Upcoming events
The Goldberg Variations
Violinist Jessica Tong, cellist Ashley Bathgate and violist Ken Hamao present Bach’s seminal work, Goldberg Variations, arranged by Dmitry Sitkovetsky for string trio.
Bach’s Goldberg Variations, originally written for keyboard, take on a remarkable new character when arranged for string trio. Dividing Bach’s intricate lines among violin, viola, and cello brings the music’s counterpoint into vivid relief: voices that intertwine on a single keyboard become a conversation between three distinct instruments, each with its own color, weight, and personality.
At the heart of the work is a simple, graceful Aria, followed by thirty variations of extraordinary variety—from intimate and lyrical passages to brilliant displays of virtuosity and rhythmic energy. In a string trio arrangement, the Goldberg Variations can feel at once more conversational and more human, revealing the warmth and expressive depth within Bach’s astonishingly precise musical architecture.
Fantasy & Flair: Jill Levy & Andrius Žlabys
Artistic Director Emerita and violinist, Jill Levy, partners with pianist and composer, Andrius Žlabys, to present a program featuring beloved masterworks from the rich canon of violin and piano repertoire, including Schubert Fantasie in C major, Prokofiev Sonata No. 1 in f minor, and works by Fritz Kreisler.
Gregg August & Friends at Caffè Lena
In a special collaboration between Caffè Lena and Saratoga Chamber Players, we explore the intersections of contemporary, traditional, and classical music, bringing artists and musical traditions together in unexpected ways. The program includes a Q&A with the artists, offering audiences a closer look at the music, influences, and ideas behind the performance.
SCP 40th Anniversary Celebration!
Join Saratoga Chamber Players for a joyful 40th Anniversary Celebration, marking four decades of extraordinary chamber music and musical community. This special concert brings together an ensemble of outstanding musicians for two exhilarating octets for strings by Felix Mendelssohn and George Enescu. Following the performance, we invite you to continue the celebration at a festive reception honoring 40 years of music-making, friendship, and the audiences who have made Saratoga Chamber Players part of the region’s cultural life.
Featuring:
Sunmi Chang, Ayano Ninomiya, Jessica Tong, and Markus Placci, violins
Ken Hamao & Stephanie Fong, violas
Ashley Bathgate & Estelle Choi, cellos
Autumn Accents: Andrius Žlabys & Ashley Bathgate
Pianist Andrius Žlabys and cellist Ashley Bathgate pair up to present a program solo and duo works, including Brahms’ Sonata for Cello & Piano in E minor.
Chiaroscuro: In Light and Dark
Felix Mendelssohn | String Quintet op. 8 no. 2 in B Flat Major
Joerg Widmann | 180 Beats Per Minute for String Sextet
Arnold Schoenberg | Verklaerte Nacht for String Sextet
Jill Levy & Jessica Tong, violins; David Rose & Nicholas Cords, violas; Ashley Bathgate & Kee Hyun Kim, cellos
To purchase tickets pleaseCLICK HERE
The Ives of March
Jan Swafford | Piano Trio
Charles Ives | Piano Trio
Ludwig van Beethoven | Piano Trio op. 70 no. 1 in D Major, “Ghost”
Ashley Bathgate, cello; Jessica Tong, violin; Adam Golka, piano
Pre-concert remarks will be given by internationally acclaimed author and composer, Jan Swafford.
Jan Swafford's music has been played around the country and abroad by ensembles including the symphonies of St. Louis, Indianapolis, and the Dutch Radio; Boston's new-music groups Musica Viva, Collage, and Dinosaur Annex; and chamber ensembles including the Peabody Trio, the Chamber Orchestra of Tennessee, and the Scott Chamber Players of Indianapolis.
Over the years his music has evolved steadily, but in all its avatars his work is forthrightly expressive, individual in voice, and steadily concerned with lucidity of texture and form. Beneath the surface there are contributions from world music, especially Indian and Balinese, and from jazz and blues. The titles of his works—including Landscape with Traveler, From the Shadow of the Mountain, and The Silence at Yuma Point—reveal a steady inspiration from nature. The composer views his work as a kind of classicism: a concern with clarity and directness, pieces that seem familiar though they are new, that aspire to sound like they wrote themselves.
Also a well-known writer on music, Swafford is author of biographies of Ives, Brahms, and Beethoven. His journalism appears regularly in Slate. He is a long-time program writer and preconcert lecturer for the Boston Symphony and has written program notes and essays for the orchestras of Cleveland, Chicago, San Francisco, and Toronto.
To purchase tickets please CLICK HERE
Mozart & More
Sunday November 30th - 3PM
Ashley Bathgate, cello; Jill Levy, violin; David Rose, viola
Bach’s Chaconne (from Partita No.2 in D Minor for solo violin)
Giovanni Sollima’s Lamentatio for solo cello
Mozart's Divertimento in D Major
To purchase tickets please CLICK HERE
Swing For Music Golf Outing
SWING FOR MUSIC GOLF OUTING
Proceeds from this fundraiser will underwrite concerts and our school programs for children.
Nine Hole Scramble
Registration at 3:30 followed by a 4:00 Shotgun Start
Entry fee – $80 per person
Includes greens fee, cart, taco dinner and soft drinks. Cash bar available.
To register for the event, please CLICK HERE
Momenta Quartet
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina Motet for four voices
Julián Carrillo String Quartet No. 4
Maurice Ravel String Quartet in F Major
Emilie-Anne Gendron & Alex Shiozaki, violins; Stephanie Griffin, viola; Michael Haas, cello
Momenta: the plural of momentum – four individuals in motion towards a common goal. This is the idea behind the Momenta Quartet, whose eclectic vision encompasses contemporary music of allaesthetic backgrounds alongside great music from the recent and distant past. The New York City-based quartet has premiered over 200 works, collaborated with over 250 living composers and was praised by The New York Times for its “diligence, curiosity and excellence.” In the words of The New Yorker’s Alex Ross, “few American players assume Haydn’s idiom with such ease.
To purchase tickets, please CLICK HERE