Welcome to our November Newsletter!
Hilma af Klimt Group X, Altarpiece, no 2 1915 (Art Gallery of New South Wales)
It’s hard to believe Thanksgiving is right around the corner. It’s been a year full of challenges and unprecedented upheaval for the collective soul and health of our nation. However, with the arts, we are able to find both joy and solace in a shared community experience, sometimes simply in the fleeting moment of a single note of music. It is this deep belief in community spirit through music which helps Sarasa design its unique programming for our public concert series and ‘Music Unlocked’ presentations for incarcerated youth.
As the season of giving approaches ever so quickly, please do consider supporting Sarasa in our quest to bring music to those who are marginalized and forgotten by society.
November concert-set recap:
Sarasa assembled a fine team of musicians to explore an overarching theme of “Sweet Sleep” in our recent November program. With the sterling Kristen Watson, soprano, we traversed several centuries and musical styles to consider sleep in many of its permutations through music. For those of you who could not make the performances, we are delighted to be able to stream the Follen Church concert for a limited time, starting Sunday, November 30th at 7:30pm.
Some reactions from the audience:
"Sarasa is a national treasure, especially in these punishing times."
"Thank you for another nourishing concert and your splendid notes.”
"Your performance was literally miraculous."
Inspired by the many states of slumber and repose, the program includes gorgeous vocal and instrumental works by John Dowland, Thomas Arne, Eric Whitacre, Antonia Bembo, Georg Muffat, J.B. Bach & J.S. Bach, as well as a Norwegian traditional arranged for string quartet.
With Kristen Watson, soprano, Elizabeth Blumenstock, Rebecca Nelson, violins; Jenny Stirling, viola; Jennifer Morsches, Timothy Merton, cellos; Michael Leopold, lute/theorbo; Michael Beattie, organ
Free streaming of “Sweet Sleep” premiers on Sunday, November 30th at 7:30pm! It will be available to view on our website and YouTube channel for 8 weeks. Why not enjoy an evening of uplifting music to accompany your post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich?!
A new audience favorite: introducing Johann Bernhard Bach
Extract from the score of J.B. Bach’s Ouverture-Suite Nr. 3 in E minor
The unfamiliar music of Johann Bernhard Bach (1676-1749), second cousin to Johann Sebastian, turned out to be a surprise audience favorite on Sarasa’s November program. Of the few published works that survive, his four Ouverture-Suites stand out as compositions of refined style and feature multiple layers of textures. J.B. Bach fashioned them on the French-style overture model and its subsequent dance movements championed by his mentor and colleague, Georg Philipp Telemann. Johann Sebastian admired these works of his cousin very much. He copied out the parts by hand and performed them with the university's Collegium musicum, which he directed during his tenure in Leipzig. These pieces also inspired him to compose his own set of four orchestral suites for varying instrumental forces. Johann Bernhard’s orchestral suites were published posthumously; the score was prepared by the copyist S. Hering, who was the copyist of several of Johann Sebastian’s instrumental works as well, including his Orchestral Suite No. 2 and the Double Violin Concerto in D minor.
‘music unlocked’ news:
During our week of preparations for “Sweet Sleep,” Sarasa brought excerpts of the program to two facilities in Dorchester, MA: Maripsosa for girls and Suffolk Detention for guys. Both presentations were moving in their own way, and resonated palpably with each group in how they encouraged each other to participate, in how supportive they were of each other’s daring to share their own reactions to the music —and especially through their singing, dancing, conducting us, listening intently and respectfully, and showing such appreciation for our music even though it was a new kind for many of them. Some memorable moments included one girl exclaiming after we finished a fast-paced movement of J.B. Bach, “Y’all didn’t leave a breadcrumb on the floor!” Or when one youth leapt up to conduct us, he looked over at Michael Beattie on keyboard, and cried out, “Hey, guy at the piano! Are you ready?!” The staff at each facility showed fascination at the whole process and were supportive throughout. For each member of Sarasa, the kids reminded us that music can heal and create common ground for all.
Backstage antics:
Ever wonder what happens back stage when performers are prepping before a concert or taking a breather during the intermission? So many have their built-in customs to help concentrate or ward off any nerves. Famously, one member of the Juilliard String Quartet would eat 5 bananas before a concert!
Some stretch out — such as pre-concert yoga, beautifully executed here by Timothy Merton, cello & Zenas Hsu, violin before a performance of Schubert’s Quintet in C major a couple years ago.
Some “relax" by simultaneously juggling and eating an apple, caught on camera here with the talented violinist/singer/composer, Rebecca Nelson, most recently during the “Sweet Sleep” program.
Gesina Ter Borch A Man Throwing a Ball and a Woman ca.1652-53 (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam)
Remedios Varo The Juggler (The Magician) 1956 (The Museum of Modern Art, New York)
up next:
To kick off the new year in 2026, Sarasa will celebrate patronage in the arts, highlighting the music-loving patron Prince Lobkowitz (1772-1819), who commissioned chamber works by Haydn, Beethoven and E.A. Förster. Mark your calendar and save the date: January 9-11, 2026!
Friday, January 9, 2026 at 7pm at Brattleboro Music Center, Brattleboro VT (tickets at bmcvt.org)
Saturday, January 10, 2026 at 7pm at Friends Meeting House, Cambridge
Sunday, January 11, 2026 at 3:30pm at Follen Church, Lexington
“This Prince was as kindhearted as a child and the most foolish music enthusiast. He played music from dusk to dawn and spent a fortune on musicians. Innumerable musicians gathered in his house, whom he treated regally.” Chamber music by Beethoven, Haydn & Förster, patronized by Lobkowitz.
With Jesse Irons, Julia Glenn, violins; Anna Griffis, Emily Dahl, violas; Timothy Merton, Jennifer Morsches, cellos
