Westmoreland Symphony's chamber music series returns to Unity Chapel

Following outdoor dates during the pandemic in Hempfield Park, Westmoreland Symphony’s Summer Chamber Music Series returns to its longtime home in Unity Chapel for two performances.

The series opens at 7:30 p.m. July 28 Thursday with the Pittsburgh-based Beo String Quartet, familiar to WSO audiences from previous appearances.

The quartet plays original compositions, along with pieces by contemporary composers and classical quartet masterpieces.

The Unity Chapel performance will feature the debut of “People,” a piece by the quartet’s viola player, Sean Neukom. Other members are violinists Jason Neukom and Andrew Giordano and cellist Ryan Ash.

Jason Neukom has played with WSO for 15 years and is the assistant concertmaster.

“Having played there for so many years, I feel a close connection with the community despite being based in Pittsburgh,” he said. “This season, most of our concert engagements are on the east and west coasts of the U.S., as well as in South America, so we love the opportunity to perform closer to home.”

Giordano is new to the quartet, having previously played with the Altius Quartet, based in Colorado.

“ ‘‘People’ offers no other narrative context than the title,” Jason Neukom said. “The work starts with rain and sound effects created by the violins. The viola and cello introduce a languished, fragmented melody. The melody slowly builds to a state of triumph and optimism.

“How it ends is, in a way, up to the listener,” he said. “You could be tricked into thinking the quartet is using digital effects throughout the work, but it’s all done through acoustic techniques.”

“People” is the latest composition from a crossover show being developed by Beo, set to premiere in spring 2023.

The program also includes Jason Neukom’s arrangement of Koji Kondo’s “The Legend of Zelda,” Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 in C minor, Op. 110; and Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 1 in F Major, Op. 18 No. 1.

There is a thematic link between his piece and Beethoven, Sean Neukom said.

“For this program, we fell in love with the idea that the string quartet can, on one hand, be used to tell a specific story through the music and, on the other, present music whose material is and of itself the story being told,” he said. “The Beethoven on the program offers a nice contrast to this specificity: beautifully crafted music — volatile in its own way — but the composer has offered no suggested topic other than the music itself.

“Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 is written ‘In memory of the victims of Fascism and the War,’” he added.

Now in its seventh season, Beo has performed more than 100 concert works in the U.S. and Europe, including more than 45 world premieres.

The second concert of the chamber music series will feature Chatham Baroque at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 11 in the chapel at 111 Chapel Lane, Unity.

Founded in 1990, Pittsburgh-based Chatham Baroque plays music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque and Early Classical periods.

General admission is $15 at the door. Proceeds benefit the WSO Youth Symphony Orchestra.

For information, call 724-837-1850 or visit westmorelandsymphony.org.