Mistral Music

Wunderkinds of Lyricism: Brookline
2024-09-15 17:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
Brahms, Mendelssohn & Mozart
Three masterworks of lyrical beauty, all written when the composers were in their twenties. Mendelssohn Songs Without Words; Mozart Divertimento; Brahms Piano Quartet in g minor

Wunderkinds of Lyricism: Andover
2024-09-14 16:00 - 18:00 | West Parish Church, 129 Reservation Rd, Andover, MA, United States
MENDELSSOHN, MOZART, BRAHMS
Three masterworks of lyrical beauty, all written when the composers were in their twenties. Mendelssohn Songs Without Words (fl arr.) Mozart Divertimento in Eb; Brahms Piano Quartet in g minor

Serenades & Merry Pranks: Brookline
2024-04-07 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
A far-flung musical journey as winds and strings unite in a program of high jinks and charm from Europe to America.
Dohnanyi, R. Strauss, Schoenfield, Gambaro, & Brahms!
Dohnanyi: Sextet, Op. 37 for vln, vla, cello, clar, hrn, & pno IV Finale: Allegro vivace, giocoso.
Vincent Gambaro: Wind Quartet
Schoenfield: Trio for clarinet, violin, & piano 1 Freylakh
Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks for clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, bass

Brahms Serenade No. 1, Op. 11 Nonet (reconstruction of original nonet version by Alan Boustead)

Danny Kim, viola; Julie Scolnik, flute;
Sam Childers, bassoon; Todd Palmer, clarinet;
Alexandr Polyakov, piano; Owen Young, cello;
Rachel Childers, horn; Don Palma, bass;
Solomiya Ivakhiv, violin

Serenades & Merry Pranks: Andover
2024-04-06 16:00 - 18:00 | South Church, 41 Central St, Andover, MA, United States

Wanderlust - Souvenirs from Abroad: Brookline
2024-02-11 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
Masterpieces inspired by composers’ overseas voyages, environments which deeply infused their creative output:
Tchaikovsky: Souvenir de Florence for string sextet
Haydn: London Symphony No. 104 (arranged for flute & strings by Solomon, a violinist and impresario from the era)
Elizabeth Brown: Liguria (written during a stay in Italy) for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, & piano
Milhaud: Creation du Monde for piano & string quartet

Qing Hou & Sarita Kwok, violin; Lawrence Neumann & Stephanie Fong, viola;
Sarah Bob, piano; Catherine Hudgins, clarinet; Julie Scolnik, flute
Will Chow & Raman Ramakrishnan, cello

Wanderlust - Souvenirs from Abroad: Andover
2024-02-10 16:00 - 18:00 | West Parish Church, 129 Reservation Rd, Andover, MA, United States

The Baroque Big Band: Andover
2023-12-03 16:00 - 18:00 | South Church, 41 Central St, Andover, MA, United States
The Maria Martell-Winthrop Memorial Concert
Mistral’s annual bonanza of Baroque masterpieces, with virtuosic soloists taking turns in the spotlight. Works by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel, and other, lesser-known Baroque gems. This special concert is in honor of Maria Martell-Winthrop, a cherished friend and music lover whose life was tragically cut short. (Please note day swap).
Marcello: Oboe Concerto; J.S. Bach: Orchestral Suite No. 2; Vivaldi: Concerto in D Minor for two violins & cello RV 565;
Vivaldi: Concerto in A Minor for two violins, RV 522; Joseph Nicolas Pancrace Royer: L’Aimable for solo harpsichord
“To make divine things human & human things divine—such is Bach, the greatest and purest moment in music of all time”—Pablo Casals
Sarita Kwok, violin, Ian Watson, harpsichord; Stephanie Fong, viola; Kemp Jernigan, oboe; Rebecca Fischer, violin;
Don Palma, bass; Julie Scolnik, flute; Gabriela Diaz, violin; Sasha Scolnik-Brower, cello

The Baroque Big Band: Boston/Brookline
2023-12-02 17:00 - 19:00 | Ruggles Baptist Church, 874 Beacon St, Boston, MA, United States
The Maria Martell-Winthrop Memorial Concert
Mistral’s annual bonanza of Baroque masterpieces, with virtuosic soloists taking turns in the spotlight. Works by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel, and other, lesser-known Baroque gems. This special concert is in honor of Maria Martell-Winthrop, a cherished friend and music lover whose life was tragically cut short. (Please note day swap).
Marcello: Oboe Concerto; J.S. Bach: Orchestral Suite No. 2; Vivaldi: Concerto in D Minor for two violins & cello, RV 565; Vivaldi: Concerto in A Minor for two violins, RV 522; Joseph Royer: L’Aimable for solo harpsichord
Please note day swap!
Sarita Kwok, violin; Ian Watson, harpsichord; Stephanie Fong, viola; Kemp Jernigan, oboe; Emma Frucht, violin; Rebecca Fischer, violin; Julie Scolnik, flute; Gabriela Diaz, violin; Sasha Scolnik-Brower, cello

Affairs of the Harp: Brookline
2023-11-05 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
Called “the Yo-Yo Ma of the harp world,” riveting harpist Bridget Kibbey makes her Mistral debut with artistic director and flutist Julie Scolnik in a diverse program that ranges from harp solos from her new CD by jazz legend Paquito D’Rivera who morphs the instrument into a bandoneon to evoke Argentinian tango, to Boston composer Kati Ágocs, a modern-day Benjamin Britten, who treats her own native Canadian folk music as found objects for a new work for solo harp, to David Bruce’s enchanting music-box-like Caja de Musica. Scolnik and Kibbey will offer a set of duo gems by French composers Ravel, Debussy, Saint Saens, and Chaminade. “Kibbey made it seem as though her instrument had been waiting all its life to explode with the gorgeous colors and energetic figures she was getting from it.” The New York Times
Program:
J.S. BACH (1685-1750) Sonata in E flat Major (arr. for fl. & hp: Kibbey)
PAQUITO D’RIVERA (b. 1948) Bandoneon for solo harp
CAMILLE SAINT SAENS (1835-1921) Fantaisie, Op. 124 for vln & hp
DAVID BRUCE (b. 1970) Caja de Musica for solo harp
CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918) 10” Prélude à L’ Après-Midi d’un Faune (arr. for fl. & harp by J. Loman)
KATI AGÓCS (b. 1975) Northern Lights (2011) 15”
MAURICE RAVEL (1875-1937) Pavane pour une enfante défunte. 7
CÉCILE CHAMINADE (1857-1944) Concertino op. 107

Affairs of the Harp: Andover
2023-11-04 16:00 - 18:00 | West Parish Church, 129 Reservation Rd, Andover, MA, United States
Called “the Yo-Yo Ma of the harp world,” riveting harpist Bridget Kibbey makes her Mistral debut with artistic director and flutist Julie Scolnik in a diverse program that ranges from harp solos from her new CD by jazz legend Paquito D’Rivera who morphs the instrument into a bandoneon to evoke Argentinian tango, to Boston composer Kati Ágocs, a modern-day Benjamin Britten, who treats her own native Canadian folk music as found objects for a new work for solo harp, to David Bruce’s enchanting music-box-like Caja de Musica. Together Scolnik and Kibbey will offer a set of duo gems by French composers Ravel, Debussy, Saint Saens, and Chaminade. “Kibbey made it seem as though her instrument had been waiting all its life to explode with the gorgeous colors and energetic figures she was getting from it.” The New York Times

Program:
J.S. BACH (1685-1750) Sonata in E flat Major (arr. for fl. & hp: Kibbey)
PAQUITO D’RIVERA (b. 1948) Bandoneon for solo harp
CAMILLE SAINT SAENS (1835-1921) Fantaisie, Op. 124 for vln & hp
DAVID BRUCE (b. 1970) Caja de Musica for solo harp
CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918) 10” Prélude à L’ Après-Midi d’un Faune (arr. for flute & harp by Judy Loman)
KATI AGÓCS (b. 1975) Northern Lights (2011) 15”
MAURICE RAVEL (1875-1937) Pavane pour une enfante défunte. 7
CÉCILE CHAMINADE (1857-1944) Concertino op. 107

Portraits of Madness: Brookline
2023-09-10 17:00 - 19:00 | Congregation Kehillath Israel, Social Hall, 384 Harvard St, Brookline, MA, United States
In its opening concert, Mistral explores the fascinating intersection of the tumultuous inner struggles and creative brilliance in the lives of some of history’s most iconic composers. Fearful of death, dogged by superstition, or burdened with creative and personal frustration, these composers used music to express their existential angst, if not to find solace in the language of music.
Prydatkevych: From Ukrainian Rhapsody for Violin & Piano: II. A Song
Mahler: Piano Quartet
Tchaikovsky: Lensky’s Aria for flute & piano
Beethoven: String Trio in E flat major for flute/strings
Schumann: Piano Quartet

With support from Congregation Kehillath Israel

Stephanie Fong, viola
Sasha Scolnik-Brower, cello
Sophie Scolnik-Brower, piano
Julie Scolnik, flute
Solomiya Ivakhiv, violin

Portraits of Madness: Andover
2023-09-09 16:00 - 18:00 | West Parish Church, 129 Reservation Rd, Andover, MA, United States
View the Andover Concert Storm Update
In its opening concert, Mistral explores the fascinating intersection of the tumultuous inner struggles and creative brilliance in the lives of some of history’s most iconic composers. Fearful of death, dogged by superstition, or burdened with creative and personal frustration, these composers used music to express their existential angst, if not to find solace in the language of music.
Prydatkevych: From Ukrainian Rhapsody for Violin & Piano: II. A Song
Mahler: Piano Quartet
Tchaikovsky: Lensky’s Aria from Eugene Onegin, for flute & piano
Beethoven: Excerpts from String Trio in E flat major for flute & strings
Schumann: Piano Quartet

Stephanie Fong, viola
Sasha Scolnik-Brower, cello
Sophie Scolnik-Brower, piano
Julie Scolnik, flute
Solomiya Ivakhiv, violin

Tales from Around the World: Brookline, MA
2023-04-16 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
We bring Mistral’s 26th season to a close with four ravishing orchestral works in new chamber arrangements performed without a conductor. This is an ambitious program for an ensemble of 14 (winds, harp, strings, and brass), including a world-premiere performance of an arrangement of Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, as well as three beautiful renditions of other tales from around the world—Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite, Selections from Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite, and the Sicilienne from Fauré’s Pelleas & Mélisande.
Artists Performing at Tales from Around the World:

Tales From Around the World: Andover, MA
2023-04-15 16:00 - 18:00 | South Church, 41 Central St, Andover, MA, United States

Silenced Voices: Brookline, MA
2023-02-12 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
SILENCED VOICES
LOVE & REMEMBRANCE
Valentine Concert
Sun, Feb. 12, 5 pm
Brookline: St. Paul’s Church
If Music be the food of love, play on!
I have never been able to resist programming a Valentine concert inspired by the myriad facets of love. Some may believe that poetry is love’s greatest vehicle for this high holy day in our calendars, but I would argue that music, which transcends language, is love’s medium par excellence.
Yes, Shakespeare, playing on: making music resiliently, indelibly, eternally, even as an act of resistance to death, is what today’s program affirms. We celebrate the enduring voices of composers who faced horrendous challenges during a dark period in time, but who continued to write beautiful music. Several of today’s composers were forced to flee their homelands and leave their legacies behind. Shostakovich struggled to reconcile his artistic integrity with the demands of the Soviet regime. Mendelssohn’s music was belittled by the anti-Semites of his day and was eventually banned by the Nazis.
For all these composers and the music they wrote, the phrase “undying love”comes to mind. Kindness and humanity are eternal; they are conserved; they do not die or succumb to the reigns of tyrants.
On this concert we present a pastiche of beautiful works by composers whose voices were silenced at the hands of totalitarianism. Many composers were forced to flee their homelands and leave their legacies behind in order to escape prosecution and discrimination under the Nazi regime. Others were stripped of their art when their music was banned and removed from the repertoire of German orchestras by the Third Reich and Nazi-occupied Europe.
This special concert, for strings, piano, voice, and flute, celebrates those many voices, with pieces informing each other and resonating artistically. There is no need to put this music in a memorializing context in order to appreciate it, but the works may engender deep thought in sound, aesthetics, and history. With the beautiful mezzo-soprano Kara Dugan, who sang Mahler’s Ruckert Lieder for you two years ago.
FRANZ SCHREKER Violin Sonata in F major: Allegretto Moderato
ERWIN SCHULHOFF Concertino for flute, viola, & bass.
FELIX MENDELSSOHN Songs for Mezzo soprano & piano
Neue Liebe from 6 songs Op. 19a no. 4
Andres Mainlied from 12 songs Op. 8 no. 8
DIMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH “Jewish Folk Poetry” Op. 79; Lullaby for Mezzo
ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY String Quartet No.1, Op.4 (with flute): Allegro con fuoco
KURT WEILL Songs for mezzo soprano & piano
Foolish Heart
One Life to Live
DIMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Trio No. 2: IV Allegretto
ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD (Marietta’s Lied from Die Tote Stadt), for piano, string quartet, & mezzo soprano

Silenced Voices: Andover, MA SOUTH CHURCH
2023-02-11 16:00 - 18:00 | South Church, 41 Central St, Andover, MA, United States
SILENCED VOICES
LOVE & REMEMBRANCE
Valentine Concert
Sat, Feb. 11, 4 pm
Andover: SOUTH CHURCH, 41 Central Street
If Music be the food of love, play on!
I have never been able to resist programming a Valentine concert inspired by the myriad facets of love. Some may believe that poetry is love’s greatest vehicle for this high holy day in our calendars, but I would argue that music, which transcends language, is love’s medium par excellence.
Yes, Shakespeare, playing on: making music resiliently, indelibly, eternally, even as an act of resistance to death, is what today’s program affirms. We celebrate the enduring voices of composers who faced horrendous challenges during a dark period in time, but who continued to write beautiful music. Several of today’s composers were forced to flee their homelands and leave their legacies behind. Shostakovich struggled to reconcile his artistic integrity with the demands of the Soviet regime. Mendelssohn’s music was belittled by the anti-Semites of his day and was eventually banned by the Nazis.
For all these composers and the music they wrote, the phrase “undying love”comes to mind. Kindness and humanity are eternal; they are conserved; they do not die or succumb to the reigns of tyrants.
On this concert we present a pastiche of beautiful works by composers whose voices were silenced at the hands of totalitarianism. Many composers were forced to flee their homelands and leave their legacies behind in order to escape prosecution and discrimination under the Nazi regime. Others were stripped of their art when their music was banned and removed from the repertoire of German orchestras by the Third Reich and Nazi-occupied Europe.
This special concert, for strings, piano, voice, and flute, celebrates those many voices, with pieces informing each other and resonating artistically. There is no need to put this music in a memorializing context in order to appreciate it, but the works may engender deep thought in sound, aesthetics, and history. With the beautiful mezzo-soprano Kara Dugan, who sang Mahler’s Ruckert Lieder for you two years ago.

FRANZ SCHREKER Violin Sonata in F major: Allegretto Moderato
FELIX MENDELSSOHN Songs for Mezzo soprano & piano
Neue Liebe from 6 songs Op. 19a no. 4
Andres Mainlied from 12 songs Op. 8 no. 8
DIMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH “Jewish Folk Poetry” Op. 79; Lullaby for Mezzo
ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY String Quartet No.1, Op.4 (with flute): Allegro con fuoco
KURT WEILL Songs for mezzo soprano & piano
Foolish Heart
One Life to Live
DIMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Trio No. 2: IV Allegretto
ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD (Marietta’s Lied from Die Tote Stadt), for piano, string quartet, & mezzo soprano

Baroque Big Band: Andover, MA
2022-12-04 16:00 - 18:00 | South Church, 41 Central St, Andover, MA, United States
The Maria Martell-Winthrop Memorial Concert
Sun, Dec. 4, 4 pm
Andover: South Church
(NOTE DAY SWAP)
Mistral’s annual bonanza of Baroque masterpieces, with virtuosic soloists taking turns in the spotlight. Works by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel, and other, lesser-known Baroque gems. This special concert is in honor of Maria Martell-Winthrop, a cherished friend and music lover whose life was tragically cut short.
“To make divine things human & human things divine—such is Bach, the greatest and purest moment in music of all time”—Pablo Casals

Baroque Big Band: Boston, MA
2022-12-03 17:00 - 19:00 | Ruggles Baptist Church, 874 Beacon St, Boston, MA, United States
The Maria Martell-Winthrop Memorial Concert
Sat, Dec. 3, 5 pm
Boston: Ruggles Baptist Church
Mistral’s annual bonanza of Baroque masterpieces, with virtuosic soloists taking turns in the spotlight. Works by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel, and other, lesser-known Baroque gems. This special concert is in honor of Maria Martell-Winthrop, a cherished friend and music lover whose life was tragically cut short.
“To make divine things human & human things divine—such is Bach, the greatest and purest moment in music of all time”—Pablo Casals
Sarita Kwok, violin, Ian Watson, harpsichord; Stephanie Fong, viola; Kemp Jernigan, oboe; Maureen Nelson, violin;
Don Palma, bass; Julie Scolnik, flute; Gabriela Diaz, violin; Sasha Scolnik-Brower, cello

La Vida Breve: Brookline, MA
2022-11-13 17:00 - 19:00 | St. Paul’s Church, 15 St Paul St, Brookline, MA, United States
JASON VIEAUX, GUITAR
JULIE SCOLNIK, FLUTE
Sun, Nov. 13, 5 pm
Brookline: St. Paul’s Church
Grammy-winning international guitar virtuoso Jason Vieaux returns to the Mistral stage by popular demand to perform with founding artistic director and flutist Julie Scolnik. Their program will span centuries, countries, and styles, from Bartók, LeClair, Leisner, Shocker, and Pat Metheny, to a set of short gems by Da Falla, Tchaikovsky, Ravel, and John Williams. We are thrilled that our audience will once again have the chance to experience Jason Vieaux’s artistry.

La Vida Breve: Andover, MA
2022-11-12 16:00 - 18:00 | West Parish Church, 129 Reservation Rd, Andover, MA, United States
JASON VIEAUX, GUITAR
JULIE SCOLNIK, FLUTE
Sat, Nov. 12, 4 pm
Andover: West Parish Church
Grammy-winning international guitar virtuoso Jason Vieaux returns to the Mistral stage by popular demand to perform with founding artistic director and flutist Julie Scolnik. Their program will span centuries, countries, and styles, from Bartók, LeClair, Leisner, Shocker, and Pat Metheny, to a set of short gems by Da Falla, Tchaikovsky, Ravel, and John Williams. We are thrilled that our audience will once again have the chance to experience Jason Vieaux’s artistry.
