In 1997 flutist Julie Scolnik and her husband, physicist Michael Brower, founded a fresh new chamber music series to bring “unstuffy, unpredictable, and unmatched” performances to communities in the greater Boston area. This upcoming season marks the twenty-ninth season of offering a five-concert series in both Andover and Brookline in which virtuosic, communicative artists perform unique thematic programs, from newly discovered, rarely performed gems to timeless masterpieces. Scolnik has always prided herself on the rapport that she has established with her audiences, breaking down barriers and connecting with them personally to enrich their intimate concert experiences.
All of Mistral’s Brookline concerts take place at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and the Andover concerts will be performed at West Parish Church—two intimate venues that boast beautiful acoustics and are perfectly suited for chamber music. All Andover concerts are on Saturdays at 4 pm and all Brookline concerts are onSundays at 5 pm(with one exception in December concert when the days are swapped) The late afternoon times suit all generations as they allow concertgoers to enjoy much of the weekend daylight and still have time for dinner after the concert.
THE BOULANGER CONNECTION
Bernstein, Fauré, Milhaud, Lili Boulanger, Copland, Piazzolla
September 13 at West Parish Church in Andover
September 14 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline
For their opening concert, Mistral explores the lineage of the master French pedagogue Nadia Boulanger. Guided by the profound influence of her teacher Gabriel Fauré, Nadia Boulanger became a transformative force in 20th-century music, shaping generations of composers with her unwavering dedication to craft, innovation, and the integration of tradition with modernity.
The program includes the Piano Quartet in G minor of her teacher, Gabriel Fauré, and a sampling of works of many students whose lives she influenced profoundly with her teaching, including Copland (Flute Sonata) Piazzolla (Four Seasons of Buenos Aires) two short concert pieces by her sister Lili Boulanger, Milhaud’s Scaramouch for Sax and piano, and a tour de force violin arrangement of Bernstein’s “Glitter and be Gay” from his Opera Candide.
YOUNG AT HEART (for ages 5-95) The Maria Martell-Winthrop Memorial Concert
Adolphe, Dukas, Mullikin
October 25 at West Parish Church in Andover
October 26 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline
Just in time for Halloween & Thanksgiving, Mistral offers an afternoon of vibrant musical storytelling: Bruce Adolphe’s Tough Turkey in the Big City, Pul Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, and David Mullikin’s The Emperor & the Nightingale. A program for all ages featuring strings, piano, brass, and winds. Connect with your inner child and come in your Halloween costumes! WCRB radio’s Cathy Fuller narrates! This annual concert is in honor of Maria Martell-Winthrop, a cherished friend and music lover whose life was tragically cut
short.
THE BAROQUE BIG BAND (please note day swap!)
Bach, Handel, Pallavacino, Rameau, Vivaldi, Telemann
December 6 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline
December 7 at West Parish Church in Andover
Mistral’s popular annual holiday concert ushers in the holiday season on Dec 6 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline and Dec 7 in West Parish Church in Andover. (Please note day swap!) As always, dynamic soloists will take turns in the spotlight in concerto masterpieces by J.S. Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel, and other, lesser-known Baroque gems. Warm and fuzzy doesn’t begin to describe the palpable buzz and energy at each of these performances. People just love Baroque music!
MISTRAL GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
Morricone, Williams, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Korngold, Bernard Hermann, Rota,
Portman
February 7 at West Parish Church in Andover
February 8 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline
Our annual Valentine concert will have film lovers swooning as Mistral artists offer excerpts & love themes from some of the most beautiful film scores by John Williams, Morricone, Portman, and Rota (Star Wars, Cinema Paradiso, Amarcord, Psycho, & Chocolat), and chamber work selections by film composers including Bernard Hermann’s Psycho Suite and Prokofiev’s Overture on Hebrew Themes.
AEOLIAN TAPESTRIES
Messager, Hahn, Saint-Saens, Enesco, Coleman
April 11 at West Parish Church in Andover
April 12 at Saint Paul’s Church in Brookline
Our season finale brings Mistral’s 29th season to a close with a program that spans centuries and cultures, featuring an eclectic mix of works for winds and strings in scintillating quartets, sextets, and a melodic and charming nonet arrangement of French composer André Messager’s beautiful ballet The Two Pigeons!
For more detailed program information, please visit our website: www.MistralMusic.org
For Calendar Listings
Single Tickets $40, and subscription rates for 3 or 4 concerts are $35. Free student rush tickets with ID at the door (if available). Order securely online at www.MistralMusic.org or call 978-474-6222.
MISTRAL has been bringing “unstuffy, unpredictable, and unmatched” concerts with internationally renowned musicians to the Merrimack Valley and Greater Boston area since 1997. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Julie Scolnik, Mistral performances are always a little eccentric, stubbornly personal, impassioned, and committed to invigorating old traditions with an ever-youthful perspective. The Mi