Miguel del Aguila, Music Director
Ventura County's premier chamber choral ensemble.
The Ojai Camerata Winter program, March 12 and 13, is almost exclusively music of Franz Liszt, and was inspired by the serendipitous discovery of a rare original Liszt manuscript entitled Ave Verum.
Ventura residents Newton & Vonise Friedman were in New York 1991 and visited an autograph dealer. Vonise found a Liszt manuscript which she purchased and brought home. Last year she showed it to Miguel del Aguila, who after playing it on the piano, asked if it would be possible to get a copy of the score to perform with the Ojai Camerata. The Friedmans agreed and kindly accepted a request to exhibit the original manuscript during the Ojai Camerata concert. Inspired by this piece, Miguel has planned an all Liszt concert to present some of Liszt's virtually unknown choral works.
Like many works of Liszt's last period, Ave Verum was written for the small chorus of the Roman monastery where Liszt took religious orders and spent his last days in seclusion. Many of these works were never performed outside of the monastery. Liszt’s contemporaries thought that the once brilliant and dazzling composer-pianist was now senile and held no regard for these choral works. Today's musicologists believe otherwise.
Our program includes several other works from this late period of Franz Liszt including the Kyrie, Agnus Dei and Miserere from his Missa Choralis Pater Noster, and excerpts from his totally unknown masterpiece Requiem. The program also includes some of Liszt's best known piano works, which will be performed by virtuoso pianist Ornela Erwin. These works are Mephisto Waltz, Liebestraum and Un Sospiro. The concert ends with excerpts by a 17-year-old composer who wrote at the same time and place (Italy) as did Liszt: The young, and then unknown G. Puccini composed his Missa di Gloria while he was still a student.
This unusual program of Liszt works can be enjoyed Friday, March 12 at the Church of Religious Science at 101 S. Laurel in Ventura. It can also be heard Saturday, March 13 at the Ojai Presbyterian Church at 304 N. Foothill in Ojai. Both concerts begin at 8:00 P.M. Tickets are available from all Ojai Camerata members or at the door for the suggested donation of $12 adults and $9 students and seniors. For information call 805-289-4890.