The Clickable Chamber Music Newsletter from Southern California
No.1069 - Friday, January 2, 2026 - Sunday, January 18, 2026
Next issue: Friday, January 16, 2026
An aficionado’s guide to upcoming livestreamed concerts on the world’s chamber music scene — with a
few select reprises of previously livestreamed concerts. If you’re not already a subscriber, subscribe (it’s
free) and have the newsletter delivered via Mailchimp to your email inbox by clicking:
https://mailchi.mp/8009648a48f8/clickable-chamber-music-newsletter
A condensed version (Part I, below) is now available on Substack, with a link to the full version hosted
online by Mailchimp. Subscribe and have the condensed version delivered free to your inbox, or view it
online:
https://jimeninger.substack.com/
The latest issue is always posted on the website of Classical Crossroads:
http://www.palosverdes.com/ClassicalCrossroads/CCMN.html
“ . . . live-streamed events have generated moments of startling power. . . . One could instead sample archived
professional-quality videos that opera houses, orchestras, and other organizations have placed online. For me,
though, the live or freshly recorded happenings matter more. They document, with the oblique power that the arts
possess, an extraordinary human phase in history. Their mere existence is bracing. . . .”
~ Alex Ross, The New Yorker
For a comprehensive listing of all chamber music concerts in Southern California — live-audience and
streamed — visit Mike Napoli’s website, PerformingArtsLIVE.com. (Performing artists and concert
presenters: Upload your concert announcements.)
http://bit.ly/PerformingArtsLIVE-ChamberMusic
Classical guitar aficionados, see George Gutman’s invaluable “Classical Guitar Events in Southern
California” and subscribe to his email alerts by clicking:
https://cgevents.org/SoCalEvents.htm
In This Issue
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The Condensed Section (Part I) serves as a guide to The Full-Information Section (Part II), which
follows and includes biographies of performing artists, complete concert programs, venue addresses and
map links, and additional information on each concert. (Tip: Note the number of the item you’re interested
in Part I and scroll down to find it in Part II for complete information.) Each section concludes with
“Concert Reviews and Other Items of High Interest on Southern California’s Chamber Music Scene.”
Part I. THE CONDENSED SECTION
Highlights and Hidden Gems
Select Streamed Concerts on the World’s Chamber Music Scene
1. Reprise of Classical Crossroads’ December 2025
“Classical Interludes” Concert
Organist Mark Herman
The Art of the Theatre Organ
Holiday Selections & Improvisations
Livestreamed from
First Lutheran Church and School in Torrance CA
Saturday, December 6, 2025
The Concert eFlyer:
https://bit.ly/ClassicalCrossroads-TheatreOrganistMarkHerman
Watch:
https://vimeo.com/1144414832
2. Classical Crossroads
“Classical Interludes”
~ presents ~
Resident & Visiting Artists from Chamber Music | OC
Violinist Iryna Krechkovsky & Pianist Sookkyung Cho
Saturday, January 3, 2026 - 3:00 PM Pacific
The Concert eFlyer:
https://bit.ly/ClassicalCrossroads-KrechkovskyAndCho
The Program
Lili Boulanger (1893-1918):
Nocturne for violin and piano (1911)
Cortège for violin and piano (1914)
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924):
Violin Sonata No.1 in A Major, Op.13 (1875-76)
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Free admission - Reception follows
Watch at concert time:
https://vimeo.com/event/4030680
3. Music at St Mary’s Perivale
St Mary’s Perivale - West London UK
Jim’s Picks of Recent Gems at St Mary’s Perivale
Livestreamed Friday, December 5, 2025
Pianist Peter Donohoe CBE
Silver Medalist at the 1982 Tchaikovsky Competition
Beethoven: Sonata in A Major, Op.101
Busoni: Fantasia Contrapuntistica
Mozart: Fantasia in C Minor, K475
Beethoven: Sonata in B-flat Op.106, “Hammerklavier”
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2025-12-05.shtml
Watch now:
https://youtu.be/4Ko0v9Jd39c?t=1027
Livestreamed Thursday, December 18, 2025
Mark Viner piano
Mozart: Piano Sonata in A Major, K331
Rebikov: The Christmas Tree, Op.21
Tchaikovsky, arr. Taneyev:
Extracts from The Nutcracker Op.71
Liszt:
Four pieces from Weihnachtsbaum (Christmas Tree), S186
Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No.12 in C-sharp Minor
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2025-12-18.shtml
Watch now:
https://youtu.be/3dKwyimj-zQ?t=1071
Upcoming Concerts
Sunday, January 4, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
Ashley Fripp piano
Rachmaninoff: Prelude in C-sharp Minor, Op.3 No.2
Beethoven: Sonata in C-sharp Minor, Op.27 No.2, “Moonlight”
Liszt: Two pieces from Années de pèlerinage – Italie
Sposalizio and Dante Sonata
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-04.shtml
Tuesday, January 6, 2026 - 2:00 PM UK - 6:00 AM Pacific
William Bracken piano
Selections by J.S. Bach, Schubert, Chopin, Ravel,
Saint-Seans/Godowsky, and Sciarrino
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-06.shtml
Thursday, January 8, 2026 - 2:00 PM UK - 6:00 AM Pacific
Thomas Kelly piano
Beethoven/Liszt: Symphony No.6 , “Pastoral” - movts 3-5
Liszt/Klauser: Les Preludes
Mahler/Friedman: Minuetto from Symphony No.3
Weber/Liszt: Konzertstuck,
Meyerbeer/Liszt: Reminiscences de ‘Robert Le Diable’
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-08.shtml
Sunday, January 11, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
The Chloe Piano Trio
Maria Gîlicel violin, Jobine Siekman cello,
George Todica piano
Haydn: Piano Trio No.40 in F-sharp Minor, Hob.XV:26
Reena Esmail (b.1983): Piano Trio - 1st mvt
Ravel: Piano Trio in A Minor
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-11.shtml
Tuesday, January 13, 2026 - 2:00 PM UK - 6:00 AM Pacific
Edward Leung piano
Selections by Cécile Chaminade, Nadia Boulanger,
Clara Schumann and Brahms
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-13.shtml
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
Misha Kaploukhii piano & friends chamber ensemble
Elif Cansever violin, Sanni Talvitie violin,
Norra Quirijnen viola, Eddie Mead cello
Shostakovich: Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op.57
Robert Schumann: Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op.44
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-18.shtml
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Available afterward to stream on demand
Find the links to the upcoming and past livestreamed concerts by clicking:
https://www.youtube.com/@stmarysperivale2842/streams
4. First Congregational Church of Los Angeles
Organ Prelude Concert
UCLA Professor & First Church Organist Christoph Bull
https://schoolofmusic.ucla.edu/people/christoph-bull/
on the Great Organs of First Congregational Church of Los Angeles
Every Sunday - 10:30-11:00 AM Pacific - Free
First Congregational Church of Los Angeles
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
https://www.fccla.org/live
5. Classical Crossroads
“Second Sundays at Two”
Acclaimed Canadian Pianists
from the USC Thornton School Faculty
Bernadene Blaha & Kevin Fitz-Gerald
Sunday, January 11, 2026 at 2:00 PM Pacific
Rolling Hills United Methodist Church
Rolling Hills Estates CA
The Program
Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868), arr. Louis Winkler:
Overture to “Semiramide” (1822)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arr. Leonard Duck:
Two cantata movements
Jesu Bleibet meine Freude (1723)
Schaffe können sicher weiden (1713)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1798):
Sonata for piano four-hands in D Major, K381 (1772)
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937):
Ma mère l’Oye, M.60 (1910)
(Mother Goose)
Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894):
España – Rhapsody for piano four-hands (1883)
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Free admission - Reception follows
Watch at concert time:
https://vimeo.com/event/4030680
6. Yale School of Music Faculty Artist Series
David Shifrin clarinet
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 3:00 PM ET - 12:00 PM Pacific
Morse Recital Hall - Sprague Memorial Hall - New Haven CT
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
(available only during the performance)
In-person: Free - Livestream: Free
Find concert information and the link to the livestream by clicking:
https://music-tickets.yale.edu/969/26272
7. London’s Wigmore Hall Livestreamed Concerts
Imogen Cooper piano
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 7:30 PM UK (in-person)
The livestream starts at 8:00 PM UK - 12:00 PM Pacific
Wigmore Hall - London, UK
The Program
Franz Schubert (1797-1828):
Four Impromptus, D899
Four Impromptus, D935
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
In-Person: £18 - £40 - Free to Livestream
The video will be available on demand for 90 days.
https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/202601181930
8. The Rose & Edward Engel Music Commission presents
Adat Ari El’s 32nd Annual Engel Chamber Music Concert
The Gregory-Kaplan Duo
Catherine Gregory flute and David Kaplan piano
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 2:00 PM
Adat Ari El - Valley Village CA
The Program
Clara Schumann: Romances, Op.22
arranged for flute and piano
Robert Schumann: Davidsbündlertänze for solo piano, Op.6
Beethoven:
Piano Sonata in C-sharp Minor, Op.27 No.2, “Moonlight”
Poulenc: Flute Sonata
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Free to the public. Reception following the concert.
RSVP requested. For information and to RSVP, click:
https://www.adatariel.org/engel
Watch the livestream by clicking:
https://adatariel.livecontrol.tv/6dd851bf
Concert Reviews and Other Items of High Interest
on Southern California’s Chamber Music Scene
A. The Art of Listening
The Art of Listening is a new, bimonthly offering from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center,
created to enhance your appreciation and enjoyment of classical music. Subscribe on Substack and have
it delivered to your inbox via email or read it online:
https://chambermusicsociety.substack.com/
B. Music writer Charles Burns writes on San Francisco Classical Voice
“Brightwork Debuts New Label [at the Monk Space] With a Mission Statement”
https://bit.ly/SFCV-CharlesBurns004
Part II. THE FULL-INFORMATION SECTION
************************************************
Greetings, Chamber Music Aficionados,
Highlights and Hidden Gems
Select Streamed Concerts on the World’s Chamber Music Scene
1. Reprise of Classical Crossroads’ December 2025
“Classical Interludes” Concert
Organist Mark Herman
The Art of the Theatre Organ
Holiday Selections & Improvisations
Livestreamed from
First Lutheran Church and School in Torrance CA
Saturday, December 6, 2025
The Concert eFlyer:
https://bit.ly/ClassicalCrossroads-TheatreOrganistMarkHerman
American Theatre Organ Society’s 2012 Organist of the Year
Concert and theatre organist Mark Herman has been featured on several episodes of American Public
Media’s Pipedreams program and has performed for countless conventions of the American Theatre
Organ Society, American Guild of Organists, and Organ Historical Society. On the international stage, he
has toured in Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Additionally, his
arrangements, compositions, and performances have been heard both on television and in motion
pictures. In 2019, he was honored to be featured alongside the Los Angeles Philharmonic for a rare organ
solo cameo. Read about Mark Herman by clicking:
https://www.markherman.com/
For concert series information and online donations, click:
https://palosverdes.com/ClassicalCrossroads/ClassicalInterludes.htm
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Click the link below to reprise the livestream on Classical Crossroads’ Vimeo Showcase. (Select 1 of 2
videos from the drop-down menu in the upper left.)
https://vimeo.com/showcase/classicalcrossroads
Alternatively, link directly to the video by clicking:
https://vimeo.com/1144414832
2. Classical Crossroads
“Classical Interludes”
~ presents ~
Resident & Visiting Artists from Chamber Music | OC
Violinist Iryna Krechkovsky & Pianist Sookkyung Cho
Saturday, January 3, 2026 - 3:00 PM Pacific
First Lutheran Church & School - Torrance
2900 W. Carson Street, Torrance CA
For a Google map, click:
http://goo.gl/maps/QaZ4s
The Program
Lili Boulanger (1893-1918):
Nocturne for violin and piano (1911)
Cortège for violin and piano (1914)
Lili Boulanger’s tragically early death at 24 robbed the musical world of incalculable riches, but the range,
power, and originality of what she did manage to write during her brief, illness-ridden, creative span of just
seven years make it one of the peaks of early 20th century French music. In Nocturne, written before she
had even begun formal study in composition, the violin line soars with delicious unpredictability over the
mainly arpeggiated piano, while the jauntiness of Cortège from three years later belies the funereal
connotations of its title.
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924):
Violin Sonata No.1 in A Major, Op.13 (1875-76)
I. Allegro molto
II. Andante
III. Scherzo: Allegro vivo
IV. Finale: Allegro quasi presto
Though Fauré’s soundworld and sensibilities were ineluctably Gallic rather than Teutonic, he found easy
accommodation with Austro-German multi-movement sonata design for all ten of his large-scale chamber
works. He wrote the first of these, his Violin Sonata No.1, when he was still relatively unknown as a
composer, but its 1877 premiere was a great success, earning high praise from the influential Saint-Saëns
for its “novel forms, exquisite modulations, uncommon tone colors, [and] use of the most unexpected
rhythms.” It arguably remains Fauré’s most popular chamber piece.
The Artists
Violinist Iryna Krechkovsky is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Chamber Music | OC, a
non-profit arts initiative dedicated to promoting the art of chamber music through performance, education,
and community engagement. She is well-known and much-loved by her fans in the South Bay and beyond
as the violinist of Trio Céleste. Hailed as “lively and sensational” by Montreal’s Arts and Opinion, Iryna has
performed in Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in New York City, The
American Church in Paris, Chicago Cultural Center, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Roy
Thomson Hall in Toronto, and Seoul Arts Center in Korea. Born in Ukraine, Iryna Krechkovsky attended
the Cleveland Institute of Music and holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University in
New York. Read about Iryna Krechkovsky by clicking:
https://chambermusicoc.org/iryna-krechkovsky/
Korean-American pianist Sookkyung Cho has appeared in Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Weill Recital
Hall at Carnegie Hall, Chicago Cultural Center, Sarasota Opera House, Conservatoire d’art dramatique de
Montréal in Canada, Château de Fontainebleau in France, Bilkent Piano Festival in Turkey, and Xi’an
Conservatory in China. Sookkyung earned her Bachelor’s degree and doctorate at Juilliard and her
Master’s degree at Peabody. Her debut CD, Schubert’s 1817 Sonatas, was released on Centaur to critical
acclaim in April 2021. She is Director of the Grand Valley Piano Chamber Series in western Michigan and
Associate Professor of Piano at Grand Valley State University. Read about Sookkyung Cho by clicking:
http://www.sookkyungcho.com/
If this is your first time attending a Classical Crossroads concert, please request a reservation for
yourself and your guests by emailing [email protected]
Free admission. Donations appreciated. For concert series information and online donations, click:
https://palosverdes.com/ClassicalCrossroads/ClassicalInterludes.htm
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
With the artists’ approval, a reprise will be available: check in a day or two after the concert to stream-on-demand for about a month on Classical Crossroads’ Vimeo Showcase:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/classicalcrossroads
Watch the Livestream
Classical Crossroads simultaneously livestreams all its concerts for those unable to attend in person.
Watch at concert time by clicking Classical Crossroads’ Vimeo livestream link:
https://vimeo.com/event/4030680
3. Music at St Mary’s Perivale
Chamber Music and Recitals
St Mary’s Perivale
Perivale Lane, Perivale, West London UK
For a Google map, click:
https://goo.gl/maps/KdaP2qduGyv8ccYV7
Jim’s Picks of Recent Gems at St Mary’s Perivale
Livestreamed Friday, December 5, 2025
Pianist Peter Donohoe CBE
Silver Medalist at the 1982 Tchaikovsky Competition
Beethoven: Sonata in A Major, Op.101
Busoni: Fantasia Contrapuntistica
Mozart: Fantasia in C Minor, K475
Beethoven: Sonata in B-flat Op.106, “Hammerklavier”
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2025-12-05.shtml
Watch now:
https://youtu.be/4Ko0v9Jd39c?t=1027
Livestreamed Thursday, December 18, 2025
Mark Viner piano
Mozart: Piano Sonata in A Major, K331
Rebikov: The Christmas Tree, Op.21
Tchaikovsky, arr. Taneyev:
Extracts from The Nutcracker Op.71
Liszt:
Four pieces from Weihnachtsbaum (Christmas Tree), S186
Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody No.12 in C-sharp Minor
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2025-12-18.shtml
Watch now:
https://youtu.be/3dKwyimj-zQ?t=1071
Upcoming Concerts
Sunday, January 4, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
Ashley Fripp piano
Rachmaninoff: Prelude in C-sharp Minor, Op.3 No.2
Beethoven:
Sonata in C-sharp Minor, Op.27 No.2, “Moonlight”
Liszt: Two pieces from Années de pèlerinage – Italie
Sposalizio and Dante Sonata
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-04.shtml
Tuesday, January 6, 2026 - 2:00 PM UK - 6:00 AM Pacific
William Bracken piano
J.S. Bach: Aria variata alla manniera italiana, BWV989
Schubert: Impromptu in B-flat Major, Op.142 No.3
Chopin: Impromptu in G-flat Major, Op.51 No.3
Ravel: Jeux d’eau
Saint-Seans/Godowsky: Le cygne
Sciarrino: Anamorfosi
Chopin:
Waltz in E Minor, Op.posth
Waltz in A Minor, Op.34 No.2
Grand Waltz brillante, Op.18
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-06.shtml
Sunday, January 11, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
The Chloe Piano Trio
Maria Gîlicel violin, Jobine Siekman cello,
George Todica piano
Haydn: Piano Trio No.40 in F-sharp Minor, Hob.XV:26
Reena Esmail (b.1983): Piano Trio - 1st mvt
Ravel: Piano Trio in A Minor
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-11.shtml
Tuesday, January 13, 2026 - 2:00 PM UK - 6:00 AM Pacific
Edward Leung piano
Cécile Chaminade: Automne
from Six Études de concert, Op.35
Nadia Boulanger: Vers la vie nouvelle
Chaminade: Thème varié, Op.89
Clara Schumann: Romance No.3 in A-flat Major, Op.11 No.3
Brahms: Sonata No.3 in F Minor, Op.5
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-13.shtml
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 3:00 PM UK - 7:00 AM Pacific
Misha Kaploukhii piano & friends chamber ensemble
Elif Cansever violin, Sanni Talvitie violin,
Norra Quirijnen viola, Eddie Mead cello
Shostakovich: Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op.57
Robert Schumann: Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op.44
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-2026-01-18.shtml
St Mary’s Perivale is a small church dating back to the 12th century, which was active until being declared
redundant in 1972. Since then, it has been operated by Friends of St Mary’s Perivale as a concert venue
and arts center. The UK and Europe’s classical artists typically appear in three in-person and livestreamed
concerts a week. Since 2006, the ancient venue has been transformed into a high-quality broadcasting
center. Explore and discover concert gems by clicking:
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/
Find upcoming artists and ensembles through December 2026 by clicking:
https://st-marys-perivale.org.uk/events-001.shtml
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Available afterward to stream on demand
Find the links to the upcoming and past livestreamed concerts by clicking:
https://www.youtube.com/@stmarysperivale2842/streams
4. First Congregational Church of Los Angeles
Organ Prelude Concert
UCLA Professor & First Church Organist Christoph Bull
on the Great Organs of First Congregational Church
of Los Angeles
Every Sunday - 10:30-11:00 AM Pacific - Free
First Congregational Church of Los Angeles
540 S. Commonwealth Ave. (at Sixth St.), Los Angeles CA
For a Google map, click:
http://goo.gl/7g1N2f
The Organ Prelude Concert programs are posted a few days ahead in the Order of Worship. Check and
download by clicking:
https://www.fccla.org/live
Organist Christoph Bull’s free, half-hour, live-audience & live-streamed Prelude Concerts on Sunday
mornings, beginning at 10:30 AM on the Great Organs of First Church, are an inspiring way to start your
week of amazing musical offerings. Attend in person or stay tuned in for the live stream of the First Church
Sunday Service, featuring the superb professional chamber choir Laude and Cathedral Choir, directed by
David Harris, as well as the organ Postlude. Donations appreciated. Read about organist Christoph Bull
by clicking:
https://schoolofmusic.ucla.edu/people/christoph-bull/
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Available to stream on demand at the link below.
Click at concert time to watch the livestream and find the program:
https://www.fccla.org/live
5. Classical Crossroads
“Second Sundays at Two”
Acclaimed Canadian Pianists
from the USC Thornton School Faculty
Bernadene Blaha & Kevin Fitz-Gerald
Sunday, January 11, 2026 at 2:00 PM Pacific
Rolling Hills United Methodist Church
26438 Crenshaw Blvd, Rolling Hills Estates CA
For a Google map, click:
https://goo.gl/maps/EMqwtwiN3mGozzX3A
The Program
Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868), arr. Louis Winkler:
Overture to Semiramide (1822)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arr. Leonard Duck:
Two cantata movements
1) Jesu Bleibet meine Freude (Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring)
Chorale from the Advent Cantata, BWV147 (1723)
2) Schaffe können sicher weiden (Sheep May Safely Graze)
Aria from the Hunting Cantata, BWV208 (1713)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1798):
Sonata for piano four-hands in D Major, K381 (1772)
Allegro
Andante
Allegro molto
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937): Five Children’s Pieces
Ma mère l’Oye, (Mother Goose) M.60 (1910)
1) Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant
(Pavane of Sleeping Beauty)
2) Petit Poucet
(Hop-o’-My-Thumb)
3) Laideronnette, impératrice des pagodes
(Little Ugly Girl, Empress of the Pagodas)
4) Les entretiens de la belle et de la bête
(Conversation of Beauty and the Beast)
5) Le jardin féerique
(The Fairy Garden)
Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894):
España – Rhapsody for piano four-hands (1883)
Program Notes
Today’s recital of arrangements and original works for piano four-hands ranges widely in time and genre.
It opens with the expansive overture Rossini appended to his final Italian opera seria, Semiramide,
arranged for piano four-hands by the prolific transcriber Louis Winkler (1813-1886), whose other keyboard
credits included all of Beethoven’s symphonies and string quartets. We then jump back a century for two
of the most familiar and beloved movements from J.S. Bach’s cantatas — one sacred and the other
secular — transcribed by the English light music composer Leonard Duck.
Our first piece written specifically for piano four-hands lies chronologically around halfway between the
Bach and the Rossini items. Mozart has been credited with six sonatas for the medium, but the first (1765)
is now deemed of doubtful provenance, and the last (1786) he left incomplete. He was still only 16 when
he wrote this first complete, authenticated four-hands sonata, and, as you will hear, his K381 in D is
concise, ear-catching, and crystal-clear in form and texture.
Finally, two French works, both originally conceived for keyboard but now better known in orchestral guise.
Ravel wrote his Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose), cinq pièces enfantines (five children’s pieces) for the
young daughters of the distinguished Polish Godebski family. It was premiered at the inaugural concert of
the Société musicale indépendante in Paris on 20 April 1910. In the year following, he clothed the work in
orchestral iridescence and extended it into a half-hour ballet. As for Chabrier’s España, the composer
poured into this glittering showpiece the fruits of research in Spanish music and dance gleaned from a
six-month tour of Spain in 1882. Even without the orchestral color that he quickly added as he worked on it
early in 1883, España’s jaunty, percussive brilliance is well captured in the piano four-hands version.
The Artists
Canadian pianists Bernadene Blaha and Kevin Fitz-Gerald are much-loved treasures of the Southern
California music scene. Internationally recognized as gifted recitalists, concerto soloists, and chamber
musicians, they appear in leading concert series on world-renowned stages as soloists, collaborating
chamber music artists, and duo pianists. Their partnership in four-hand and two-piano repertoire arose
from an invitation to tour classical music for the Royal Viking Cruise line shortly after they were married in
1987. These excursions took them to China, Japan, Korea, Hawaii, and the Mediterranean and were so
successful that the artists expanded their repertoire to include all the major works for four hands and two
pianos. Based in Los Angeles, both pianists are faculty members at the University of Southern California’s
Thornton School of Music. Bernadene Blaha and Kevin Fitz-Gerald are Steinway Concert Artists.
Read about the artists by clicking:
https://music.usc.edu/bernadene-blaha/
and
https://music.usc.edu/kevin-fitz-gerald/
If this is your first time attending a Classical Crossroads concert, please request a reservation for
yourself and your guests by emailing: [email protected].
Free. Donations appreciated. For concert series information and online donations, click:
http://www.palosverdes.com/ClassicalCrossroads/SecondSundays.htm
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
With the artists’ approval, a reprise will be available a day or two after the concert to stream-on-demand
for about a month on Classical Crossroads’ Vimeo Showcase:
https://vimeo.com/showcase/classicalcrossroads
Watch the Livestream
Classical Crossroads simultaneously livestreams all its concerts for those unable to attend in person.
Watch at concert time by clicking Classical Crossroads’ Vimeo livestream link (updated a few days ahead
of each concert):
https://vimeo.com/event/4030680
6. Yale School of Music
Faculty Artist Series
David Shifrin clarinet
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 3:00 PM ET - 12:00 PM Pacific
Morse Recital Hall
Sprague Memorial Hall
470 College St, New Haven CT
For a Google map, click:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/bbWRgr4MyumYx5LD8
Winner of both the Avery Fisher Career Grant (1987) and the Avery Fisher Prize (2000), David Shifrin is
in constant demand as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber music collaborator. Mr. Shifrin has
appeared as soloist with the Philadelphia and Minnesota Orchestras and the Dallas, Seattle, Houston,
Milwaukee, Detroit, Fort Worth, Hawaii, and Phoenix Symphonies, among many others in the United
States, as well as with orchestras in Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Japan, Korea, China and Taiwan. He
has also received critical acclaim as a recitalist, appearing at such venues as Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie’s
Hall’s Zankel Hall and the 92nd Street Y in New York City, as well as the Library of Congress in
Washington, D.C. A much sought after chamber musician, he has collaborated frequently with such
distinguished ensembles and artists as the Guarneri, Tokyo, Emerson, Orion, Dover and Miró String
Quartets, as well as Wynton Marsalis, André Watts, Emanuel Ax and André Previn. Continue reading
about David Shifrin by clicking:
https://www.davidshifrin.com/
See all the concerts presented by the Yale School of Music by clicking:
https://music.yale.edu/events
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
(available only during the performance)
In-person: Free - Livestream: Free
Find concert information and the link to the livestream by clicking:
https://music-tickets.yale.edu/969/26272
7. London’s Wigmore Hall Livestreamed Concerts
Imogen Cooper piano
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 7:30 PM UK (in-person)
The livestream starts at 8:00 PM UK - 12:00 PM Pacific
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore St, London, UK
https://goo.gl/maps/yWjtaiJfc3MCJk4m8
The Program
Franz Schubert (1797-1828):
Four Impromptus, D899
Four Impromptus, D935
The Artist
A British pianist of extraordinary refinement and intelligence, Imogen Cooper is celebrated as one of the
leading interpreters of Schubert and Beethoven. Read about Imogen Cooper by clicking:
https://www.imogen-cooper.com/
Some of the world’s finest chamber music and recitals happen at London’s Wigmore Hall stretching back
to 1901. Today, select Wigmore concerts are livestreamed and available afterwards on demand for
varying periods. See the line-up of upcoming livestream offerings by clicking:
https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/forthcoming-live-streams
Watch reprises of livestreams you’ve missed by clicking:
https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/video-library
You’ll need a free account to stream video from Wigmore Hall. If you don’t yet have one, click:
https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/register
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
In-Person: £18 - £40
Free to Livestream
The video will be available on demand for 90 days.
Watch the livestream by clicking:
https://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/202601181930
8. The Rose & Edward Engel Music Commission presents
Adat Ari El’s 32nd Annual Engel Chamber Music Concert
The Gregory-Kaplan Duo
Catherine Gregory flute and David Kaplan piano
Sunday, January 18, 2026 - 2:00 PM
Adat Ari El
12020 Burbank Blvd, Valley Village CA
(at Laurel Canyon Blvd)
For a Google map, click:
https://goo.gl/maps/jy7SwsWJUxJFYcYW8
The Program
Clara Schumann: Romances, Op.22
arranged for flute and piano
Robert Schumann: Davidsbündlertänze for solo piano, Op.6
Beethoven:
Piano Sonata in C-sharp Minor, Op.27 No.2, “Moonlight”
Poulenc: Flute Sonata
The Artists
Australian flutist Catherine Gregory performs in some of the world’s foremost venues - from Alice Tully
Hall in New York to London’s Milton Court, Hamburg’s new Elbphilharmonie, and the Sydney Opera
House. The New York Times has called her playing “magically mysterious,” also writing that “Ms. Gregory
left a deep impression, her sound rich and fully present.” Read about Catherine Gregory by clicking:
http://www.catherinegregory.com/
A member of the UCLA piano faculty and a Yamaha/Bösendorfer Artist, David Kaplan has been called
“excellent and adventurous” by The New York Times, and praised by the Boston Globe for “grace and fire”
at the keyboard. Kaplan’s New Dances of the League of David, a recital he performed at RHUMC, infused
Schumann’s Davidsbündlertänze with 16 short commissioned works and was cited among the “Best
Classical Music Performances of 2015" by The New York Times. Read about David Kaplan by clicking:
http://www.davidkaplanpiano.com/
Live-Audience & Simultaneously Livestreamed
Free to the public. Reception following the concert.
RSVP requested. For information and to RSVP, click:
https://www.adatariel.org/engel
Watch the livestream by clicking:
https://adatariel.livecontrol.tv/6dd851bf
Reviews and Other Items of High Interest
on Southern California’s Chamber Music Scene
A. The Art of Listening
The Art of Listening is a new, bimonthly offering from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center,
created to enhance your appreciation and enjoyment of classical music. Subscribe on Substack and have
it delivered to your inbox via email or read it online:
https://chambermusicsociety.substack.com/
Here are the three offerings in its initial issue:
Arnold Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht by Christopher H. Gibbs
https://bit.ly/3LlOPSS
Chopin’s Cello Sonata, Op. 65 by Jim Samson
https://bit.ly/4pfSHmn
The First String Quartets by Paul Griffiths
https://bit.ly/49ykwBM
B. Music writer Charles Burns writes on San Francisco Classical Voice
“Brightwork Debuts New Label [at the Monk Space] With a Mission Statement”
https://bit.ly/SFCV-CharlesBurns004
Charles Burns begins, “Brightwork newmusic unveiled its new digital label in a concert titled “Brightwork
Digital Mixtape” at Monk Space on Tuesday, Dec. 9. . . . The evening’s program highlighted the
ensemble’s rare ability to make complex music feel clear, immediate, and intelligible. . . .”
Happy New Year! and take care,
Jim Eninger, Editor-in-Chief
Edna R.S. Alvarez, Copyeditor
Clickable Chamber Music Newsletter from Southern California
“... invaluable ...” ~ Mark Swed, The Los Angeles Times