John Ellis (1710?-1776) addressed the difficulty of transporting plants aboard ship, and suggested ways to protect them from the dangers of salt spray and fluctuations in temperature.
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This acclaimed New York-based ensemble has earned an impressive international reputation, enchanting diverse audiences with its unique style and virtuosic, highly expressive approach to the Baroque and Classical repertoire. In our closing concert of the season, the recorder and flute virtuoso Matthias Maute joins Rebel for an evening of music by J.S. Bach, Belitze, Theile, Telemann, Hasse, Schwartzkopff, and Handel.
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Pianist Alessio Bax has been praised for creating “a ravishing listening experience” with his lyrical playing and dazzling facility. Canadian pianist Lucille Chung has been acclaimed for her “stylish and refined” performances. Together, these two artists have become one of the best piano duos of their generation. They perform works for piano four-hands by Mendelssohn, Stravinsky, Piazzolla, and Brahms.
The award-winning concert saxophonist Ashu has established an extraordinary ability to communicate with audiences through his charismatic and moving performance style. His virtuosity continues to thrill listeners, and he has repeatedly defied convention by winning major competitions traditionally won by pianists and violinists. In his Washington, D.C. recital debut, Ashu performs works for saxophone and piano by Ibert, Rachmaninoff, Creston, Piazzolla, Morricone, and Demersseman.
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In 2008, pianist Alon Goldstein, violinist Ilya Kaler, and cellist Amit Peled joined forces to form one of the most exciting trios on the international scene today. The Tempest Trio combines technical mastery, expressive depth, and exquisite musicality, as you shall hear in this program of music by Joseph Haydn, Leonard Bernstein, and Antonín Dvořák.
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A celebration in music of the various traditions of the season: from the Winter Solstice to Advent and Hanukkah; from English ballads to lively dances and popular tunes from across the continent—all set to a wonderful array of shawms, sackbuts, dulcians, recorders, bagpipes, lute, and guitar. The incomparable soprano Laura Heimes joins the band for this program of seasonal delights.
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Joel Fan's engaging personality, technical assurance, and lyricism win over audiences wherever he performs. He has collaborated with cellist Yo-Yo Ma, both in the Silk Road Ensemble, and in Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the New York Philharmonic. Incorporating unique insights gained from performing an eclectic range of repertoire, Mr. Fan revisits works by Wagner, Chopin, Brahms, and Liszt with originality and freshness.
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PLEASE NOTE: These concerts are on Monday & Tuesday.
In their Washington, D.C. debut, The Knights perform two world premieres, including a concerto for santur (a classical Iranian hammered dulcimer), violin, and orchestra, featuring santur virtuoso Siamak Aghaei. The orchestra also performs Stravinsky's "Dumbarton Oaks" Concerto, in celebration of the 75th anniversary year of its premiere in our Music Room. Rounding out the evening is music by Bach, Haydn, and Reich. The concert will be recorded live for Sony Classical.
]]>Balthasar Cattrani. Collection de botanique. Approximately 1780.
These images come from a series of watercolors on vellum from the library of Eugène de Beauharnais. Eugène likely inherited the collection from his mother, the Empress Joséphine, who had brought Cattrani to illustrate the plants of Malmaison. Cattrani also documented plants at the Botanical Garden of Padua.
]]>Robert John Thornton (1768?-1837) executed his ambitious New illustration of the sexual system of Carolus von Linnaeus between 1799 and 1810. The images here are from the book’s third, most famous section, The Temple of Flora. Thornton bankrupted himself on this project, a poetic and artistic celebration of the sexual system of plant reproduction proposed by Linnaeus earlier in the 18th century. The illustrated plants come from around the world and are often depicted in exotic locales.
]]>Franz Bauer (1758-1840) shared a talent for botanical illustration with his brother, Ferdinand Bauer (1760-1826). Both trained under Nikolaus Jacquin (1727-1817). Joseph Banks brought Franz Bauer to Kew in order to illustrate plants in the collection.
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