Strains of Mozart on a country evening

Mozart for harpsichord, violin and flute featured at WCM’s Music in the Barn

BETHEL, NY — Mozart’s music for harpsichord, violin and flute will provide the centerpiece for the Weekend of Chamber Music’s (WCM) annual benefit, Music in the Barn, on June 20 at 6:00 p.m.

The setting for the fundraiser is a country home overlooking rolling meadows, lush gardens and a sparkling pond. A freshly prepared buffet supper with wine will be served al fresco, followed by chamber music in a renovated barn. After the concert, guests will stroll back to the candlelit terrace for dessert.

Kenneth Hamrick and his harpsichord return to perform, joined by Judith Pearce and Sunghae Anna Lim.

“One doesn’t hear Mozart very often on the harpsichord now,” said Pearce. “But it was a common performance practice during his lifetime. In fact, the harpsichord is a wonderful partner in these sonatas, and the three of us are seriously excited!”

The New York Times wrote that Ken Hamrick gave “A thrilling performance... sensational playing with a refined elegance.” He has performed with soloists and ensembles from the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera, and has collaborated as music director and harpsichord soloist with tap legend Savion Glover and the Limón Dance Company on projects involving baroque concertos and jazz improvisation.

Sunghae Anna Lim played her first concert with the Honolulu Symphony at the age of five, and was educated at Harvard and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. Lim is a founding member of the award-winning Laurel Trio, and violinist with the New Millenium Ensemble, with which she has premiered and recorded more than 50 new works by living composers. In solo performance, the Boston Herald called hers a “tone of silvery purity.”

The great conductor Sir Simon Rattle once said of Judith Pearce that “her playing is searching and characterful, which makes her almost one of an endangered species among flautists.” Her work encompasses collaborations with some of this era’s most notable musicians, including Peter Maxwell Davies, Kathleen Battle and Cleo Laine.

This annual benefit supports WCM’s school programs and work in the Delaware Valley. WCM’s celebrated musicians have coached student musicians in the area’s school bands and chamber music ensembles since 1996.

Reservations for Music in the Barn are required in advance, and cost $75 per person. Directions to the private home will be given when reservations are made. For more information call 845/932-8527 or 718/638-8962.