Violin Classical Concerts in NorCal

Let’s go to 19th-century England , where Dvořák’s music found eager audiences and his international reputation reached new heights. Echoing Haydn’s own celebrated success in London generations earlier, this program explores the artistic exchange between composers who drew inspiration from folk traditions and transformed them into deeply personal musical voices. Alongside Dvořák, the program features Vaughan Williams and Rebecca Clarke, later composers whose music reflects a similarly distinctive sense of place and expression. • Program HAYDN String Quartet in D minor, Op. 76, No. 2, Hob. III:76, “Fifths” (1797) VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Excerpts from Six Studies in English Folk Song for Cello and Piano (1926) DVOŘÁK Excerpts from Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, Op. 90, B. 166, “Dumky” (1891) CLARKE Dumka for Violin, Viola, and Piano (ca. 1941) DVOŘÁK Piano Quartet No. 1 in D major, Op. 23, B. 53 (1875) Artists Amizia Quartet in Residence | Elizabeth Dorman, Eric Zivian, PIANO | Jennifer Frautschi,

Music@Menlo’s 2017 festival celebrated an instrument that shaped the evolution of classical music, exploring the violin’s history alongside celebrated composers and performers. In a nod to that season, this program unites two towering figures in that evolution: Antonio Vivaldi and Fritz Kreisler. Listen to the AudioNote, our preconcert listener guide for this Concert Program. https://musicatmenlo.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/26-CP1-GloriousViolin.mp3 Can’t make the concert/concert sold out? Purchase the livestream here .

Dedicated to family member and VMMF friend and supporter, Susan Shalit Dvořák’s journey to Russia at Tchaikovsky’s invitation opened a window onto the broader Slavic musical world. This program brings together deeply expressive songs and chamber works of lyrical beauty and dramatic intensity. Arensky’s elegiac Cello Quartet and Dvořák’s F minor Piano Trio anchor an afternoon shaped by longing and emotional depth, while songs by Dvořák, Mussorgsky, and Yuliya Weissberg offer compelling perspectives across time. • Program TCHAIKOVSKY “July: Song of the Reaper,” from The Seasons , Op. 37a, for solo piano (1876) MUSSORGSKY, WEISSBERG, and DVOŘÁK Selected Songs for Voice and Piano ARENSKY String Quartet No. 2 in A minor, Op. 35, for Violin, Viola, and Two Cellos (1894) DVOŘÁK Piano Trio No. 3 in F minor, Op. 65, B. 130 (1883) Artists Simon Barrad, BARITONE | Eric Zivian, PIANO | Jennifer Frautschi, Tsien-Hsin Cindy Wu, VIOLIN | Andrew Gonzalez, VIOLA | Tanya Tomkins, Julia Yang, CELLO Perfo

America opened a new musical world to Dvořák, one that would profoundly shape his creative life. After arriving in New York in 1892 to lead the National Conservatory, he formed an important friendship with the young baritone and composer Harry T. Burleigh , whose singing introduced him to the beauty and expressive power of African American spirituals. This concert explores that artistic exchange and the enduring influence of vernacular traditions on American music, pairing Dvořák with Burleigh, Florence Price , and Charles Ives , composers who, in different ways, drew deeply from folk song, spirituals, and the sounds of everyday life. • Program PRICE Five Folksongs in Counterpoint for String Quartet (1951) BURLEIGH Southland Sketches for Violin and Piano (1916) IVES Violin Sonata No. 4, “Children’s Day at the Camp Meeting” (1906) DVOŘÁK String Quintet No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 97, B. 180, “American” (1893) Artists Eric Zivian, PIANO | Jennifer Frautschi, Liana Bérubé, Josh Liu, VIOLIN

After his American years, Antonín Dvořák returned to Bohemia in 1895, spending his final decade immersed once again in Czech landscapes, language, and folk traditions. This homecoming deepened the national character of his late works. Bedřich Smetana ’s From My Homeland evokes the lyrical spirit of place, while Leoš Janáček ’s Violin Sonata demonstrates an intense, modern voice shaped by Moravian speech and song. Dvořák’s radiant A-flat String Quartet reflects his mature mastery, and the concert closes with a fiery Slavonic Dance offering a jubilant celebration of Czech identity. • Program SMETANA From My Homeland for Violin and Piano (1880) DVOŘÁK Humoresque in G-flat major, Op. 101, No. 7, B. 187, for Violin and Piano (1894) JANÁČEK Sonata for Violin and Piano (1914) DVOŘÁK String Quartet No. 14 in A-flat major, Op. 105, B. 193 (1895) DVOŘÁK Slavonic Dance No. 1 in C major, Op. 46, “Furiant” (1878) Artists Audrey Vardanega, PIANO |SoYoung Choi, Jennifer Frautschi, Josh Liu, Juliette

BACH Partita in E Major for Solo Violin BACH Sonata in E Minor for Flute & Basso continuo BACH Suite in C Major for Solo Violoncello BACH Sonata C Minor for Violin & Harpsichord

HATFIELD Trio in the Roman Style PURCELL Sonata in Four Parts “The Golden Sonata” CANZANO Trio Sonata No. 9 in C Major TARTINI Violin Sonata in G Minor “ Didone abbandonata ” BACH Trio Sonata from “The Musical Offering”

BALTZAR “John, come kiss me now” from The Division Violin TELEMANN Concerto “ Polonois ” LULLY Trios pour le coucher du Roi VIVALDI Trio Sonata Op. 1, No. 12 “ La Follia ” BACH Mer hahn en neue Oberkeet (“Peasant Cantata”)