by Jarrett Hoffman
Earth and Air: String Orchestra is taking its final bow next week, but they won’t be going away quietly. The chamber ensemble has enlisted not one but two soloists for the occasion, more specifically two “Dueling Divas,” as violinists Andrew Sords and Mari Sato call their duo.
Another intriguing pairing is the program itself, which places J.S. Bach and his popular Concerto for two violins in d side by side with the Symphonie Concertante in G of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, an 18th-century Black composer who is only recently receiving his due recognition both in the history books and the concert hall.
The free concert airs on YouTube on the morning of Tuesday, April 20, the fruits of a recording session held earlier this month at Trinity Cathedral and engineered by Paul Eachus, with video direction by Mathias Reed and cinematography by Robert Reiland.
“It has been a wonderful run of six years,” director David Ellis (below) wrote on the ensemble’s website. “We are so grateful to our loyal audience and patrons. We couldn’t have done this without you!” He also left the door open just a crack: “We anticipate other individual and small ensemble projects in the future on a more limited basis.”
When Cleveland native David Ellis decided to study cello as an undergraduate at Oberlin Conservatory, he had an inkling that conducting might be in his future. He also had a feeling he should wait on that pursuit.
Atonal music holds a certain fascination, although it may make listeners recoil in horror. More than 100 years after inspiring a revolution in music, atonality remains unresolved in classical music culture. But the open-eared willing to forswear their fear can gain a foothold on a treacherous musical mountain.
Earth and Air: String Orchestra opened their fourth season this past Friday evening at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights with a charming continuation of their Mendelssohn String Symphonies project. Music Director David Ellis curated this Part Two in the pleasant spirit of a potpourri concert: the movements of the featured symphony were divided up, with other works by the composer played in between.
