musicians, and organization to face the world with new perspectives through music, building a broad and active audience, and a more enlightened industry.We are dedicated to inspiring, entertaining, and moving our communities through a combination of unique venues, world-class musicians, thought-provoking content, and eclectic classical music. Engaging with contemporary culture and honoring the classical tradition, we strive to promote interest and diversity in the musical life of Richmond and beyond.We invite you to attend one or all our events, become a member of CMSCVA, or volunteer your time and talents. We are certain that you will enjoy the experience.About the Chamber Music Society of Central VirginiaArtistic Director The Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia Board of Directors:Mary BoodellJennifer CableDiana DamschroderPeter GilbertPhyllis McCaffertyRobin JonesEllen SaylesJames WilsonJames WilsonP.O. Box 8526 Richmond, VA 23226-0526 (804) 304-6312 | cmscva@yahoo.com | www.cmscva.orgThe Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia is a nonstock, nonprofit 5019(c)(3) organization. Our 2021-22 season is made possible through donations from our patrons, and through a generous grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts.

James WilsonArtistic DirectorGreetings,Even as the arts world continues to face many questions and unknowns, it’s wonderful to settle back and focus on a fresh concert season! At CMSCVA, we’ve doubled down on artistic content, centered our community as our source of inspiration, and are ready to present one of our most ambitious seasons yet. Here are some exciting highlights for 2021-22:TALENT: We will be bringing more than 30 gifted artists from around the country to entertain and move you with their musical storytelling.NEW ART: In an exceptional display of commitment to classical music, we have commissioned 6 new works of chamber music from an exciting roster of composers, all to be premiered over the season.VIRGINIA: We are focusing on our Richmond region as a source of inspiration and pride, from concert programming, to artists, to new commissions.OUR PICTURES: In a project inspired by the timeless suite “Pictures at an Exhibition,” we will kick off an ambitious multi-year project based on the abundance of art found in the Richmond region.With all of the excitement in the season, we hope you will find a place in CMSCVA for exciting and unique classical music in Richmond.Sincerely,

The Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia presentsAmerican RomanticsOctober 17, 2021 | 4pm Trinity Lutheran Church 2315 N. Parham Rd, Richmond VAwith Jordan Bak, viola Mary Boodell, fluteJohnny Gandelsman, violinNjioma Grevious, violin James Wilson, cello

PROGRAMString Quartet in F major, Op.96 (“American”) Antonín Dvořák Allegro ma non troppo (1841-1904) Lento Molto vivace — Trio Finale. Vivace ma non troppoTheme and Variations Amy Beachfor Flute and String Quartet, Op.80 (1867-1944) Theme: Lento di molto, sempre espressivo Variation 1: L'istesso tempo Variation 2: Allegro giusto Variation 3: Andantino con morbidezza [quasi valzer lento] Variation 4: Presto leggiero Variation 5: Largo di molto, con grand espressione Variation 6: Allegro giocoso IntermissionString Quartet in A minor Florence Price Moderato (1887-1953) Juba: Allegro Finale: Allegro

Jordan Bak“A star in the making,” (Seattle Pi) Jamaican-American violist Jordan Bak is an outstanding artist of passion, energy, and authenticity in the recital and chamber music arenas. A Sphinx MPower Artist Grant Recipient and a top laureate of the 2020 Sphinx Competition, Bak is also a winner and Audience Prize recipient of the 2019 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, the recipient of the 2019 Samuel Sanders Tel Aviv Museum Prize and the 2019 John White Special Prize from the Tertis International Viola Competition. In addition to his growing solo career, Jordan Bak is a member of the celebrated New York Classical Players and is a featured artist for WQXR’s inaugural Artist Propulsion Lab. He has been heard as a recitalist and chamber musician in the United States at such venues as Alice Tully Hall, Bruno Walter Auditorium, Jordan Hall, and Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, among others, and in Europe at the Verbier Festival, the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève, the Centre de Musique Hindemith, and the Helsinki Musiikkitalo.A proud advocate of 20th and 21st century new music, Bak has premiered and championed the music of many composers including Kaija Saariaho, Eli Greenhoe, Sampo Kansurinen, Caroline Shaw, and Delong Wang.Our Artistic CollaboratorsFor the full roster of season artists, please visit cmscva.org.

Eastern Music Festival, Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy, and regularly at the Staunton Music Festival in Staunton, VA. A collaborator with CMSCVA since it’s founding, She is also a longtime member of the Richmond Chamber Players, performing seasonally on their August Interlude series. Before coming to the Richmond Symphony, Ms. Boodell played Principal Flute with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra in Tennessee and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago.Born in Chicago, Ms. Boodell received her Bachelor of Music at the Oberlin Conservatory and her Master of Music at Northwestern University, and has studied with some of the country’s most respected flutists (Walfrid Kujala, Robert Willoughby, Keith Underwood, Alexander Murray). A devoted teacher, she maintains a private studio, coaches young symphony players, and performs regularly with the RSO Woodwind Quintet in Richmond-area public schools. Her former students have gone on to major conservatories.Johnny GandelsmanGrammy award winning violinist and producer Johnny Gandelsman's musical voice reflects the artistic collaborations he has been a part of since moving to the United States in 1995. Richard Brody of The New Yorker has called Johnny Gandelsman “revelatory” in concert, placing him in the company of “radically transformative” performers Mary BoodellAs Principal Flutist of the Richmond Symphony, Mary Boodell has won acclaim not only for her orchestral playing but also for her numerous chamber music performances. Equally at home in Baroque and contemporary music, Ms. Boodell has performed at festivals across the US and Europe, including at the Los Angeles Hollywood Bowl,

like Maurizio Pollini, Peter Serkin and Christian Zacharias. As a founding member of Brooklyn Rider and a member of the Silkroad Ensemble, Johnny has closely worked with such luminaries as Bela Fleck, Yo-Yo Ma, Mark Morris, Anne Sofie Van Otter, and Suzanne Vega. He has appeared with Bono, David Byrne, Renee Fleming, Rhiannon Giddens, I'm With Her, Christian McBride, and many others.Johnny has been producing records since starting his label, In a Circle Records in 2008. Recent credits include Brooklyn Rider's “Spontaneous Symbols”; Johnny's own recording of the complete Sonatas and Partitas for violin by JS Bach; and 2 albums with Silkroad Ensemble and Yo-Yo Ma - Music for “The Vietnam War”, a film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick; and “Sing Me Home”, a Grammy-award winner for Best World Music album.He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Amber Star Merkens, and their two kids, Julius Ivry and Raiya Leone.Njioma GreviousViolinist Njioma Grevious is an avid chamber, studio, and orchestral musician. She is the recipient of the Keston-Max Fellowship to study and perform with the London Symphony Orchestra, and the winner of First Prizes for Performance and Interpretation in the Prix Ravel chamber music competition in France. As a member of the AbeoQuartet, she won the Silver Medal in the 2019 Fischoff International Chamber Music Competition, resulting in performances on WQXR and WETA Classical Radio as well as in performances at Alice Tully Hall, The Kennedy Center, in Montreal, and Oslo.She has participated in numerous summer festivals including the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, Montreal International String Quartet Academy, Meadowmount, Fontainebleau Schools and the Tanglewood Institute. For many years Njioma was a scholarship recipient through Boston’s Project STEP and represented the organization at a prestigious White

House State Dinner with President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. Sharing her love of music, she is a Juilliard Gluck fellow, performing in a variety of hospital settings for veterans and others suffering physically and mentally. Njioma also loves teaching composition and collaboration to students, mostly from underserved and underrepresented communities, through the Opportunity Music Project in NYC.James WilsonFor more than thirty years, cellist and CMSCVA Artistic Director James Wilson has nurtured and enjoyed an exciting and varied career as performer and educator, bringing the joy of music to audiences throughout the world. Acclaimed for his singing tone, and his intelligent and soulful approach to music, the Los Angeles Times has described Wilson as a musician “with something to say and a commanding way of saying it.” The multi-faceted Wilson is a Member and an Artistic Director of the acclaimed Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and regularly serves as guest principal cellist of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. A lover of period performance practice, he is in demand as a player of Baroque cello throughout North America and Europe. His performances have been broadcast on West German Radio and Bavarian Radio in Germany, CBC radio in Canada, BBC Radio in Britain, Finish Radio, and National Public Radio. He has appeared in many of the world’s most illustrious performing spaces, including America’s Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and Kennedy Center, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Sydney Opera House, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg and the Musikverein in Vienna. He currently teaches cello and chamber music at Columbia University in New York, and at Sarah Lawrence College.

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NOTES ON THE PROGRAMBy James Wilson ©2021Antonín Dvořák String Quartet in F major, opus 95 (“American”) (1893) Duration c. 25’In mid-19th century America, classical or “art” music was just finding its footing in our cultural scene. Orchestras were being formed in big cities, concert halls and opera houses were being built, and the first generation of American born composers were training students of their own. But for the elite classes who were funding the arts, music from Europe was the key to establishing the important artistic cache desired by civic leaders. In 1892 the president of the National Conservatory of Music of America in New York City, Jeannette Thurber, offered a handsome salary to Czech composer Antonín Dvořák to head her school. Her desired outcome from hiring this fiercely proud Bohemian would be the blossoming of a new American national style of art music. Dvorak’s three years in America was mostly spent in New York, but also included a summer in the Czech immigrant town of Spillville, Iowa. He was feted during this time, and his presence had significant ramifications in American music. For instance, one of his students, Rubin Goldmark would go on to be the teacher of Aaron Copland and George Gershwin. He befriended Harry Burleigh, the first black composer instrumental in developing characteristically American music. And performances of his music had lasting influence on the composers who heard it.American culture and music also influenced Dvořák. His time here saw the creation of his most famous pieces including the cello concerto and the “New World” symphony, and a development from the nationalist folk-driven style typical of his earlier output into something more personal and unique.One of the most iconic pieces written during this period is the String Quartet in F major, which became to be known as the “American.” Rather than gorgeous melodies or harmonies, it is a

piece that relies on propulsive rhythmic energy, texture and a degree of simplicity for effect. Dvořák himself wrote: "When I composed this quartet in the Czech community of Spillville in 1893, I wanted to write something for once that was very melodious and straightforward…and that is why it all turned out so simply. And it's good that it did."This confident simplicity can be heard right away in the opening – a gamboling but terse viola melody is ushered in by ripplingviolins and poked by syncopated plucks in the cello. The secondmovement is lonely sounding, sparsely textured and song like,led by the violins and cello, who sometimes pair off in duet. Thethird movement is a kind of quick dance in triple meter, andfeatures transcribed bird calls that Dvořák heard in Iowa –ornithologists have speculated that they were from either thescarlet tanager or the red-eyed vireo. And the wonderful finale iscrunchy with relentless rhythms – legend has it that it wasinspired by the chug-chug of trains, machines that fascinatedthe composer.Although we cannot claim this piece as being written by an American, we can be proud that the people, nature and cultures that Dvořák experienced during his time here helped to fuel the creative forces to produce such fantastic and influential piece of chamber music.While Dvořák was living in New York, the 20-something pianist and composer Amy Beach was creating a sensation in Boston.Amy BeachTheme and Variations for Flute and String Quartet (1916)Duration c. 21’Born in 1867, Amy Marcy Cheney was a musicians of “firsts,” and a treasured example of the generation of American composers coming into their own at the end of the 19th century. She became the first female American composer of large-scale art music. She was a prodigious talent, both as a pianist and as a composer – the later being more impressive because she was

practically self-taught. Her break-through piece, the “Gaelic” Symphony (1894), the first symphony composed and published by an American woman, was performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. That this work, which was both critically and publically acclaimed at the time, was written and performed during Dvořák’s period in the USA, speaks volumes to the tendency of American’s to look across the Atlantic for their cultural validity.At age 18, Amy Cheney was married to Henry Beach, and would be known in published music as Mrs. H. H. A. Beach. The marriage was a happy one, but there were conditions. Amy was not allowed to teach piano, and was only allowed to perform publicly as a pianist two times a year, with all proceeds going to charity. Because Henry did not approve of her having a private tutor, Amy’s compositions studies were largely self-guided. Although these types of arrangements were not unusual for late-18th century upper-class married women in the USA, the fact that Amy was so successful is a testament to her genius. The complex and brooding “Theme and Variations for flute and String Quartet” was written as a commission for the San Francisco Chamber Music Society in 1916. The strain between the small and delicate instrumentation of this piece, and its sprawling and decadent romanticism is remarkable.Like many of Beach’s compositions, its main theme is lifted from one of her songs – in this case the “Indian Lullaby.” Perhaps “theme” is a small word to use here – it could exist as a complete piece unto itself. What unfolds are various treatments of this theme – an exotic and rhapsodic transformation featuring flute, a sparkling balletic variation, a sad and expressive waltz, and a quixotic scherzo. The fifth variation is the most developed, a hyper-expressive slow movement reminiscent of Wagner operas. The piece is wrapped up with a formal fugue, and a coda. A full 18 minutes after the start of the piece the theme is brought back unadorned to end our experience on a note of melancholy.During the height of Beach’s artistic career in Boston, another gifted musician came to the same city from the South to pursue

her artistic goals – the teen-aged Florence Price.Florence PriceString Quartet in A minor (1935)Duration c. 21’Another groundbreaking American composer like Beach, Florence Price was also a brilliant musical talent. Trained by her mother in Little Rock, Arkansas, Price gave her first piano performance at age four and wrote her first composition at age 11. She trained at the New England Conservatory, graduating in1906 with honors after writing her first symphonic and chambermusic works.Price moved back to the south from Boston, taught at Clarke Atlanta University and was married. But in 1927, as with so many African-Americans at the time, she and her family moved north to Chicago as part of the Great Migration to escape the violence and injustices of the Jim Crow South.Price’s time in Chicago was full of major life changes, many tinged by racism but many incredibly impactful. These included a divorce, the development of fruitful professional and musical contacts, and a deep friendship with pianist and composer Margaret Bonds who introduced Price to prominent artists like Langston Hughes and Marion Anderson. Through her connections, Price’s career took off. In 1932 she won a prize in a national competition for her Symphony in E minor. The next year her music was featured in a concert entitle “The Negro in Music” at the Century of Progress World’s Fair in Chicago, in which her Symphony in E minor was performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Although this concert was tinged with the racism that was inherent in Chicago and the US in general in the 1930’s, it provided a platform to make her the first African American woman to have her music performance by a major American orchestra.Price’s compositions are numerous, and the String Quartet in A minor is a wonderful example of her expressive and idiomatic

chamber music, works that are currently undergoing a renaissance of recognition, performance, and archiving. Her lyric and coloristic style is showcased in the first movement of the quartet, a piece which unfolds leisurely through passages of great beauty, building to an exciting conclusion. The “Juba” combines African dance forms with break-out, almost unscripted moments for the players. And the finale is propulsive and harmonically complex, broken by two free-form and improvisatory moments. A cautionary tale provides a takeaway from this concert. A large collection of Price’s works and papers, including dozens of musical scores, were found in an abandoned house on the outskirts of St. Anne, Illinois, about 12 years ago. In 2018, Alex Ross wrote in The New Yorker magazine that "not only did Price fail to enter the canon; a large quantity of her music came perilously close to obliteration. That run-down house in St. Anne is a potent symbol of how a country can forget its cultural history.”

The Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia would like to thank the following individuals and foundations who have made our programs possible.Starred names reflect gifts given to support our 2021-22 concert season, received after the start of the current fiscal year, July 1, 2021, until June 9th, 2022Donors (up to $99)Anonymous Gift(2) David and Shin-Min Block Eugenia H. Borum Edward Cowardin Jr.* Laura Deluca Richard Fine and Sara Ferguson Martin and Kathleen Gary Cynthia Greene Mary Heen Carlyle Robin Jones Denis and Carol Klisz Patricia Parks Sheryl Smith Members {$100 - $249) Anonymous Gift (4) Rev. Dennis A. Andersen Robert and Susan Clewell* Martha B. Dorill Marilyn Erickson Ann Franke Beverly Geissler Kathleen Hoppe Harry Kaplowitz Sandy and Heyn Kjerulf A.W. Lewis lll MD Jack and Tricia Pearsall Ellen Sayles Robert and Mary Ellen Wadsworth* Marsden Williams Sally R. Young Robert and Barbara Alexander Booktopics Phyllis EntinDavid DeppChristine ErtellMegan FriesMiriam GoldbergHortense LibertiJoan RuppJoan LosenRichard and Ruth Szucs James Wilson* Barbara Charlotte Anderson John B. H. CaldwellDiana DamschroderAlan W. Dow ll Richard FoxSharon FullerRalph and Jocelyne Graner Eric and Christina Jacobson Michael KellyJoann KingMarion NelsenMathis Kirby Powelson Grace Suttle*George WatkinsElisabeth WollanEli ZallerCommunity Foundation for a Greater Richmond

Harry KaplowitzBrooks and Lauren Nelsen Richard Fox and Owen SharmanRosa BosherElizabeth KingPeter Gilbert and Anne Reavey* Michael and Molly Wray Lois M. CrabtreeGisela John (in honor of Hans Ullrich Scharnberg)*George B. WilsonPatrons ($250 - $499)John and Fran Freimarck Gita and Davis Massey Craig Ponte Ernest and Perry WilsonArtist Sponsors ($500 - $999)Phoebe F. Antrim* Mary Boodell and Evan Davis Phyllis McCafferty Eileen Schulman Yellow Cello Charitable Music Fund CapitalOne Matching Funds Ridgeway Foundation c/o Elizabeth Lowsley-WilliamsOutreach Sponsors ($1000 - $2499)Coille Limited PartnershiRobert P. Kyle* Friends of the Public Library Concert Sponsors ($2500 and up) Anonymous Gift (3) Jennifer A. CableSpecial Thanks to:• Zachary Bultemeier and everyone at Trinity Lutheran Church.• All of our donors, patrons, volunteers, and friends for their unendingsupport.• The gracious hosts for our artists: Suzanne Hall and Joe Willis, Mollyand Mike Wray, and Mary Boodell and Evan Davis.• and special thanks to Nina Conway for coordinating our housing.

Our 2021-22 SeasonThe Richmond region is full of places cherished for their historical signicance and beloved for their natural beauty. Join CMSCVA and the Thalea String Quartet to celebrate our community’s sense of place through chamber music. Locally Sourced: Our PlacesSeptember 18 | SaturdayRichmond Main Public Library2:00pm – FREEIn 1828, Franz Schubert gave the only public concert of his own works and wrote some of his most famous pieces. In 1955, the esteemed activist Rosa Parks sparked the Civil Rights Movement. In 2021, the Thalea String Quartet joins cellist Britton Riley to perform two visionary works inspired by these years - Schubert’s majestic Cello Quintet in C; and String Quartet no. 5 (“Parks”) by Daniel Bernard Roumain (aka DBR).1828 & 1955: Schubert and DBRSeptember 19 | SundaySeventh Street Christian Church4:00 pm - Tickets RequiredLet yourself be carried away by a program of music that captures the American artistic experience from the late 19th century to the 1930’s - Theme and Variations for flute and string quartet by Amy Beach, Florence Price’s String Quartet in A minor, and the “American” String Quartet by Antonín Dvořák. It’s a story that spans the continent and crosses an ocean.American Romantics: Price, Dvořák, And BeachOctober 17 | SundayTrinity Lutheran Church2315 N Parham Rd, Henrico, VA 23229

Grammy Award winning violinist Johnny Gandelsman returns to CMSCVA to perform a program of newly written music for solo violin focusing on the diverse and talented voices of American composers. The program features the world premiere of A través del manto luminoso, a work commissioned by CMSCVA from Puerto Rican-born composer Angélica Negrón. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear him perform this uniquely American program.This Is America: Gandelsman And NegrónOctober 18 | MondayHistoric Mankin Mansion7:00 pm - Tickets RequiredRichmond has been a leading source of avor for hundreds of years, so save some room for us. Explore taste-making history with this program of music and words that conjure the rich products of our region. Angela Lehman, our curator of written word, and the unforgettable voice of Chioke I’Anson join CMSCVA artists in this delicious program of history and music. Locally Sourced: Our Flavors March 5 | SaturdayRichmond Main Public Library 2:00 pm - FREE The magical sounds of the harp inspired this dreamy collection of music evoking evenings in the salons of Paris, the night sky in India, and the feverish dreams of Franz Schubert. French masterpieces by Debussy and Saint-Saëns are paired with the mysterious Eye of Night by David Bruce, and Onutė Narbutaitė’s Winterserenade.Night Music: Debussy and BruceMarch 6 | SundaySeventh Street Christian Church4:00 pm - Tickets Required

Coffeehouses in 18th century Germany were much like today – places to enjoy stimulating conversation and musical entertainment. Travel back in time with us to enjoy a program you might have heard at Leipzig’s most famous and elegant coffeehouse, Café Zimmermann. Our Baroque musical evening includes sonatas and concertos performed by a complete 15-piece orchestra of period instruments.Baroque Spring: Pachelbel and Vivaldi April 11 | MondayThe Church of the Holy Comforter 7:00 pm - Tickets RequiredThe rst installment of a multi-year CMSCVA commissioning project, this concert presents four world premieres based on works of art and historical objects found in some of Richmond’s many museums and galleries. The talented line-up of Richmond-born and Richmond-based composers creating this rst round of musical pictures are Antonio García, Anthony Smith, Zachary Wadsworth, and Donovan Williams. Locally Sourced: Our Pictures May 14 | SaturdayRichmond Main Public Library 2:00 pm - FREE We end our season by combining the celebratory Octet in F major by Franz Schubert with the world premiere of “The Eight Immortals and the Sea” by Georgia-based composer and conductor Shuying Li. CMSCVA commissioned this work for eight players who each musically represent one of the legendary Immortals, famed mythological gures from the composer’s native China.Eight Immortals: Schubert and LiMay 15 | SundayFirst Unitarian Universalist Church4:00 pm - Tickets Required

CMSCVA.ORGP.O. Box 8526 Richmond, VA 23226-0526 (804) 304-6312 | cmscva@yahoo.com