It’s all about the music for Rembrandt Chamber Musicians and performing it with virtuosic musicians and singers. So it’s not surprising that Artistic Director and violinist John Macfarlane is calling the opening concert of the 2023-24 season, “An die Musik” (“To Music”).
Niles resident Macfarlane is focusing on the music of Franz Schubert for performances at The Cliff Dwellers in Chicago on Oct. 10 and at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave. in Evanston at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11.
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“I love all our concerts but this one in particular is near and dear to me,” Macfarlane said. “When we think of the quintessential musician and the quintessential chamber musician, a lot of us think of Schubert. There’s such an outpouring of love in his music. It’s music for music’s sake.”
The concert opened with Schubert’s “Der Hirt auf dem Felsen” (“The Shepherd on the Rock”) D. 965. Macfarlane noted that the piece has an unusual combination of clarinet, soprano and piano. He described it as “very romantic music” with its story of “searching for love and getting back to one’s love and being away from one’s love.”
That is followed by “Selections from Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, Op. 83? by Max Bruch.
“He has this deeply romantic side to his music,” Macfarlane said.
The third selection, “An die Musik,” which gives the concert its title, features soprano Jennifer Haworth, who is Macfarlane’s sister.
“I am really thrilled to be able to present her on our stage,” Macfarlane said.
The closing selection is Schubert’s “Trio in B-flat Major for Violin, Cello, and Piano, D. 898.”
“It’s full of adventure and energy and love,” the Artistic Director declared. “It’s an example of how Schubert recognized just how charming he was.”
Rembrandt Chamber Musicians included in the season opener are violist Carol Cook, violinist Macfarlane and cellist Calum Cook and featured three guest artists — soprano Haworth, clarinetist Jonathan Gunn and pianist Henry Kramer.
This is the first time that Haworth has performed with the Rembrandt Chamber Musicians where she sang both “An die Musik” and “The Shepherd on the Rock.”
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Haworth described “An die Musik” as being “all about how music touches us and whisks us away from this world. It’s such a touching piece.”
The Park Ridge resident laughingly noted that people often think of “The Shepherd on the Rock” as “almost like an Austrian yodeling song. But Schubert actually wrote that when he was dying. So I think it reminds us of our mortality and a fear we have. At the end, it’s uplifting.”
Haworth also sings with a number of prestigious groups including Schola Antiqua and the Saint Cecilia Choir of Saint John Cantius Parish.
Clarinetist Gunn, who lives in Texas and Macfarlane calls a stellar musician, has performed twice before with the group.
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Gunn will perform the three pieces by Bruch, as well as “The Shepherd on the Rock.”
Gunn praised the piece noting that, “You can hear this wide range of characters and emotions” and said the pairing of a soprano with a clarinetist is “a beautiful combination.”
Gunn, who teaches at the University of Texas at Austin, plays with a number of groups including upcoming performances with the Toronto Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony, and in Austin, among other places.
Montreal resident Kramer first performed with the Rembrandt Chamber Orchestra last year where he said he really enjoyed the energy of the group.
Pianist Kramer performed “The Shepherd on the Rock,” the Bruch selections and “Trio in B-flat Major for Violin, Cello, and Piano, D898,” which he called one of his favorite pieces.
“Particularly the second movement is one of the most gorgeous melodies,” he said.
Kramer performs regularly with two violin duo partners.
Macfarlane praised Kramer saying that he is “someone who brings out the best in the people around him as well. He’s a really collaborative chamber musician.”
The season will continue with “Holiday Baroque,” in Chicago on Dec. 1 and at the Alice Millar Chapel, 1870 Sheridan Rd. in Evanston at 3 p.m. on Dec. 3.
“It’s a big seller for us,” Macfarlane said of the annual concert. “This program features a huge variety.” There are selections by George Frideric Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, Alessandro Marcello, William Corbett, and J.S. Bach.
Concert No. 3 “Viola! Viola!” is at 7 p.m. Jan. 28, 2024, at Nichols Concert Hall, and in Chicago on Jan. 29, 2024.
“It’s a really fun opportunity to show off the sound of the viola and what makes it such a special instrument and the color which it is able to produce,” Macfarlane said.
The program features music by Antonin Dvorak, Frank Bridge and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
“Icons Under Scrutiny,” program number 4, will be performed in Chicago on March 1, 2024, and at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston at 7 p.m. on March 3, 2024.
The program will feature three sonatas: “Sonata for Violin and Piano” by Aaron Copland, “Sonata for Cello and Piano in C Major, Op. 65? by Benjamin Britten, and “Sonta for Viola and Piano, Op. 147? by Dmitri Shostakovich.
“All three of these composers, when we think of the music of their respective nations, we think of their music,” Macfarlane said.
The final concert of the season, “The Wayfarer’s Melodies: A Musical Journey,” will only be performed at 7 p.m. on May 19, 2024, at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston.
“This has to do with the premise of introspection and the sense of finding oneself in a deep romantic sense,” Macfarlane said.
It includes works by Gustav Mahler, John Ireland and Robert Schumann.
Tickets to each of the concerts are $36, free for students and children at Evanston concerts. Admission to the Evanston concerts includes a complimentary ENCORE! wine reception with the musicians.
For tickets, call 872-395-1754 or visit rembrandtchambermusicians.org.
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter.
