Friday, Feb. 7 at 6 p.m.—RANDOLPH—Scrag Mountain Music’s musical storytelling for all ages returns to the Chandler Arts Center by popular demand! This season’s program centers around the world premiere of Scrag co-Artistic Director and composer / double bassist Evan Premo’s “Thumbelina,” a musical setting of Hans Christian Andersen’s tale by the same name. Joining Premo on this musical journey are Scrag co-Artistic Director Mary Bonhag (soprano) and celebrated guest musicians Catherine Gregory (flute), Paul Wonjin Cho (clarinet), and Brad Balliett (bassoon). This program is appropriate and engaging for audiences of all ages.
This season features a dynamic line-up of music that highlights the woodwind family of instruments. The concert’s centerpiece, Vermont composer Evan Premo’s “Thumbelina” for soprano, piccolo, flute, alto flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, and double bass, makes careful use of each instrument’s unique qualities to express the rich characters found in H.C. Andersen’s tale of a tiny girl who goes on a big adventure. “It’s been a pleasure spending time with each of H.C. Anderson’s phrases to create music that amplifies them. In the resulting 30-minute composition, the words will be both spoken and sung by soprano Mary Bonhag while each of the wind instruments takes turns embodying the colorful critters that Thumbelina encounters along her journey,” Premo said.
The program also includes guest artist bassoonist and composer Brad Balliett’s “The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean” based on the witty Grimm Fairy Tale by the same name; the traditional folksong “The Fox” that recounts a fox who goes on a midnight hunt; Claude Debussy’s “Syrinx” for solo flute and Charles Koechlin’s “Trio” for flute, clarinet, and bassoon.
Musical storytelling for all ages will present four concerts between Feb. 7-9, 2020. All concerts are “Come as you are. Pay what you can,” with at-will donations collected at intermission. Securing your seats in advance at scragmountainmusic.org or by calling 802-377-3161 is encouraged.
