Women have made many contributions to classical music as both composers and performers, yet their work often receives far less attention compared to their male counterparts. This spring, the Geneva Music Festival will host its annual Spring Benefit Concert and silent action on International Women’s Day, with a program that spotlights these oft-forgotten contributors to classical music.
The Geneva Music Festival was founded in 2011 by Geneva, New York violinist Geoffrey Herd as a weekend of chamber music in his hometown. Now in its 14th season, the festival has grown to a nearly month-long event that draws thousands of attendees from across the Finger Lakes region. Each year, the Festival continues its mission of inspiring people with world-class chamber music and engaging diverse audiences in its outreach programs.
On March 8, the Carr-Petrova Duo will perform a concert featuring works for viola and piano by female composers in Froelich Hall on the Hobart and William Smith Campuses.
The concert program, entitled “HERS” is a collaboration of pianist Anna Petrova and violist Molly Carr. Playing together since their student days, they subsequently formed a duo and have traveled the world. Petrova said, “When one creates this kind of partnership, the most important and compelling thing is the musical partnership and the personal partnership. We’d played with many other people before, but she and I just clicked on a musical and personal level very well; it was a natural fit.”
Synthesis and serendipity are the themes behind many of the pieces on the program. Composer Vivian Fung created a piece based on the music of Hildegard Von Bingen, which had its debut during the pandemic, with musicians recording their individual parts remotely and then sending the recordings to be compiled together. Carr and Petrova reached out nearly simultaneously to ask Fung about crafting a piece based on Von Bingen’s work, and Fung rearranged her orchestral piece for viola and piano. “It was serendipitous, meant to be,” said Petrova.
“Andrea Casarrubios’s piece was commissioned in 2021 and we approached Vivian Fung during the pandemic as we started brainstorming composers we wanted to play. Molly was the one who started to forge the idea of all female composers, and it all started to come together into a program.” “HERS” came out of this organic synthesis between friends.”
The last piece on the program is a “staple of the viola repertoire and a very beautiful piece of chamber music. It forged the path of the viola becoming a solo instrument; with pieces like the Clark sonata, the viola was seen as an instrument that can take the spotlight.” While it’s more common to find duos written for piano and violin, Petrova and Carr believe the viola has much to offer. “In terms of playing with the instrument, I really love the viola, its color and voice. It has an almost human voice, very heartfelt and visceral. I’ve never felt like I’m giving up something.”
“’HERS’ is something that we’ve pieced together for a few years now. During the pandemic we actually lived together for about nine months; during those nine months we took a road trip and in the car we were enjoying singing together all our favorite songs. Beyonce’s ‘Halo’ was one of the songs we really loved and the idea of commissioning a piece inspired by that song came up. We really wanted to play something from the pop genre that was different from the usual classical repertoire, but that could still stand its ground on the classical stage. That is how ‘Halo’ was created – with the incredible imagination and compositional skills of Brazilian jazz pianist and composer Henrique Eisenman who weaved a beautiful fantasy on a theme by Beyonce.
The Geneva Music Festival’s biggest fundraising event of the year, the Spring Benefit Concert and Auction, is now live and runs through March 9 at 12pm. Browse through an array of items, from captivating paintings to exclusive Finger Lakes experiences, guaranteed to delight all. Help Geneva Music Festival reach their fundraising goal and continue bringing exceptional music to the greater Finger Lakes community. Start bidding here.
The auction goes live during the Spring Benefit Concert intermission with auctioneers Don Wertman and Susan Henking leading the proceedings, offering a chance to bid on your favorite items.
The Geneva Music Spring Benefit Concert will be held March 8, 2024 in Froelich Hall on the Hobart and William Smith Campuses. Tickets are $75 per person, and the ticket price includes a reception with light fare and biodynamic wines from the celebrated Hermann J. Weimer Winery. To find out more, and to purchase tickets, visit here.
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