RICHARD WAGNER
Tristan und Isolde, WWV 90
Prelude & Liebestod

Lohengrin, WWV 75
Prelude to Act 1 & Prelude to Act 3

– 15-minute intermission –

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN
String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat major, Op. 130
V. Cavatina – Adagio molto expressivo
VI. Finale -Allegro

RICHARD STRAUSS
Vier Letzte Lieder, TrV 296
I. Frühling
II. September
III. Beim Schlafengehen
IV. Im Abendrot

Humanity’s enduring, seemingly morbid fascination with death, is delicately balanced by a profound longing for transcendence. We sense this especially when thinking of our artist-heroes. Every detail surrounding their demise, every “last,” becomes evermore noteworthy — their last days, last words, last works.

Often, we are moved by the profundity of composers’ final works, prompting us to ponder: Did they sense the approaching end? Did they sense a ‘beyond’?

Concluding a season of “Flowing Resonances” and 20th Anniversary celebrations, join us for an exquisite hour of “Sunset Cavatine”— little songs that capture the bittersweet and heart-wrenchingly confessional moments of life’s farewells. As we reflect on the journey thus far, much has come to past, yet an equal measure of anticipation awaits.