Rosy Weitham Trio for Flute, Clarinet, and Bassoon
Jacques Ibert Cinq Pieces
Walter Piston Three Pieces for Flute, Clarinet, and Bassoon

Join Erin Dubois (flute), Stephanie Jenkins (clarinet), and Maria Isaak (bassoon) in a concert exploring three composers experiences during the World Wars.

Jewish composer Rosy Weitham was one of the first Dutch women composers who completed a professional music education and received international acclaim. Living all over Europe, she found herself living in Amsterdam when World War II broke out. She survived by going into hiding, giving small concerts to those she hid with. Her music continued to be performed outside of the Netherlands, including in America.

French composer Jacques Ibert studied music from an early age at the Paris Conservatoire and won its top prize, the Prix de Rome at his first attempt, despite studies interrupted by his service in World War I. During WWI, he found himself enlisted in the Navy; that in itself was inspirational for the young composer, who based his popular Escales (Ports of Call) on places he’d visited while in active service – Rome, Palermo, Valencia, Tunis, Nafta. World War II also had an impact on Ibert’s career, his music having been banned by the pro-Nazi movement. The composer had to leave Paris and find exile away from occupied Paris. He spent time in Switzerland until War’s end, when he returned to musical life in the city.

Walter Piston, an American composer, made a living during the 1910’s playing piano and violin in dance bands and later playing violin in orchestras led by Georges Longy. He joined the U.S. Navy during World War I as a band musician after rapidly teaching himself to play saxophone; he later stated that, when "it became obvious that everybody had to go into the service, I wanted to go in as a musician". While playing in a service band, he taught himself to play most wind instruments. "They were just lying around," he later observed, "and no one minded if you picked them up and found out what they could do".