Washington High School sophomores in David Penwell’s “Principles of Marketing” course (from left: Ava Hines, Braden Warner and Hunter Mick) pose beside their poster to promote the classical music concert subsidized by the Perse E. Harlow Trust.
Courtesy photos
Astralis Chamber Ensemble, making its third Fayette County appearance on Sept. 18, 2023, at First Presbyterian Church (across from the Washington C.H. post office), will feature flute, cello, harpsichord and violin in “Baroque Legends.”
Courtesy photos
WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE — Astralis Chamber Ensemble—a group of award-winning, crowd-pleasing, internationally-acclaimed professional musicians—has performed well-received classical music concerts twice before in Washington C.H., and will be returning again at 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 18, to First Presbyterian Church.
This particular program will include works by legendary composers from the grandiose Baroque period (approximately 1600-1750) and is appropriately titled “Baroque Legends.”
The program’s format is trios, quartets and solos that will be performed by Angela Massey (flute), co-founder of Astralis Chamber Ensemble; Laura Usiskin (cello); Alexandra Dunbar (harpsichord); and Paolo Dara (violin). The majority of the composers to be featured will be the big names familiar to many in the audience: Germans such as Georg Phillipp Telemann and Johann Sebastian Bach; Italians such as Arcangelo Corelli and Antonio Vivaldi.
Because Astralis believes strongly in musical education, there is no charge for students, who are strongly encouraged to attend the approximately-one-hour concert, which will probably turn out to be a unique event in 2023 for Fayette County. Adults will pay $10 at the church’s wider, lower doors on Hinde Street.
The major costs are borne by the Perse E. Harlow Memorial Trust. Harlow, a culture-loving local business owner and longtime treasurer of First Presbyterian Church, had stated in his will that he had established a trust “to help provide quality classical or semi-classical entertainment in Washington C.H. and Fayette County.”
One of the trustees is local educator and musician David Penwell, whose Washington High School sophomore students in marketing started the new school year by tackling a hands-on project of designing and distributing posters around town for the concert.
