Jason Love, cello, and Rachel Franklin, piano, will tailor the programs below for the needs of any concert series and include additional musicians for various works as needed. For information regarding booking the Franklin-Love Duo, visit the Contact page.
British-born pianist Rachel Franklin is much in demand as performer, music lecturer, and teacher. As a Pro Musicis International Award winner, she gave her solo debuts in Carnegie Recital Hall, New York, and Jordan Hall, Boston. The Boston Globe enthused about her "beautiful differentiations of color, touch and texture" and described a performance on her solo debut CD as "not inferior...to the recorded performances by Cortot and Rubinstein." She has also given European Pro Musicis solo debuts in Paris and Rome. At the Wigmore Hall, London, where she has given several recitals, critics applauded her "stunning individuality," "exquisite dynamic control," and "amazing power and solidity of technique." The Washington Post has praised her "cool-headed bravura and panache" and the Baltimore Sun lauded "a flawless crystalline technique, and warmth and electricity in her playing." Recent successes include concertos with the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Amadeus Orchestra, the Washington Sinfonietta, the Symphony of the Potomac, the Piedmont Symphony, and others. For more information about Ms. Franklin, visit www.rachelfranklin.com.
LOOKING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK
Debussy: Cello Sonata
Connesson Disco Toccatta
Connesson: The Songs of Agartha
Intermission
Weiser: The Stronger Child
Brahms: Cello Sonata No. 2
Ancient stories and contemporary ideas collide in this program of historical masterworks and contemporary pieces. Brahms showed how progressive and fresh the "old-fashioned" sonata could be, while Debussy looked back to the model of Couperin to fashion a modern classic. An ancient power struggle for control of the Roman Empire erupts in Mark Weiser's contemporary setting for electric guitar and voice. And we explore the rich, flamboyant new music of Gullaume Connesson delving into the myth of an ancient city in one work and modern dance music on the other.
STOLEN GOODS
Schumann: Fantasy Pieces
Ravel: “Kaddish” from Deux melodies hébraïques
Brahms: Violin Sonata No. 3
Intermission
[Piano solo]
Stravinsky: Suite Italienne
Paganini: Moses Variations
What doesn't sound wonderful on cello? The works on this unique program started out in different instrumentations, but time has shown how perfectly suited to the voices of cello and piano they are.
BEETHOVEN AND PROKOFIEV
Paganini: Moses Variations
Beethoven: Cello Sonata No. 3
Intermission
Simpson: Vistas of Rome
Prokofiev: Cello Sonata
Two of the great masterworks for cello and piano come together on one program! Written around the time of his Fifth Symphony, Beethoven's Third Sonata is a gem of his celebrated "middle period." Prokofiev however, spurred by his friendship with the virtuoso Mstislav Rostropovich, turned to the cello sonata at the end of his life and created one of his most inspired chamber works. Catholic University composer Andrew Earle Simpson gives us a tour of Italy's famous city, while Paganini's Italian style rounds out the concert. [Subject to funding, schedule, and location, Dr. Simpson may be available for the performance.]
POETRY IN MOTION (IN DEVELOPMENT)
Kahane: Little Sleep's Head Sprouting Hair in the Moonlight
Intermission
Rachmaninoff: Cello Sonata
Kahane, whose music straddles the worlds of classical and popular song, creates a beautiful and energetic work for cello, piano, and voice based on the poetry of Galway Kinnell. Rachmaninoff's unique gift for melody is on full display in this tuneful sonata.