Pianist Brian Ganz opens the 2020 Arts in the Woods Concert series Sunday, January 5, 2020 at 3 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis (UUCA), 333 Dubois Road.
Ganz, who serves as artistic director for the series, will present “Musical Gardening,” in which he features examples of early works— including waltzes, mazurkas, polonaises and nocturnes—that contain the seeds of Chopin’s genius, followed by mature masterpieces in the same genres that demonstrate the full flowering of that genius. He will also perform Chopin requests from the audience, which has become a popular tradition in the seven years that he has opened the Arts in the Woods series.
Tickets are $20 at the door; youth 16 and under are free. Price includes a post-performance reception with the artist. For more information, visit www.uuannapolis.org or call 410-266-8044 Monday through hursday.
The January 5 concert will preview selections included in Ganz’s solo piano performance at The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, Maryland, on February 1—the tenth installment in a multi-year journey in partnership with National Philharmonic to perform the complete works of Frédéric Chopin. In commenting on this year’s program, Ganz said, “I’m especially excited by this year’s theme of musical gardening. It is one thing to jump headlong into the masterworks of Chopin. But I find it incredibly interesting and satisfying to watch his genius grow before our eyes and ears, starting with charming early works that few people know, and culminating in works of great beauty, craftsmanship and originality. It’s a kind of musical ‘time-lapse photography.’”
Among the featured selections in the January 5 program at UUCA, Ganz will include the masterful Polonaise-Fantaisie, Op. 61, the brilliant Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 34, No. 1 and the beloved Nocturne in D-flat major, Op. 27, No. 2, along with charming youthful works in the same genres. “I have especially come to love the Polonaise-Fantaisie,” pianist Ganz recently stated. “It’s almost as if a polonaise lover falls asleep and has a highly colorful, even glorious dream about a favorite polonaise. It’s unlike anything else Chopin ever wrote. The waltzes are sparkling examples of his great gift for melody. I’m excited to play these great works and many others on the church’s gorgeous new Steinway.”