Tonight’s performance has been made possible by the generosity of Margo and Tom Scribner.
Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. These are the prerequisites for a successful marriage, or at least wedding. And as we’ve learned before, there is perhaps no more perfect sonic marriage than that of the saxophone quartet.
Tonight, the something old is also the something borrowed, music originally written for string instruments by Edvard Grieg. As it happens, Grieg was born three years prior to the invention of the saxophone.
Something new? A huge portion of instrumental music composed in the 20th century was written for the saxophone. And that continues into our present time. There’s a reason. Saxophonists are both cool, and have voracious appetites for new music. Simply put, composers want to hear their works played and saxophonists are down. A work by composer, Karalyn Schubring, written in 2023 will do the trick nicely.
What about blue? Is there an instrument more associated with jazz than the sax? Jazz is all about the language of blue notes. Tonight, the blue notes are scented with pimentón, a smokey Spanish spice, in music by Pedro Iturralde.
Cerus Quartet are the 2024 WWCMF Emerging Artist Fellowship Quartet. They will appear throughout the Valley during their residency, performing for more than 1000 youngsters while presenting bilingually in English and Spanish.
All works will be announced from the stage.
Artists: Cerus Quartet: Roberto Campa, soprano saxophone; Brian Kachur, baritone saxophone; Philip Kleutgens, tenor saxophone; Laura Ramsay, alto saxophone