Unless you sit in the front row of an LA Opera performance (or go to Kendall’s after the opera), the members of the LA Opera Orchestra remain fairly invisible. They play beautifully, but since they are in the pit for the operas, we don’t get a chance to see up close how talented they are. Pittance Chamber Music changes that. Their first concert of the 2019-2020 season takes place on Sunday at the Pasadena Conservatory of Music.
First some background. Pittance was formed in 2013 to remove the anonymity that playing in the pit forces upon the musicians. Members of the LA Opera Orchestra put together and play in programs all season long.
This season launches with a program called Nate’s World. Nate, in this case, is Nathan Farrington is the Principal Bassist of the LA Opera Orchestra. For Sunday afternoon’s concert he is joined by Robert Cani, Principal Concertmaster, on violin; percussionist Gabriel Globus-Hoenich; guitarist Molly Miller and Teddy Abrams, the Music Director of the Louisville Orchestra on piano.
The program is diverse.
Bach: Prelude from Cello Suite #1
Haydn: Divertimento
Brahms: Sonata in E minor
Bottesini: Grand Duo
That reflects the part you would expect. The music you might not includes works by
Abrams and Nathan Farrington along with compositions by Edgar Meyer, Don McLean (he of “American Pie”), Hank Williams, Gaetano Donizetti and Alberto Ginastera.
There will also be a live-to-picture performance of Gustav Holst’s Mars (from The Planets), arranged to accompany a clip from Battleship Potemkin, Sergei Eisenstein’s landmark 1925 silent film. This will certainly be unique instrumentation for that work.
I’ve heard Pittance perform on a couple of occasions and I’ve always enjoyed their performances. If you have haven’t had the opportunity to both hear and see these remarkable musicians, this is a great opportunity to do so.
For tickets go here.
Photo of Nathan Farrington courtesy of Pittance Chamber Music