Love ‘Bridgerton’? Love the music? KC group will bring the era to life in 2 concerts
I have never seen the Netflix show “Bridgerton,” but I understand it’s a sexy soap opera set in London during the Regency era. That was when a regent sat in for the mentally ill King George III.
Opus 76 Quartet will present “Music of Regency” in two concerts Sept. 9 at the Polsky Theater at the Midwest Trust Center.
“What happened is that we began playing concerts Regency-style, on a chamber music table we created,” said violinist and founding member of Opus 76, Keith Stanfield. “People would sit around us and they loved being so close as we performed in that unique, Regency-style way. It was so popular, we had the idea for us to do it around the most pop culture Regency-themed phenomenon happening, ‘Bridgerton.’”
Both seasons of the TV show have been set during the social season in Regency London. Accompanying all the eye candy, including the beautiful young cast and location filming in picturesque English settings, is a score that includes music of the era (as well as modern hits remade for the period).
“All of the specific pieces we’ll play were heard on the show,” Stanfield said. “They also happen to be right out of our personal greatest hits catalog.”
The quartet will perform movements from Haydn’s Op. 76, Mozart ’s ”Dissonance,” Beethoven’s Op. 59, No. 3 and Schubert’s “Rosamunde” string quartets.
“It’s a celebration of the finest music of the age, and perhaps to some, like myself, beyond,” Stanfield said.
For the full “Bridgerton” experience, there will be a Music of Regency High Tea at 3:30 that afternoon at the Regnier Center. Expect cucumber sandwiches, fruit, pastries, scones, the whole schmear.
Stanfield studied in England but hails from Western Samoa, and is one of only a handful of classical musicians who have come from there. He has a remarkable success story on his hands with Opus 76, and the former soccer player has no intention of slowing the momentum.
“We have an amazing season ahead of us, including performing arias from two of Mozart’s greatest operas, ‘The Marriage of Figaro’ and ‘Don Giovanni,’ which we’ll be performing with singers,” Stanfield said. “We’ll also be hosting a series of recitals at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, the first of which is on Sept. 23.”
Stanfield and Opus 76 also continue to do a lot of great charity work for the community. In September they’ll be performing concerts to benefit the music ministry at Old Mission United Methodist Church in Fairway and the fine arts program at St. Agnes’ Catholic School in Roeland Park. To keep up with Opus 76, visit opus76.org.
2 and 5 p.m. Sept. 9. Polsky Theater, Midwest Trust Center, Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park. $12-$35. 913-469-8500 or jccc.edu/midwest-trust-center.
Mahani Teave Discovery Concert
The Harriman-Jewell Series brings artists from all over the world to Kansas City, but up until now, nowhere as remote as Easter Island. Mahani Teave, who is rapidly becoming a classical music superstar, is coming from her distant Polynesian homeland to perform a recital Sept. 9 at the Folly Theater.
Teave was just a little girl when the first piano arrived on Easter Island. She took to the instrument naturally, and when her teacher left the island, Teave’s family moved to mainland Chile so she could continue her studies. She graduated with highest honors from Austral University in Chile and received her master’s degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music. She also finished her post-graduate studies at the Hanns Eisler Musik Hochschule in Berlin.
Teave has won many prizes, including the Claudio Arrau International Piano Competition and the APES Prize for best classical music performance in Chile, which she won for performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Orquesta Sinfonica de Chile.
With her husband, Enrique Icka, she created the School of Music and the Arts, the first arts school on Easter Island. Beside its musical bona fides, the school is considered an ecological marvel. It’s completely self-sustaining and uses recyclable materials, solar energy and water collectors.
When Teave tours, she makes a point of performing in hospitals, schools, jails and for those who generally cannot afford concerts. Her mission of bringing music to the people is the same as that of the Harriman-Jewell Series. That’s why the series is making this don’t-miss recital one of its free Discovery Concerts.
7 p.m. Sept. 9. Folly Theater, 300 W. 12th St. Free but reservations required. 816-415-5025 or hjseries.org.
You can reach Patrick Neas at patrickneas@kcartsbeat.com and follow his Facebook page, KC Arts Beat, at www.facebook.com/kcartsbeat.
