On Friday, January 29, at 8:00 p.m., pianists Dr. Peter Green and Dr. Jungwon Jin will join the Pasadena Community Orchestra (PCO) in a rare performance of Poulenc’s “Concerto for Two Pianos.” The orchestra, led by Music Director Bethany Pflueger, will also perform Beethoven’s energetic “Symphony #7,” and the Overture to Rossini’s “An Italian Girl in Algiers.”
International award-winning pianists Dr. Peter Green and Dr. Jungwon Jin both received their Masters and Doctor of Music degrees at USC. Dr. Green, born in Newfoundland, Canada, has performed twice on CBC television, studied at the Guildhall School of Music in London, England, and received first prize in the national piano competition of the Canadian music teachers’ federation. Dr. Jin originally came to the U.S. from Korea to study at The Juilliard School and has won numerous concerto competitions both in the U.S. and overseas, including receiving the Most Distinguished Music Award the IBLA International Competition in Sicily, Italy. Both pianists have performed extensively here and abroad, as soloists and collaborative artists, and each has recorded a CD of his or her work. Dr. Green is Chair of the Visual & Performing Arts Division at Glendale College, while Dr. Jin teaches all levels of piano classes, music appreciation, and introductory music classes as an Assistant Professor at Santa Ana College.
The “Concerto for Two Pianos” recreates the joyful atmosphere of the famous Paris salon of the work’s patron, Princess Edmond de Polignac. While much of the work is playful and breezy, the slow movement (an homage to Mozart) seems almost dreamy.
Commentators have referred to Beethoven’s “Symphony #7” as “kinetically energized,” “wild,” “rhythmically obsessed,” and “breathless but utterly joyful mania.” The second movement was so popular that the audience at the premiere insisted on hearing it again, and it was often substituted into other Beethoven symphonies.
The concert will open with the bubbly Overture to “An Italian Girl in Algiers.” Tiptoeing slow passages are ended by loud, full-orchestra chords. In addition to passages ranging from sweet to rollicking, the overture includes a jaunty, military-sounding section complete with trumpet fanfares, and finishes with a classically Rossini-esque rousing crescendo.
PCO concerts are free (donations are welcome at the door). Well-trained musicians provide a high-quality musical experience. The First Church of the Nazarene is located at 3700 E. Sierra Madre Blvd., one block west of Michillinda Ave. Parking is free and wheelchair accessible. Immediately following the concert, audience members will have the opportunity to meet the soloists, the Music Director, and the other musicians at a reception.
For further information, find PCO online at http://www.pcomusic.org, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pasadena-Community-Orchestra/125809577468516, and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/PCOrchestra
Photo: Dr. Jungwon Jin / courtesy of PCO / used with permission