Manship Artists Residency invites you to an intimate musical affair, the world premiere of Arpeggione Ensemble. The concert will be followed by a reception and an opportunity to meet the musicians and to enjoy the company of fellow chamber music lovers.

Arpeggione Ensemble will open its debut season with a concert centered on themes of Relocation and Belonging. Celebrate a new beginning with Arpeggione as we present works by Joseph Bologne, Mozart, Crusell, Reicha, and Meyerbeer in our inaugural live performance. 

Andrea LeBlanc, flute

Thomas Carroll, clarinet

Susanna Ogata, violin

Emily Hale, violin

Lauren Nelson, viola

Jacques Lee Wood, cello

Mozart: Flute Quartet in D

Mozart (arr. Carroll): Eine Kleine Gigue K. 574

Crusell: Quartet in Eb major for clarinet and string trio, op. 2

Chevalier de Saint-George: String Quartet op. 1 no. 2 in Eb

Reicha: Quartet for flute and string trio no. 4 in g minor, op. 98 

Meyerbeer: Cavatine from “Robert-le-Diable” 

From Joseph Bologne’s remarkable life and career in Paris to Meyerbeer’s eventual success as one of the most prominent operatic composers in Europe, we trace the paths of five composers as they establish themselves in new locations and new musical environments over a 70-year period. 

W.A. Mozart’s sparkling Flute Quartet in D, composed during the composer’s years of itinerancy, shows Mozart’s ability to adapt his musical style to as wide a variety of performers and audiences as possible. By comparison, the “Kleine Gigue,” here arranged for clarinet and string trio, presents a mature and cerebral Mozart near the end of his life. 

To round out the first half of the program, Bernard Henrik Crusell’s first Clarinet Quartet, composed in Paris at the beginning of the 19th century, shows an undeniable combination of Nordic, Prussian, and Parisian influences, and like the Mozart Flute Quartet, shows a composer unafraid to toy with the expectations of the public.

Afro-Caribbean-born polymath, expert swordsman, and musical impresario Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-George was widely credited with raising the standard of the orchestral music in Paris. His String Quartetin Eb shows not only his inventiveness but also his keen ear for orchestration and texture in this fledgling new genre. 

Nearly fifty years later, Paris Conservatoire professor Anton Reicha used his Flute Quartet in g minor as a vehicle to fuse not only Bohemian and Parisian musical tastes, but also to show off the full capabilities of the fully mechanized early Romantic flute. 

Closing out the program, a period arrangement of the cavatine “Toi, que j’aime” from Giacomo Meyerbeer’s Robert le Diable shows the German-born Jewish composer finding a home and critical and financial success in the Parisian operatic landscape.

Arpeggione Ensemble will be in residence at the Manship Artists Residency in preparation for their concerts.

PARKING onsite is LIMITED TO HANDICAPPED. Directions for nearby parking to follow once you register.

This joint program is a new collaborative offering. Manship and Arpeggione are most grateful for your support!