OUR MISSION
Our mission is to present classical chamber music concerts to the Altadena community performed by professional Altadena musicians who perform with area ensembles such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, LA Chamber Orchestra, LA Opera, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Pasadena Symphony and others.
OUR CURRENT SEASON
Our 2023-2024 season will feature two free chamber music concerts at the Altadena Main Library and four free chamber music concerts at the Altadena Community Church. Our season is funded by the Altadena Library, a grant from the Pasadena Community Foundation, and our generous donors.
Altadena Main Library
600 E Mariposa St, Altadena, CA
Altadena Community Church
943 E Altadena Dr, Altadena, CA
INTERACTIVE FAMILY CONCERT
Sunday, February 25, 2024 at 3:00 pm
A concert geared towards people of all ages but especially accessible for young children. This concert will feature string quartet combing musical imagery and dances from around the world. The program will include an introduction to the string instrument family and some audience participation. Music will include “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “The Blue Danube Waltzes,” Vivaldi’s “Seasons,” Saint Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals,” Offenbach “Can Can.” Curated by Agnes Gottschewski
18TH CENTURY WIND OCTETS
Sunday, March 17, 2024 at 3:00 pm
Wind Octets from the late 18th century were popular as entertainment music and as arrangements of popular operas in the days before recording. In additional to Mozart’s two octets, there are arrangements of Mozart’s operas “Don Giovanni,” “Abduction from the Seraglio” and “the Marriage of Figaro” and one octet of Beethoven. We will select a program from this repertoire.
Curated by Jim Foschia and Phoebe Ray
Musicians: Jonathan Davis and Cathy Del Russo (oboes), Jim Foschia and Helen Goode (clarinets), Duncan Massey and Phoebe Ray (bassoons), John Mason and Suzette Moriarty (horns).
Musicians Performing with Mt Lowe Chamber Players this Season
Delores Bing (cello), Dmitri Bovaird (viola), Jonathan Davis (oboe), Catherine Del Russo (oboe), Maggie Edmondson (cello), Kevin Fitz-Gerald (piano), Jim Foschia (clarinet), Helen Goode (clarinet), Agnes Gottschewski (violin), Larry Kaplan (flute), Carrie Kennedy (violin), John Mason (horn), Duncan Massey (bassoon), Suzette Moriarty (horn), Joel Pargman (violin), Antoinette Perry (piano), Ian Pritchard (harpsichord), Phoebe Ray (bassoon), Tina Soule (cello), John Steinmetz (host and narrator), Michele Zukovsky (clarinet)
TRIOS FOR CLARINET, CELLO, and PIANO
Sunday, December 10, 2023 at 3:00 pm
Trios of Beethoven Op 11, Brahms Op 114, with Michele Zukovsky (clarinet), Tina Soule (cello) and Antoinette Perry (piano).
CLARA WIECK SCHUMANN VIRTUOSO PIANIST AND COMPOSER
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 3:00 pm
Clara Schumann was one of the greatest piano virtuosos of the Romantic era who had a huge impact on the musical life of the 19th century at a time when women were expected to be content as wives and mothers. She learned to compose as a child, and from then to her mid-thirties produced a substantial body of work. In 1853, the year she met Brahms, she engaged in a flurry of composing. Most of Clara Schumann's music was never played by anyone else and largely forgotten until a resurgence of interest in the 1970s. This program will include works by Robert Schumann (premiered by Clara), Clara Schumann’s Romance for Violin and Piano and Piano Trio in g minor, as well as Johannes Brahms Piano Quartet in g minor (premiered by Clara). Musicians: Kevin Fitz-Gerald (piano), Agnes Gottschewski (violin), Dmitri Bovaird (viola), Maggie Edmondson (cello).
BACH BRANDENBURG CONCERTO #5
Sunday, May 5, 2024 at 3:00 pm
Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto #5 is our first offering of Baroque music and our largest ensemble to date. Although the work is uniquely scored for solo flute, solo violin, and solo harpsichord, it is really the first harpsichord concerto ever written and was eventually reworked for the new two manual harpsichord. Harpsichordist Ian Pritchard (member of Tesserae Baroque—whose home base is in Altadena) will join Larry Kaplan (solo flute) and Agnes Gottschewski (solo violin) and a small ensemble of strings and continuo.
MUSIC WITH "NICKNAMES"
Sunday, May 19, 2024 at 3:00 pm
We’re familiar with nicknames assigned — usually by listeners and not the composer — to symphonies such as Beethoven's “Pastoral” and “Eroica” or Dvorak's “from the New World.” Chamber works have also been nicknamed. Violinists Joel Pargman and Carrie Kennedy, violist Agnes Gottschewski, and cellists Tina Soule and Delores Bing will play some of these nicknamed compositions and ask the audience to guess the nicknames. Although we won’t tell you the titles of the compositions now, the composers are Haydn, Mozart and Boccherini.
MT LOWE CHAMBER PLAYERS IS A PROJECT OF THE FULCRUM ARTS "EMERGE" FISCAL SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM.
Donations are deductible to the full extent of the law. Fulcrum Arts is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, Tax ID 95-2540759. To donate by mail, please make your check to "Fulcrum Arts." Write "Mt Lowe Chamber Players" in the memo line, and mail to:
