NY Kammermusiker in VC next month

On Sept. 5, Valley City will host the New York Kammermusiker, as they return for a sixth tour of North Dakota that will include two concerts as well as educational programs. The first concert the ensemble will perform will be in Fargo and the second in Valley City.

The New York Kammermusiker is a chamber ensemble that travels the world presenting a wide range of double-reed music from the Renaissance through contemporary periods.

Formed in 1969 by North Dakota native Ilonna Pederson, this non-profit organization seeks to re-introduce the instruments and the music of the double-reed band to modern audiences. Many of the pieces are explained in a light manner; humor and fun are evident during their concerts.

The New York Kammermusiker draws from some of the world’s finest musicians for their performances. Members have included musicians from the Vienna Philharmonic, The New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony.

The program for this sixth annual tour of the New York Kammermusiker will include “Prayer of the Norwegian Child,” selections from “Handel’s Water Music,” Bach’s “The Art of the Fugue No. 4” and several songs from William Blake’s “Songs of Innocence and Experience,” as well as Baroque, Renaissance and classical pieces.

Preceding the concert is a short pre-concert theater performance featuring two artists: Bjorn Pederson, who has appeared with professional groups such as the Metropolitan Opera and the Hudson Shakespeare Company, and Talia Marie Aull, whose most recent performances include Meg in “Little Women” (New York), and guest appearances in “Music and Magic in Savanna” presented by Alan St. George and Timberlake Playhouse. Aull will perform “Prayer of the Norwegian Child” with the ensemble.

The theater performance is at 7 p.m. and the concert at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 5 at the Froemke Auditorium in Foss Music Hall, Valley City State University. A freewill offering will be collected with all proceeds going to music scholarships for VCSU students.

The Valley City visit will also feature an hour-long educational program at the Valley City High School Theater at 12:45 p.m. This program is free and open to the public.

This engagement is supported by the Arts Midwest Touring Fund, a program of Arts Midwest, which is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts with additional contributions from the North Dakota Council on the Arts.

Contact Beth Klingenstein at 701-845-7269 or Paula Larson at 701-845-7272 with any questions.

Tags: diversions, music, performances