PORT ANGELES — Two concerts remain for Music on the Strait this season.
“If you’ve been meaning to check out the festival but haven’t made it out yet, now’s the chance to see and hear something truly special right here in Port Angeles,” festival co-Artistic Director James Garlick said.
The festival, which was founded in 2018 by Garlick and Richard O’Neill, brings classical musicians from all over the world to perform on the Olympic Peninsula.
After opening the festival last week with concerts from pianist Jeremy Denk and violinist Stefan Jackiw, the music will continue tonight and Saturday.
Tonight’s sold-out show at Maier Hall will feature O’Neill, a Sequim native, performing American Haiku, a new duo for viola and cello by the festival’s 2024 composer-in-residence and Kronos Quartet cellist Paul Wiancko. The performance also will feature O’Neill in works by Dohnanyi and Bach.
A free live-stream will be available at musiconthestrait.com and on Facebook.
There are still tickets available for Saturday’s Festival Finale at Field Arts & Events Hall that will feature world-famous pianist Joyce Yang playing solo preludes by Rachmaninov and Dvorak’s “Dumky” Piano Trio. Efe Baltacıgil will return for Wiancko’s inventive new work for solo cello, piano quartet and glockenspiel: Closed Universe.
“Closed Universe is a piece of mine based on escapist fantasy and a debilitating addiction to the news cycle,” Wiancko said. “That duality can be heard in the music as these chaotic, almost demonic textures that melt away to reveal more temporal, shimmering moments of comfort. The piece as a whole is a search for optimism in distressing times. Do we find it? Come find out.”
Winacko described being selected as this year’s composer-in-residence as “an honor.”
“Not only does the title signify that folks will be rehearsing and performing my music — it is also an invitation … to share my own musical hopes, dreams and philosophies with the festival’s incredible artists,” he said. “I’m thrilled to get to perform in the festival as a cellist as well — to be firing on all artistic cylinders is a truly wonderful feeling.”
This will be Wiancko’s first year participating in Music on the Strait, and though rehearsals and performances will keep him busy, he plans to enjoy as much of the Olympic Peninsula as time allows.
“My current plan is to try to squeeze in a fly-fishing session between rehearsals,” he said.
Tickets for Saturday’s finale are available at musiconthestrait.com, where the concert also will be live-streamed for free. Discounted tickets are $10 for students and $5 for children attending alongside adults. A pay-what-you-can program for the finale will start at $5.
“It’s a really exciting end to our 2024 season,” Garlick said. “If you came out last week and experienced the fun and excitement, come back for more. And if it’s your first time, please come and check it out. We’d especially love to see families experience the magic of world-class chamber music right here in Port Angeles.”
