Washington's joys include free concerts at the National Gallery of Art every Sunday afternoon in the West Building.
In celebration of the exhibition featuring Joanna Hiffernan and James McNeill Whistler which ends Sunday at the National Gallery, the U.S. Army Band "Pershing's Own" Chamber Players played a concert last week by composers associated with the artist.
Whistler often gave his works musical titles such as symphony, harmonies, arrangement and nocturnes, and one of the featured pieces at the concert was Trois Nocturnes by Claude Debussy (1862-1918), inspired by Whistler, according to one source.
The Chamber Players also played another Nocturne, this one in B major by Frederic Chopin (1810-1849).
Not to be ignored given Whistler's affinity for the Japanese and their influences on him, was music from that nation. The chosen composer was Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996) and his romantic Toward the Sea III which was commissioned by Greenpeace for its "Save the Whales" campaign.
For Sea, Chamber Players James Miller played alto flute and Nadia Pessoa was harpist.
The best was saved for last and the thrilling and dynamic Piano Quintet in F-sharp minor by Amy Beach (1867-1944) whose second movement brought me to tears.
Ms. Beach gave her first concert at age 16 and was the first female composer to have a symphony performed by a major orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She was 29 years old.
Back in those dark days when wives followed more the dictates of their spouses, she obeyed her husband's requests (they may have been demands) that she cut her annual performances to only one per year which she did, giving the proceeds to charity and focusing on composition.
With death can come freedom, and in her case, after her husband's demise in 1910, she took off anew, performing in Europe and elsewhere to great critical acclaim.
Her reputation grows!
Upcoming concerts at the National Gallery include performances by the New York Opera Society (Dec. 4), Connor Chee on piano (Nov. 20), and Ignacio Prego on harpsichord (Oct. 30).
Go here for a listing of the concerts and register at the tab (required).
Other members of the Chamber Players include Nicholas Starr and Christopher Schmitt, pianists; Catherine Gerhiser and Annette Barger, violinists; Erica Schwartz, violist; and Benjamin Wensel, cellist.
What: Concerts
When: Sundays through Dec. 18, 2022
Where: West Building, West Garden Court, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
How much: No charge at the National Gallery of Art!
Metro stations: Smithsonian, Federal Triangle, Navy Memorial-Archives, or L'Enfant Plaza
Parking: Street parking is free on Sundays.
For more information: (202) 737-4215Accessibility information: (202) 842-6905
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