Travel Advisory for Program Attendees: Metrorail Blue/Orange line stations between Federal Triangle and Eastern Market will be closed from 10 p.m. on Fri., Nov. 1 through Sun., Nov. 3. Please add extra time to your travel time if you intend to use public transit.
If you prefer to drive, parking is available for Smithsonian Associate members at the Holiday Inn Capitol, 550 C Street, S.W. (accessed from 6th Street, S.W.) The rate is $6.00 per day. Smithsonian Associate members must show their program ticket to the attendant upon leaving the garage.
Smithsonian Chamber Music Society audiences are privy to the unparalleled experience of being able to hear two magnificent quartets of instruments—one made by Antonio Stradivari, the other by his teacher Nicolo Amati—in this popular three-concert series.
The November concert recognizes the 100th anniversary of the birth of Benjamin Britten with the second of his three quartets, written for the 250th anniversary of the death of Henry Purcell. The concert also sees the return of the members of the Æolus Quartet, which has been chosen as this season’s sole quartet in the Juilliard Quartet’s prestigious mentoring program. They will join the Axelrod members for the second of Louis Spohr’s double quartets, uniting all eight Stradivarius and Amati instruments for a memorable sonic experience.
One hour prior to this program, Kenneth Slowik, SCMS artistic director and recipient of the 2011 Smithsonian Secretary’s Distinguished Research Lecture Award, will provide a pre-concert talk, shedding light on the glorious music and the life and times of the featured composers.
To learn more about the Smithsonian Chamber Music Society, click here.
CONCERT PROGRAM
Haydn: Quartet in G Major, Op. 77, No. 1
Britten: Quartet No. 2 in C Major, Op. 36
Louis Spohr: Double Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 77
with The Æolus Quartet: Nicholas Tavani and Rachel Shapiro, violins; Gregory Luce, viola; Alan Richardson, violoncello
Program, location, and artists are subject to change.
To view other concerts in this classical concert series, click here.
