A warm-blooded chamber music program by members of the Phion Orchestra, featuring music by and inspired by Johannes Brahms.

String Sextet of Lost Love

Featuring music by and centered around Johannes Brahms, who remains one of the most illustrious figures in chamber music thanks to his versatile body of work for small ensembles. The program features his String Sextet No. 1, a beautifully sonorous work by a young Brahms, steeped in the theme of lost love. Shortly before composing it, his relationship with the gifted young soprano Agathe von Siebold had come to an end. This history resonates through every note, as fiery passion and wistful melancholy intertwine—almost as if he secretly relished a touch of heartbreak.

New Work by Phion’s Composer in Residence Aftab Darvishi

Throughout his life, Brahms maintained a deep friendship with Clara Schumann, one of the greatest pianists of her era. She composed three exquisitely sensitive Romances for violin and piano. In this program, you will hear these three miniatures in a colorful new setting, with the piano part arranged for two wind instruments and five strings. Phion’s composer in residence, Aftab Darvishi, utilizes this same instrumentation for her latest composition. She finds ample inspiration in this program’s themes—from Brahms’s Romanticism and the legacy of female composers to warm friendships and the duality of cherished and lost love. Her music serves as the perfect bridge for this concert.