AN UNFORGETTABLE EVENING … with Sir Willard White & Brodsky Quartet
the history
In this unmissable project, Brodsky Quartet & Sir Willard White pay tribute to the relationship between Frank Sinatra and the Hollywood String Quartet which resulted in the epoch-defining 1957 album Close to You.
“Some years ago we decided that we wanted to pay tribute to and formally acknowledge the work of the great Hollywood String Quartet. It took the form of 3 concerts; two of the programmes focused on their inspirational recordings of certain classical masterpieces but in the third, we chose to celebrate the work they did with Frank Sinatra and in particular the extraordinary Close to You album.”
Jamaican-born bass Sir Willard White is one of the great all-round musical entertainers of our era, as dazzling when performing Songbook standards as he is on the stages of the world’s great opera houses.His recital also includes classic American art-songs, evergreen pop standards, and a sprinkling of surprises.
“You can imagine how thrilled we were when the legendary Sir Willard White agreed to join us, not to impersonate Old Blue Eyes but to take a stroll through the American Song Book. We have had so much fun putting together this inspiring collection of songs (in new arrangements by Paul Cassidy) and cannot wait to share them with you.”
AN
UNFORGETTABLE
EVENING
PROGRAM
Aaron Copland (arr. P. Cassidy and J. Thomas) – Hoedown
George Gershwin (arr. P. Cassidy) – Excerpts from Porgy and Bess
Trad. (arr. Benjamin Britten/P. Cassidy) – The Ash Grove; The Foggy Dew
Franz Schubert (arr. J. Thomas) – Death and the Maiden
Franz Schubert (arr J. Thomas) – The Trout
Jules Massenet (arr. P. Cassidy) – Élégie
Samuel Barber – Dover Beach
– interval –
Benjamin Britten – Poème
Aaron Copland (arr P. Cassidy)–Long Time Ago; The Dodger
Jenkins/Mercer (arr I. Belton) – P. S. I Love You
Cole Porter (arr. P. Cassidy) –Blow, Gabriel, Blow
Jerome Kern (arr. J. Thomas) –They Didn’t Believe Me
Hoffman/Lampl/Livingstone (arr. A. Haveron) –Close To You
Lord Burgess (arr. P. Cassidy) –Jamaica Farewell
Anka/Revaux/Thibault (arr. J. Thomas) –My Way
Total duration: cca 1h 50’ (included pause)
