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BroadStage
BroadStage is a contemporary performing arts presenter in Santa Monica that energizes audiences and community through bold performances and personal connections. A proud flagship of Santa Monica College, BroadStage is one of Los Angeles’ leading venues in which to experience daring artistic performances. Under the leadership of Artistic & Executive Director Rob Bailis, BroadStage is broadening its impact through a new artistic vision, celebrating our shared humanity, and expanding the role the arts play in the vitality of our diverse community.
*Programming and artists subject to change, please refer to the participating organization’s calendar listing for the most up-to-date program.
Events
Takács Quartet
After a sold-out appearance in 2022, audience favorite Takács Quartet returns to BroadStage with an exquisite program of Haydn, Beethoven, and a newly commissioned work from Los Angeles native and accomplished violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama, proudly co-commissioned by BroadStage. Known for innovative programming and virtuosic musicianship, The Takács Quartet, formed in 1975, has been described as “one of the world’s greatest string quartets” by The New York Times. Don’t miss this special evening of music.
Piece(s)/Composer(s)
STRING QUARTET IN B-FLAT MAJOR, NO. 4, SUNRISE
HAYDN
FLOW
Nokuthula NGWENYAMA
STRING QUARTET NO. 8 IN E MINOR
BEETHOVEN
Program Notes
Ngwenyama’s flow, composed for Takács Quartet, is a meditation on the theme of climate change.
The composer says, “We, as biological creatures, flow through life. Conversely, the flow of existence is temporarily housed in all living creatures each generation. Everything in nature flows and develops through time. Individual consciousness is a small part of all collectively lived experience. When the Takacs Quartet asked me to write them a piece about the natural world, I researched seasonal starling murmurations, black hole collisions, protein music (convertine protein sequences or genes to musical notes), SARS-CoV-2 Omicron and ‘Kraken’ variants, peat fields as nature’s gift to carbon reclamation, and lemur song and rhythms.”
Gramophone magazine proclaims Nokothula Ngwenyama as “providing solidly shaped music of bold mesmerizing character.” She gained international prominence winning the Primrose International Viola Competition at age 16 and has since crafted a career as a soloist with orchestras around the world, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She has appeared in recital at the Kennedy Center, Japan's Suntory Hall, the Louvre, and the White House.