Chemainus Classical Concerts continues its 2024-2025 season with Resonance, a performance for cello and piano, on Sunday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. at St. Michael’s Church.
The concert features Dutch-born cellist Arthur Arnold and celebrated pianist Dr. Moira Hopfe-Ostensen, presenting a program that explores drama, lyricism and folk-inspired charm.
With Strauss and Shostakovich anchoring the program, and Vaughan Williams and Romberg adding folk flavour, the afternoon will showcase the cello’s ability to sing, dance, and even throw a dramatic tantrum or two. The program includes Richard Strauss’s Cello Sonata, Op. 6, an early work filled with youthful exuberance and sweeping romanticism, alongside Dmitri Shostakovich’s Cello Sonata, Op. 40, which contrasts biting wit with moments of haunting intensity. Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Six Studies in English Folk Song offers a heartfelt tribute to traditional melodies, while Bernard Romberg’s Divertimento on Austrian Folk Songs, Op. 46 brings a lighter touch, blending elegance and charm.
Arnold, a renowned conductor and cellist, studied at the Maastricht Academy of Music and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, beginning his career as an orchestral cellist before transitioning to conducting. From 2012 to 2022, he served as music director of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, but he resigned in protest of the war in Ukraine, taking a principled stand against the conflict. Amid the challenges of war and the pandemic, Arnold found solace in reconnecting with his roots as a cellist. He is also the visionary behind The Mosolov Project, an initiative that uncovered and revived lost works by Soviet composer Alexander Mosolov, including recordings that received critical acclaim and international awards.
Hopfe-Ostensen, currently the artist in residence at the Powell River Academy of Music, is a distinguished pianist with an international career spanning North America and Europe. Praised for her expressive and engaging performances, she holds advanced degrees and certifications from institutions in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. With technical mastery and deep musicality, she brings sensitivity and warmth to her work as both a soloist and collaborative artist.
The combination of Arnold’s profound artistry and Hopfe-Ostensen’s expressive playing promises a memorable afternoon of music.
Tickets for Resonance are $30 at the door or $10 for those 18 and under.
Enjoy discounted rates by reserving your tickets in advance. Pay $23 if you call and prepay or $25 if you reserve and pay at the door.
Call 250-748-8383 to reserve.
