The theme of ENCORE Chamber Music’s fourth season is “La Bohème: Art and Freedom,” mixing meanings of Bohemianism. It has brought together the 19th-century artistic movement that sought to break down conventions (think the characters from Puccini’s opera) with composers from Bohemia, of which Dvořák is the most famous. I attended three concerts where the overarching theme was successfully bent to include music from Mozart to living American composers.
That the Cavani String Quartet, even in its transitional state, continues to draw a large and devoted following attests to its long and close relationship with the many students the ensemble mentored during its tenure at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Those fans, along with current ENCORE Chamber Music participants, packed the music room at Gilmour Academy’s Tudor House on Friday, June 14 for a program of Mozart, Martinů, and Dvořák. [Read more…]