The Marine Band’s Chamber Music Series returns at 2 p.m., Sunday, May 6, with a brass quintet, woodwind quintet with piano, and string ensembles performing music by Antony Holburn, Joseph Haydn, Joseph Horovitz, Bryce Dessner, and Leopold Smit. The concert is free and will take place at the John Philip Sousa Band Hall at the Marine Barracks Annex in southeast Washington, D.C.; no tickets are required. Live stream: www.marineband.marines.mil.

When programming for this Sunday’s performance, oboist and English horn player Gunnery Sgt. Joseph Deluccio aimed to provide a musical arc with a variety of instrumentation. A brass quintet will kick off the concert with Antony Holburn’s Five Pieces. “I really enjoy programs with brass music so I thought it would be great to start with the brass quintet selection,” Deluccio said. He added that a recording of Five Pieces by Holburn was sent into space aboard the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 space probes in 1977 to represent global human culture. “So that makes it even cooler!”

The first half of the concert will continue with Haydn’s Sonata in B-flat for Violin and Viola for string duo, followed by Joseph Horovitz’s Quartet for Oboe and Strings, Opus 18.

“I found this Quartet for Oboe when I was researching oboe compositions, so I’m excited to perform a piece that is new to me,” Deluccio said. “I like to champion works that aren’t performed very often. That’s very important to me, and it fit well into the program regarding the style I was going for.”

While the first half of the program features Renaissance and Classical composers, the works on the second half were written by composers born in the 20^th Century. A mixed wind, string, piano, and percussion ensemble will perform Dessner’s contemporary set of seven instrumental ballads inspired by love affairs turned violent and original compositions inspired by early Americana. The concert will then conclude with a woodwind quintet and piano performing Leopold Smit’s Sextuor, a 14-minute piece which finishes with a nice climactic flourish.

“On this concert, our attendees might hear things that they have not heard before and that might result in a new appreciation for different kinds of groupings of instruments,” Deluccio said. “And I hope people will hear the Sextuor and explore this composer. This piece is a really exciting way to end the performance, and I think the audience will really enjoy it.” 

The Marine Barracks Annex is accessible by Metro via the Navy Yard or Eastern Market stations. Free parking is also available under the overpass on 7th Street, across from the Annex. Please allow extra time for ID checks at the gate.

Complete program and program notes

Directions and Parking Information

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