Concert 4: Reena Esmail in residence @ J. Christopher

Composer-in-Residence Reena Esmail joins the festival for the second weekend, with performances in the barrel room on Saturday, August 13th  and Sunday, August 14th at J. Christopher Wines in Newberg, OR. The concert features two of Esmail’s work, a brand new piece for soprano, violin, and cello completed this spring, and her vibrant string quartet, Ragamala, which takes inspiration from the ancient genre of paintings called Ragamalas, which date back to the 15th century and express the intersection of painting, poetry, and music in Indian court art, all with the unifying subject of love. Each of the movements of the work begins with a raag, which then diverge into their own unique character as the movement progresses. Esmail writes that “in Hindustani music, the elaboration of a single rag can often take an hour. I didn’t mean for this piece to exhaust these rags, but rather provide little snapshots of particular features and characters of each rag that I find beautiful and special about each one.” The concert will also feature the west coast premiere of a brand new work completed by Esmail in spring of 2022 for soprano, violin, and cello, as well as 2021 Composer-in-Residence Osvaldo Golijov’s stunning “How Slow the Wind” for soprano and string quartet, concluding with Robert Schumann’s warm and lyrical String Quartet No. 2.

Following the concert, please consider adding on our informal Afterparty dinner - a light standing meal and wine tasting on the terrace, with a stunning view of the valley. A great chance to mingle with the performers and raise a glass with Reena!