Contiguglias perform at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Auburn

Tickets for the Contiguglias’ October 26 2008 Auburn concert are $15 for adults and
$5 for students. A $25 series ticket includes Simone Dinnerstein’s concert on
April 19, 2009. For tickets and information, call 315-253-5288 or visit
www.westminsterauburn.org

Two days before entering Wold War II, on September 1, 1939, Britain entered darkness. A complete blackout was enforced that effected lives in every way. As bombs fell on London, cultural institutions took a toll. Theatres and cinemas were closed and the paintings were removed from London’s National Gallery.

Concerned about the blackout’s effect on Londoners’ morale, pianist Dame Myra Hess initiated a series of lunchtime concerts of classical music at the National Gallery of Art. With the support of Director Sir Kenneth Clark and fellow musicians like Howard Ferguson, the concerts ran for 6 1/2 years, beginning on Tuesday, October 10, 1939. The 1,698 concerts became a national institution, included a lunch canteen, and attracted listeners from all walks of life.

This  November 25 the National Gallery pays tribute to the artists and events of that time with Dame Myra Hess Day.  Recognizing the 90th anniversary of Remembrance Day and the centenary of the birth of Hess’ collaborator, composer/pianist Howard Ferguson, the event includes a talk and music honoring those artists. The featured event will be a lunchtime concert in the same room of the wartime concerts  performed by duo-pianists John and Richard Contiguglia of New York City. The Contiguglia twins were students of Myra Hess and they will include a composition by Ferguson on their program.

Central New Yorkers will have a rare opportunity to hear the London program in its entirety on October 26 when the Contiguglias perform at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Auburn. The 3:00 pm concert is presented by the Adams Foundation Piano Series and hosted by the Cayuga County Arts Council and Westminster Church. The Contiguglias are natives of Auburn and have been instrumental in shaping the Adams Foundation into a national presence which brings classical pianists of international stature to small cities throughout the U.S.

For more about the London concert, visit:
http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/what/events/nov/2511_myrahessday.htm. This web
page includes links related topics, ranging from the November 25 program to the
wartime history of the gallery.