Sunday, November 1, 2026, 2:00 pm

Guest Musicians: Yi Zhao, violin; Casey Rafn, piano

Take a journey through time and space as composers reckon with their musical lineage and legacy. 20th-century composers Quincy Porter and Manuel Ponce experiment with the neo-Baroque in form and instrumentation; Caroline Shaw pays musical tribute to the architecture of the Dumbarton Oaks estate in Washington DC – a venue that proved equally inspiring to Igor Stravinsky. The program concludes with an undoubted masterwork of the chamber music repertoire, Brahms’ monumental piano quintet, featuring guest musicians Yi Zhao and Casey Rafn.

Quincy Porter Little Trio

Manuel Ponce Petite Suite dans le Style Ancien

Caroline Shaw Plan and Elevation

Johannes Brahms Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34

Sunday, January 31, 2027, 2:00 pm

Guest Musicians: Steve Cole, saxophone, and Miryana Moteva, piano

In January, the Isles Ensemble welcomes two guest artists: pianist Miryana Moteva and saxophonist Steve Cole. Three iconic chamber works that feature a wind player will be performed: Mozart’s Oboe Quartet, selections from Max Bruch’s Eight Pieces for Viola, Clarinet, and Piano, and Sergei Prokofiev’s Overture on Hebrew Themes. Audiences will be surprised and delighted to hear these works played on the saxophone instead of an oboe or clarinet. The program concludes with Dvorak’s soaringly beautiful Piano Trio No. 2 in G minor.

W.A. Mozart Quartet for Oboe and Strings, K. 370

Antonín Dvořák Piano Trio No. 2 in G minor, Op. 26

Max Bruch Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, Op. 83

Sergei Prokofiev Overture on Hebrew Themes for Clarinet, String Quartet, and Piano, Op. 34

Sunday, March 7, 2027, 2:00 pm

Guest Musicians: Yi Zhao, violin, and Mary Jo Gothmann, piano

In recognition of the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death in March 1827, The Isles Ensemble will present works from three distinct periods of this amazing composer’s life. The program begins with the rarely heard C Major Piano Quartet – composed when Beethoven was just fourteen! – then the monumental Piano Trio in E-flat. The second half features one of Beethoven’s last and arguably greatest compositions, the String Quartet in C-sharp minor, Op. 131.

Please join us before the concert at 1:15 pm for an informal discussion of what makes Opus 131 so extraordinary.

Beethoven Piano Quartet in C Major, WoO 36 (1785)

Beethoven Piano Trio in E-flat Major, Op. 70, No. 2 (1808)

Beethoven String Quartet in C-sharp minor, Op. 131 (1826)

Sunday, May 2, 2027, 2:00

Guest Musician: Herdís Guðmundsdóttir, violin

This program celebrates the cinematic and atmospheric, with music spanning over four hundred years. Henry Purcell’s Fantasias evoke a sparse Renaissance world, with open harmonies and resonant textures, leading seamlessly into the work of contemporary British composer Sally Beamish. The King’s Alchemist explores early modern dance forms to paint a picture of 16th century Scotland in a series of movements inspired by an old French folksong. Korngold’s String Quartet No. 3 exemplifies the most sumptuous cinematic music of the 20th century, embracing passionate melodies, poignant harmonies, and stalwart romanticism. The program – and the 26-27 season – closes with a late and lively viola quintet by Felix Mendelssohn.