By Andrea Banda
A&E Editor
It’s that time of the year …
As the semester winds down, the Pepperdine Chamber Ensembles have been hard at work preparing to display their musical accomplishments during their concerts next week.
The concerts will feature a variety of groups: three string quartets with piano, a brass quartet, percussion ensemble, flute and clarinet ensemble and a woodwind ensemble with the harp and guitar.
Sara Banta, coordinator of instrumental music, said the string ensembles will perform pieces by Beethoven, while the piano and string quintet will play songs by Gabriel Faure, a 19th century French composer and romantic Hungarian composer Dohnayi.
Each ensemble rehearses weekly with the ensemble teachers, Ed Francis, Lisa Dondlinger, Karie Prescott, Andy Malloy, Ken McGrath, Mary Gale and Heather Clark.
The Oceana Quartet of the Los Angeles Philharmonic oversees all of the chamber ensembles as the professional quartet in residence.
Banta said her favorite part of the concerts is the growth she sees in the chamber program.
“Seeing the program grow and blossom,” she said. “And also attaining a wonderful level of musicianship.”
Freshman Cosima Luther plays the violin in one of the ensembles and said she enjoys the intimacy of chamber music.
“The beauty of chamber music is how intimate the music becomes and how close you can get with fellow performers,” Luther said. “Hopefully the audience will get that intimacy.”
She also said this semester’s concerts are special because they will honor two people who have contributed to the chamber program.
“It will be honoring Mr. and Mrs. George Greenberg for their gift of chamber music,” Banta said.
These concerts will provide the Pepperdine community with the opportunity to enjoy classical chamber music, but most importantly, to see the hard work and dedication Pepperdine students put into their performances.
The wind, brass and percussion ensembles will perform Monday and the string ensembles Tuesday, both in Raitt Recital Hall at 7:30 p.m. The concert is free.
April 03, 2003