The Napa Valley Chamber Orchestra is “Going for Baroque” at their next concert Sunday, Dec. 11, at 1:30 p.m. at the Justin Siena High School’s Siena Hall, 4026 Maher St., Napa.
This Baroque festival will feature four violin soloists — Matthew Vincent, Cody Alves, Kyle Croft, and Mark Hodgson — cellist Tess Van Wagner, and harpsichordist Violet Grgich.
The program will open with Telemann’s “Don Quixote,” with narration provided by Scott Van Wagner. Purcell’s “Abdelazer Suite” will feature a narration by Gerhard Haas, violist and program note writer. Also on the program will be Handel’s “Concerto Grosso” and Corelli’s “Concerto Grosso. The program will close with the Ukrainian carol by Leontovych — the lovely Carol of the Bells.
The orchestra is comprised of 21 local, professional, semi-professional, and experienced amateur string players. The orchestra is conducted by the concertmaster Matthew Vincent, who both plays and guides the orchestra in its interpretation and dynamics.
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Vincent is both a gifted violinist as well as conductor. He made his first public appearance at New York’s Steinway Hall at the age of 9, and has since performed in North America, Europe and the Far East as a soloist and as a member of numerous chamber groups and orchestras. He regularly plays in the Oakland Symphony, the Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera Orchestra, in chamber groups, and as a soloist.
Harpsichordist Violet Grgich, who is president and CEO of Grgich Hills Winery, received her Master of Music degree from the Indiana University School of Music. She has widely performed in the Napa Valley and beyond. Multi-talented, she plays multiple baroque instruments and even the accordion. On the blending of her two careers of winemaking and music, she says, “Wine and music bring people together and make them happy, which makes my job extraordinarily fulfilling.”
Violin soloist and principal second violin with the orchestra, Mark Hodgson, is both a culinary expert — he has worked as the pastry chef instructor in the Culinary Arts and Hospitality Studies program at the City College of San Francisco — and an outstanding violinist. He has played in many orchestras, including the Napa Valley Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony where he served as c-concertmaster, and the UC Berkeley Symphony Orchestra, and played in the Queertetto string quartet.
Soloist and principal cellist of the orchestra, Tess Van Wagner, studied music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, University of Washington, and Northwestern University. She directed orchestral programs in Belgium and the Chicago area for 30 years, as well as serving as principal cellist with the Waukegan and North Suburban Symphonies. Recently retired from teaching, she has been performing with many local orchestras — most recently the Seattle Philharmonic, Symphony Napa Valley, Vallejo Symphony, Solano Symphony, and Northwest Symphony.
Cody Alves and Lyle Croft, two younger, but equally talented violinists, will also be featured.
The orchestra was founded by Lora Levin, assistant concertmaster, orchestra personnel manager, and vice president of the board of directors. A well known Napa violinist and teacher, she played for many years in the Napa Symphony and in Symphony Napa Valley, as well as in many other orchestras and chamber music ensembles.
All of the concerts are free to the community thanks to generous grants from the Gasser Foundation and Napa Valley Arts Council and contributions from the community. The orchestra is completely managed by volunteers. Grants and donations pay for venues, sheet music, printing and small honoraria to the professional section leaders. The orchestra is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization, so all donations are tax deductible.