Shalini Vijayan, violin, and Aron Kallay, piano

Grammy nominees Shalini Vijayan and Aron Kallay tackle Brahms’ epic d-Minor Violin Sonata, along with works from the 20th and 21st centuries by Somei Satoh, Donald Womack, Emma Lou Diemer, and Juhi Bansal.

Sunday, February 9, 2025, 7 p.m.
Drinkward Recital Hall

Japanese composer Somei Satoh originally composed Birds in Warped Time for the Japanese flute (shakuhachi) and the Japanese harp (koto). The composer made his own transcription of the piece for violin and piano, Birds in Warped Time II. The long, undulating tones of the violin clearly mimic the pitch variations characteristic of the shakuhachi with slow gliding between pitches and the use of varying widths and speed of the left hand vibrato. The rhythmic patterning in the piano creates a simultaneous feeling of movement and stillness clearly representing Satoh's origins as a minimalist composer of the 1970's.

Before Spring was written in early March, 1997. Even in Southern California spring seems to take a long time in coming, although the promise and growing evidence appear by late January. Some of the suspense and anticipation of the full flowering of the season may be reflected in this work for violin and piano.

The title “Before Spring” did not occur to me until after I had written the work, nor was I writing “program music” related to spring, but rather working with ideas and structure and the colors of the two instruments. However, the season no doubt does have an unconscious influence on one’s writing, and the title seemed appropriate (Emma Lou Diemer).

At its core An Infinite Moment is about paradox. It is both simple and profound, transparent and mysterious. It is at once tinged with joy and sadness, and suggests both permanence and ephemerality. It breathes deeply, drawing in the air of ancient mountains, cool autumn days, the warmth of the sun, things that cannot last but will always be there. It is lyrical, soaring music that one should lose oneself in, if only briefly.

Whip the Devil Round the Stump

“To Whip the Devil Round the Stump”, verb. phr. (American).
                  -To enjoy the sweets of wickedness and yet escape the penalty.

The Violin Sonata No.3 in D Minor by German composer Johannes Brahms is a work widely beloved by audiences and performers alike. Published in 1889, it was dedicated to his colleague Hans von Bulow, a pianist-conductor who performed Brahms’ compositions regularly and frequently programmed them in the repertory of the superb court orchestra at Meiningen. Brahms had the habit of escaping the hot city of Vienna during the summers - specifically to his flower laden villa on the shore of Lake Thun in the summer of 1888, where he completed the third violin sonata. As an extreme self-critic, Brahms was known to be persistently secretive about his drafts and incomplete works, and he destroyed almost all of them. In fact, it took twenty seven years and four discarded attempts since his first dip into the violin sonata genre before he was satisfied enough to publish his first one in 1880. Hence, the third and last of Brahms’ violin sonatas is considered a work of his utmost maturity.

Featuring dark passionate themes and a greater integration of piano and violin, the thematic material of the first movement is shared equally by both instruments. A lyrical yet agitated first subject is presented by long tones in the violin, and the piano introduces a sweet arching second subject that is contrived from a motif of step wise motion followed by dotted rhythms. Brahms then characteristically expands the main thematic material extensively to construct the development, recapitulation and coda with various modulations and evolvement. The second movement is one of Brahms’ most heartfelt creations; a simple form with touching harmonies and warm textures. The sentimental third movement found in place of a traditional fun scherzo. While it may be light and quick, it consists of a quiet intensity and mystery that is woven into adept motivic development. This culminates in the explosive fourth movement that showcases constant musical exchanges and conversation between both instruments. It reminisces the somber expressiveness of the opening movement, presented with a new drive and burst of passion.

Shalini Vijayan, deemed "a vibrant violinist" by Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times is an established performer and collaborator on both coasts. Always an advocate for modern music, Vijayan was a founding member and Principal Second Violin of Kristjan Jarvi's Absolute Ensemble, having recorded several albums with them including 2001 Grammy nominee, Absolution. Vijayan is also a founding member of the Lyris Quartet, one of Los Angeles’ most beloved ensembles.  With Lyris, she has performed regularly at Walt Disney Concert Hall, on Jacaranda and helped to found the Hear Now Music Festival in Venice. Vijayan performed for over a decade with Southwest Chamber Music and can be heard on their Grammy nominated Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chávez, Vol. 3. She has been a featured soloist with the Los Angeles Master Chorale in Chinary Ung’s Spiral XII and Tan Dun’s Water Passion, including performances at the Ravinia Festival.  As a chamber musician, Vijayan has collaborated with such luminaries as Billy Childs, Chinary Ung, and Wadada Leo Smith on whose Ten Freedom Summers she was a featured soloist. In 2020, she joined acclaimed LA ensemble, Brightwork New Music.  As a teacher, she has been on the faculty of the Nirmita Composers Workshop in both Siem Reap and Bangkok.

Described as a “modern renaissance man” (Over the Mountain Journal), Grammy® nominated pianist Aron Kallay’s playing has been called “exquisite…every sound sounded considered, alive, worthy of our wonder” (LA Times). “Perhaps Los Angeles’ most versatile keyboardist” (LaOpus), Kallay has been praised as possessing “that special blend of intellect, emotion, and overt physicality that makes even the thorniest scores simply leap from the page into the listeners laps” (KPFK). Kallay’s performances often integrate technology, video, and alternate tunings; Fanfare magazine described him as “a multiple threat: a great pianist, brainy tech wizard, and visionary promoter of a new musical practice” and wrote: "Kallay’s performance is that of a Liszt for the modern era, of a live electricity that is unforgettable."

Kallay has performed throughout the United States and abroad and is a fixture on the Los Angeles new-music scene, regularly performing with Jacaranda, the LA Phil, Piano Spheres, and Wild Up!, amongst others. A sought-after recording artist, Kallay has releases on Cold Blue, Delos, Deutsche Grammophon, and Populist Records. He is the co-director of the three-time Grammy® nominated indie label MicroFest Records. Kallay was co-founder of People Inside Electronics and managing director of MicroFest throughout the 2010s, presenting cutting edge new-music to Southland audiences for over a decade.

More recently, Kallay is the founder and artistic director of Brightwork newmusic, a non-profit organization dedicated to curating and presenting new work through their in-demand inhouse Pierrot + percussion ensemble and underground concert series Tuesdays @ Monk Space. Through Brightwork’s robust education initiative, Project Beacon, Kallay works with talented high school and college composers and performers from diverse backgrounds, ensuring that the next generation of Southern California musicians flourish in an ever more competitive musical landscape.

In addition to his solo and chamber work, Kallay often performs with his duo partner, Vicki Ray, as the Ray-Kallay Duo. He joined Piano Spheres as a Core Artist in 2022. Kallay is on the faculty of Pomona and Scripps Colleges and spends his free time with his family and cycling in the San Gabriel Mountains.



HMC is deeply grateful for the generous support that created The Ken Stevens ’61 Founding Class Concert Series.