By Gina Malone
As part of its Rising Stars Concert Series, the Asheville Chamber Music Series (ACMS) brings together two young regional musicians for a performance of some of the most challenging works ever written for violin and piano. The concert—featuring violinist Anant Malpani, an Asheville resident studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and pianist and Hendersonville native Christopher Tavernier, who made his orchestral debut with the Tar River Orchestra at just 13 years old and has won numerous competitions—takes place Tuesday, August 25, at 6 p.m. at the Asheville Art Museum.
Anant Malpani
Polly Feitzinger, the ACMS programming chair, was introduced to Malpani’s mother at a recent ACMS concert and heard about the young musician’s achievements, including being selected as a fellow at the Decoda Chamber Music Festival at Warren Wilson College last year. “I immediately thought he might be a good candidate for a Rising Stars concert if we could work out the logistics of his being in Asheville visiting his mother and finding a pianist advanced enough to learn what turns out to be a very difficult program for violin and piano,” Feitzinger says. The program, selected by Malpani, includes Sonata for Violin and Piano by Francis Poulenc and Sonata in A major for Violin and Piano by César Franck.
“When I was devising this program, I wanted to curate pieces that would fit the season and performance space,” Malpani says. “The works we will be performing all contain elements of summertime in their own ways. We will be playing two beloved French sonatas by Poulenc and Franck, the first of which deals with grief and remembrance, while the latter was written as a celebration of marriage. We will also be performing two works by underrepresented American composers: the piece “Summerland” by William Grant Still, and Caprice for solo violin by Augusta Read Thomas.”
Christopher Tavernier
At the time they agreed to the performance, the two young musicians had never met. Tavernier looks forward to working with Malpani on the pieces they will perform. “Everybody will be able to experience some of the best music written for violin and piano that has come from France,” he says. “The Poulenc is very exciting, dark and introspective. The Franck, probably one of the most famous pieces ever written for this duo of instruments, is filled with so much love, passion and beauty, it’s pure unadulterated romanticism and has some of the most memorable melodies, which people will have in their heads for weeks after hearing it.”
The Rising Stars Concert Series is a collaboration of ACMS and the Asheville Art Museum. It seeks to offer performance opportunities to young North Carolina musicians who show great potential.
“Live chamber music is such a unique experience and to have a whole series dedicated to hearing younger artists perform some of the great literature that the genre has to offer is truly special,” says Tavernier.
The Asheville Art Museum is located at 2 South Pack Square in downtown Asheville. To purchase tickets, visit AshevilleChamberMusic.org, call 828.575.7427 or email support@ashevillechambermusic.org. Tickets are $15 for Asheville Art Museum members and $18 for non-members.
