Cvetozar Vutev, violin/viola, as Leopold Mozart (1719 – 1787)
Curtis Howell, harpsichord, as Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 – 1788)

Music works for violin, viola and harpsichord by two of the greatest Baroque composers and good friends: J.S.Bach and G.F. Telemann. And a bit of comedy.

Tickets: $25/$30, children 12 and younger free

Program

Sonata for viola and harpsichord No. 5 in A minor By Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)

Largo - Allegro - Soave - Allegro

Violin Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004 By Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Sarabande

Overture for harpsichord solo No. 1 in G minor By Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)

Largo-Allegretto

Sonata for viola and harpsichord No. 2 in D major BWV 1028 By Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Adagio - Allegro - Andante - Allegro

Sonata for violin and harpsichord No. 2 in C minor Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 – 1788)

Presto

The Plot:

Violinist and composer Leopold Mozart (Wolfgang Amadeus' father) and keyboard player Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (one of J. S. Bach's sons) met in London, England in 1764. Leopold stayed in London for 6 months while his 8 year old son Wolfgang was taking keyboard and composition lessons from another son of J. S. Bach, Johann Christian, known as the "London Bach". C. P. E. Bach, known as the "Berlin Bach", whose godfather was the German composer Georg Philip Telemann came to London to visit his brother Johann Christian. The young Johann Christian asked his brother to check out and pick choose one of his harpsichords, which are inherited from their father J. S. Bach. Having plenty of free time, Leopold Mozart and C. P. E. Bach decided to play some music for viola and harpsichord by C. P. E. Bach's father and godfather (JS Bach and G P Telemann) . The two musicians enjoyed playing together, and after several days of practice they decided to perform a full recital in London Hanover Square with the music they just learned. The concert was a huge success. However, after the concert Leopold and C. P. E. Bach were arrested, convicted and put in jail for a week for violating the copyrights of J. S. Bach and G. P. Telemann. Until this time none of the performing musicians in the world would dare to perform in public music which has been composed by someone else. After the two partners in crime were freed they decided to go on a concert tour to Canada in 1765, starting in Ontario and eventually travelling to British Columbia. After their successful concert tour the entire music world realized that performing music by other composers should not be considered a crime anymore. This opened the door for a new music performing tradition, which became a norm for future generations of musicians.