Hudson library will host performances by BlueWater Chamber, Wit's Folly, Chinese ensemble

The Hudson Library and Historical Society will feature live music performances ranging from Gershwin, Mendelssohn and Haydn to classical Chinese music.

The BlueWater Chamber Orchestra will perform at the library on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 2 p.m. Four musicians from Northeast Ohio's esteemed BlueWater Chamber Orchestra will present a concert of string quartets by Arriaga, Gershwin, and Mendelssohn. Juan Crisostomo Arriaga was considered the "Spanish Mozart" as he was born exactly 50 years after his famed predecessor and like him, composed a prolific number of beautiful works, including his String Quartet in A Major, before dying at the young age of nineteen. George Gershwin always wanted to be known as a serious composer, and his Lullaby for String Quartet shows another aspect of his musical style. Felix Mendelssohn's String Quartet Op. 13 is full of the passion of a young man in love.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Daniel Meyer, the orchestra is conducting an era of lively creative performances and educational experiences at various venues across the region.

Wit’s Folly will perform Sunday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m. The ensemble will perform “Passing the Baton: Joseph Haydn and his Musical Successors,” featuring string works by Austrian composers Haydn, Eybler, Hoffmeister, and Pleyel performed on historic instruments.

This program is part of the Hudson Library’s “Tour of Austria” month.

In late 18th century Vienna, no one was better known for their teaching and support than Joseph Haydn, whose skill and genial personality made him a mentor worth seeking out. Wit's Folly will explore music for string quartet by Haydn and his talented student Joseph Eybler who was described as the next best genius in Vienna after Mozart. The program will feature one of Haydn's later quartets, opus 76 number 2 in D minor, nicknamed "Fifths" and Eybler's charming opus 1 quartet in D major, and will be rounded out by a pair of duets by Ignaz Pleyel and Franz Anton Hoffmeister, composers whose lives were also touched by Haydn's influence.

Finally, the library will celebrate the Year of the Dragon on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. with a performance by the Five Lakes Chinese Music Ensemble. The ensemble will be performing a “Southern China Bamboo Silk” ensemble style featuring four different traditional instruments.

Five Lakes Chinese Music Ensemble, based in Cleveland, was established in 1989. Featuring four musicians, the ensemble performs selections from the Chinese classical repertoire on traditional Chinese instruments.

Registration is required for these events at hudsonlibrary.org. For details, email askus@hudson.lib.oh.us or call 330-653-6658 ext. 1010.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Chinese music, Haydn and Gershwin among highlights of library concerts