
FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 2021 at 8:00 PM (ET)

VIRTUAL PROGRAM
The virtuosic and versatile Iranian-American harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani has pursued two primary passions in his career: the compositions of J.S. Bach and contemporary music for the harpsichord. The centerpiece of this beautifully curated program of gems and giants is a work Esfahani calls “Bach’s magnum opus for the keyboard:” the regal, 30-minute Overture in the French Style. Framing it are Bach’s Six Little Preludes, written as teaching pieces, and 20th-century works by Louis Andriessen and Bohuslav Martinů. Andriessen’s dramatic, incantatory overture is a prelude to what the composer describes as “an imaginary opera in which Orpheus plays the leading part.”
J.S. BACH
Six Little Preludes, BWV 933-938
Overture in the French Style, BWV 831
MARTINŮ
Deux Pièces (op. posth.)
ANDRIESSEN
Overture to Orpheus
JOHANN CASPAR FERDINAND FISCHER
Passacaglia in D minor
from Musicalischer Parnassus, UranieSuite
Be sure to check this page for additional content, including conversations with the artists, program notes, links to Library resources and more!