Trio to perform masterful music

The Veridian Symphony Orchestra will present two concerts this weekend to showcase the master composers of Germany and Russia, including Bach, Mozart, Glinka, Scriabin, Shostakovich and Sviridov.

Part of the orchestra's Chamber Music Series, "German & Russian Masters" includes a trio of local musicians: Helen Graham, violin; Rebekah Hood, cello; and Marina Swales, piano.

"The first half of the concert is on the German masters," Graham said.

"We're starting off with a 'Solo Cello Suite' by Bach. It's one of his most famous and has been used in tons of movies — most recently, 'The Soloist'; it's the famous piece that the cellist plays in that movie — so it's really well recognized," she said.

"Then we are doing the Mozart 'Piano Trio in C Major.' It's just really classic Mozart: very pristine and orderly and full of lots of joy and gracefulness," Graham said.

"The second half of the concert is the Russian half. We're featuring a couple of major composers and a couple of smaller composers. The thing they all have in common, of course, is that their music embodies the Russian spirit. They are really cool pieces, and that's my favorite half of the program," she said.

"We are doing Dmitry Shostakovich's 'First Piano Trio,' which he wrote when he was only 17. He dedicated it to a young woman that he was head over heels for; he and two of his friends played it as his entrance exam to college. Which is pretty amazing, considering that some of us are still learning how to play our instruments when we go to college," Graham said.

"The 'First Piano Trio' is so neat — about half of it is slow and half is really super fast, so it has a lot of contrast, tons of romantic themes dedicated to this woman he was in love with — and it's just really fun to play," she said. "Each Russian piece shows a different side of Russian music."

Graham said the concerts are dedicated to the memory of Jane Roberts, who passed away Jan. 12, "a violinist and teacher and a really, really large figure in the music community here." Roberts' daughter, Jan Roberts-Haydon, is a local flutist and music teacher who often plays with the Veridian Symphony.

Roberts' obituary, which appeared in the Appeal-Democrat Jan. 18, said she was concertmaster of the Yuba-Sutter Symphony for four decades. She played organ for Sunday Mass at St. Isidore Catholic Church from the early 1950s until 2002 and was conductor of the St. Isidore Men's Choir.

Roberts was also a member of the Yuba-Sutter Oratorio Society, Tri-County Concert Association, AAUW, the Soroptimist Club, Sutter County Historical Society, Mu Phi Epsilon and a charter member of the Hub Camera Club.

"German & Russian Masters" is at 6 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at First Lutheran Church in Yuba City.

"Come to experience a sample of some of the masters of two amazing countries," Graham said.

The orchestra's next chamber series performances will be March 17-18 with string quartet, featuring works by mostly American composers and also some non-American composers who wrote pieces inspired by America, Graham said.

CONTACT Susan Benitez at sbenitez@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4773. Find her on Facebook at /ADFeatures or on Twitter at @adfeatures.