David Kalhous (piano) & Ben Sung (violin)
Violinist Benjamin Sung and pianist David Kalhous present a program of some of the most idiosyncratic works for violin and piano, featuring Vera Ivanova’s newly commissioned work for the duo.
The program opens with Leoš Janáček’s turbulent and folk-inspired 1914 Sonata. Vera Ivanova’s On Breaking up the Light explores the composer’s fascination with different aspects of light and how it transforms our day, carries us through our lives, and brightens up our existence.
The second half will open with the aphoristic and surreal Tre Pezzi by Hungarian composer György Kurtág, whose centenary we celebrate this year. Franz Schubert’s Fantasy in C Major, perhaps the most challenging work in the piano-violin repertoire, will bring the program to a close.
Florida State University professors David Kalhous (piano) and Ben Sung (violin) received a grant from Florida State University to commission 6 composers’ new works for their program titled “Extensions”. One of these composers is Chapman University faculty member Vera Ivanova.
PROGRAM
Sonata for violin and piano by Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)
On breaking up the light (2025) by Vera Ivanova (World Premiere)
Tre pezzi per violino e pianoforte op. 14e by György Kurtág (b. 1926)
Fantaisie in C Major for piano and violin, D 934 by Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Tap Images for Complete Bios
