LIANG WANG, principal oboe of the New York Philharmonic, will be the featured performer this evening for a Bowdoin International Music Festival Friday performance of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. in Crooker Theater at Brunswick High School on Maquoit Road.
The Bowdoin International Music Festival continues to offer a daily mix of concerts, master classes and community programs.
Here’s the lineup for the coming week:
Bach, Brahms, Schubert
This evening’s Festival Friday concert features Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1, featuring Liang Wang, oboe; Schubert’s Death and the Maiden string quartet, performed by the Ying Quartet; and Brahms’ String Sextet No. 1, led by David Coucheron, the principal violin of the Atlanta Symphony.
Wang, the principal oboe of the New York Philharmonic, was born in Qing Dao, China. He studied at the Beijing Central Conservatory and received his bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of Music. The former principal oboe of the Cincinnati Symphony, Santa Fe Opera, and San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, Wang is also the director of the Bowdoin Festival’s woodwind program.
The Ying Quartet will continue its residency at the 2012 festival with Schubert’s Death and the Maiden string quartet. Widely recognized for its structural integrity, unified as it is by recurring motifs, harmonies and textures, the quartet is a favorite of performers and audiences alike.
A faculty ensemble will present Brahms’ first string sextet. Led by former Bowdoin Festival student David Coucheron, the group includes violinist Laura Lutzke, one of this season’s Bowdoin Virtuosi; violists Rami Solomonow (Chicago Chamber Players) and Michelle LaCourse; and cellists Marc Johnson (Vermeer Quartet) and Amir Eldan (guest principal cellist of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra).
Festival Fridays concerts are held at 7:30 p.m. in Brunswick High School’s Crooker Theater. Tickets are $40.
Monday Sonatas
The July 9 Monday Sonatas concert presents works by Beethoven, Bach and Schubert.
Cyrus Forough, a prize winner in the Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition, and pianist Peter Basquin will perform Beethoven’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Major, Op. 30, No. 1.
Pianist Sharon Mann, a renowned interpreter of Bach’s works on the modern piano, and Laura Lutzke will then present Bach’s Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Harpsichord in A major, BWV 1015.
After intermission, Maria Schleuning of the Dallas Symphony will perform Schubert’s Sonata for Violin and Piano in A Major with pianist Constance Moore.
Monday Sonatas concerts are held at 7:30 p.m. in Studzinski Recital Hall on the Bowdoin College campus. Tickets cost $30.
Wednesday Upbeat!
The Wednesday Upbeat! concert on July 11 presents two works by Bartók and one by Ravel.
Ani Schnarch, winner of the Francois Shapira and Mozart Memorial Prizes will perform Bartók’s Sonata for Solo Violin.
A faculty ensemble led by harpist June Han (New York Philharmonic guest artist) and Randy Bowman (principal flute of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra) will present Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro.
The Ying Quartet will return to the stage to close the concert, following up on last year’s critically acclaimed performance of Bartók’s fifth string quartet with his String Quartet No. 3.
Wednesday Upbeat! concerts are held at 7:30 p.m. in Studzinski Recital Hall on the Bowdoin College campus. Tickets cost $30.
Artists of Tomorrow
The Artists of Tomorrow concert series, featuring the festival’s top students, offers concerts on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday evenings and several afternoons this week in Studzinski Recital Hall. Suggested donation is $10.
Student concert programs are published the day of the concert. For a complete schedule and to receive email announcements of student concert programs, visit www.bowdoinfestival.org.
Bowdoin Festival Extra
The Bowdoin Festival’s educational series, Bowdoin Festival Extra, continues this week with two concerts and two instrumental demonstrations. The concerts, which often include faculty and students performing together, take place at 7 p.m. Saturday in Yarmouth’s First Parish Church and at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Day’s Ferry Congregational Church.
At 4 p.m. Sunday, Kurt Muroki will demonstrate double bass techniques in Gibson Hall on the Bowdoin College campus.
June Han, the festival’s harp teacher, will give a demonstration at 4 p.m. Tuesday in Studzinski Recital Hall.
The festival’s instrumental technique classes are held for the instruction of the festival’s composition and instrumental students, but are also open to public observers.
All Bowdoin Festival Extra events are free and open to the public.
Looking ahead
The July 13 Festival Friday concert will showcase Maine keyboard artist Ray Cornils on harpsichord in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5.
Additional works include Franck’s Piano Quintet in F Minor featuring violinist Mikhail Kopelman and his daughter Elizaveta; and two works for solo piano — Chopin’s Andante spianato et Grande polonaise brillante in E-flat major, Op. 22 (Eric Zuber, a member of the 2012 Bowdoin Virtuosi); and an arrangement of Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by Busoni (Emma Tahmiziàn).
Festival Fridays concerts are held at 7:30 p.m. in Brunswick High School’s Crooker Theater. Tickets cost $40.
Daily Bowdoin International Music Festival performances will continue through Aug. 3. For a complete listing of festival events and ticket information, visit bowdoinfestival.org.
For more information, call 725-3895.
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