On Thursday, Nov. 13, as I was making my daily trek through the Winton Evans Bridge for Laboratory Sciences—commonly referred to as the Bridge—I decided to stop in the atrium to see my peers perform. The Bridge was buzzing, filled with students who had just finished class and customers waiting for their daily matcha at The Brew, as music students set up for “Music on the Bridge.”
“Music on the Bridge” is a concert series that happens every semester with members of the Vassar College Chamber Music Program preparing short programs for friends, faculty and other passersby in the Bridge.
The Chamber Music Program, led by Senior Lecturer in Music and Director of Orchestral Activities Eduardo Navega, is an opportunity for student classical musicians to be placed in small ensembles and learn new repertoire. Students audition for the program at the beginning of the semester, and Navega places them in groups based on their experience. The groups play at a variety of different campus events, culminating in a recital that all groups perform in at the end of the semester.
Every Thursday in November and April, students from the Chamber Music Program participate in “Music on the Bridge.” Navega stated that this concert series has been a tradition since the Bridge was completed in 2016. “Because this is just next door to Skinner Hall, we decided to make our mark in this building,” Navega explained. “This, for them, is very important because they have an opportunity to perform in front of people in preparation for our final recital of the semester.”
This semester, the Chamber Music Program has nine groups, and each will get the chance to perform in the Bridge before the end of the year. When organizing concerts, Navega focuses on choosing repertoire that would highlight the students’ talent and compatibility with their peers. Navega said, “Today’s recital, coincidentally, was two modern-ish composers, Debussy and Prokofiev. But normally…we have a very eclectic program. It depends on when the groups are ready.”
The first group to perform consisted of violinist Lorraine Wong ’29, cellist Luke Cheng ’26 and pianist Ben Wolfson ’28. Wong, Cheng and Wolfson played the first movement of French composer Claude Debussy’s Piano Trio in G Major. This piece features a flowing set of melodies that are passed between the piano, violin and cello, as well as seamless modulations between different keys. Debussy’s impressionist style worked well for this venue, as the gentle yet complex sound of his composition provided a perfect accompaniment to the Bridge’s usual hustle and bustle.
Next, oboist Madeleine Stewart ’26, clarinetist Nico Vidali ’29, violinist Grant Urquhart ’29, violist Anthony Orsi ’27 and bassist Chunyi Quan ’29 presented the first movement of Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev’s Quintet, Opus 39. This piece follows a theme and variation format, with the central motif of the piece first being introduced by the oboe, then repetitions, transpositions and fragmentations being played by the other instruments throughout. There are then two variations presented, shifting the tempo and the harmonic structure slightly, then a reinstatement of the theme. Stewart, Vidali, Urquhart, Orsi and Quan gave a captivating performance, and I enjoyed following the trajectory of the composition.
“Music on the Bridge” is a unique way for students to gain experience performing in a more casual setting. Navega stated, “This actually is, again, kind of a practice for them. They’re practicing playing in front of people. Even though the performers are closer in distance to the audience, it’s more informal… But it prepares them for a formal experience that’s going to happen at the end of the semester for the final recital.”
Throughout the concert, the music was accompanied by the hum of students’ conversations and the buzz of The Brew’s espresso machines. As the students played, people passing through the Bridge often stopped to enjoy the music before continuing with their day. “Music on the Bridge” has proven itself to be not only a chance to perform, but also a way for more members of the Vassar community to gain exposure to classical music in a more intimate setting.
“This is important because we are developing a new audience: people who are not used to listening to this kind of music,” said Navega. “I think it’s important in this sense that we are actually reaching people that we are not normally. So that’s an initiative that happens in music programs where we take the music to the audience rather than just expecting the audience to come to us.”
The final installation of this semester’s “Music on the Bridge” will happen at 12 p.m. on Dec. 4.