Marine Barracks Annex, Washington, D.C. -- The Marine Band continues its Fall 2024 Chamber Music Series at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 23, with a program titled “Journeys.” Coordinated by clarinetist Gunnery Sgt. Kristin Bowers, the concert will take place at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 301 A Street SE in Washington, D.C. The concert is free, no tickets are required. Hear what Gunnery Sgt. Bowers had to say about the program:
For me, the journey of programming and performing this concert is very personal. Johannes Brahms wrote several incredible pieces of music for the clarinet, all at the very end of his career. His two Sonatas for Clarinet and Piano are iconic—they are performed and recorded widely by clarinetists and violists as well! He wrote a trio for Clarinet, Cello, and piano—and of course, his Clarinet Quintet. Of this stunning group of works, the Quintet is the only work that I had never performed. I obviously jumped at the opportunity to put it together with several of the fabulous string players from the Marine Chamber Orchestra.
For audience members, it is easy to become immersed in the lush music of Brahms. There is stunning beauty, deep introspection, melancholy, joy, and love throughout all 35 minutes of the work. Whether you’ve heard the piece once or twenty times, a trip through Brahms’ Clarinet Quintet is never time wasted.
The middle piece on the program is another giant of the chamber music repertoire—Maurice Ravel’s Piano Trio in A Minor. Ravel finished his trio in a hurry before rushing off to attempt to join the French Army in World War I. The aspect of this piece that I love listening to is the influence of folk music, specifically themes from Ravel’s native Basque region. Ravel’s use of meter and the way in which it is cleverly obscured is almost hypnotic. Later in the trio, the virtuosity of all three players is vividly on display as Ravel’s trio comes to a stunning close.
When I discovered the music of Chris Rogerson, I knew I wanted “A Fish Will Rise” to be a part of this program. Rogerson’s piece is inspired by the famous novel A River Runs Through It. You can hear the river in the undulating rhythm at the beginning of the piece. He weaves the flute, clarinet and piano lines together seamlessly, dropping the listener into a perfectly imagined scene where you are immersed for eight short minutes in the beauty of the river. It is a perfect way to begin the journey that this program will take us all on—and I look forward to experiencing it with you!
The concert is free and open to the public; no tickets are required. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 301 A Street SE in Washington, D.C.