Pacific Serenades Welcomes Back Two Young Artists

Pacific Serenades welcomes back young artists Ambroise Aubrun and Ben Bartelt, who performed with us for the first time in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

Asked how they would describe the appeal of playing chamber music, and how chamber music figures in their lives, as well as what made them look forward to playing this Pacific Serenades concert, they answered:

“My passion for chamber music started simply because chamber music was always the really fun class to go to when I was growing up. It was the moment when I could see my friends and it really gave a sense to those long hours of practicing on my own! Later on, I discovered the endless repertoire of chamber music, and I could never get away from it. I moved to Los Angeles to study with the amazing Guillaume Sutre (former 1st violin of the Ysaÿe Quartet), who is one of the greatest masters of chamber music playing, and he took my passion for chamber music to a completely different level. After UCLA, I was also lucky to study with another fantastic chamber musician, Martin Beaver (former 1st violinist of the Tokyo Quartet). Studying with such fascinating and passionate musicians really helped me become a smarter violinist, and I believe that chamber music is the fundamental of music playing, and that we should approach any pieces of the repertoire, concertos, symphonies as such.

“Pacific Serenades is a wonderful place to go, both as a musician or as part of the audience. Mark is truly passionate about music and offers high quality performances and very interesting programs. He proposes programs that combine world premieres and more known pieces of the repertoire, which is always so interesting for us as musicians, since we get to discover a new composer and a new piece every time. The venues he chooses are very intimate, which really brings the audience closer to the musicians. I first played in Pacific Serenades two years ago, and at that time, we were not sure if Pacific Serenades was going to survive the financial struggles that so many great concert series are facing. Being able to play there again brings me great joy, and I really hope to hear great concerts at Pacific Serenades in many years to come.” —Ambroise Aubrun

“I enjoy the collaborative aspect of playing chamber music. Everything you hear is the result of teamwork: everyone contributes an important role, and has times both in the spotlight and in the background; and interpretational decisions can be made democratically. There is also an incredibly rich and diverse repertoire, of which it seems I’ve only barely scratched the surface. For these reasons, I like to play chamber music as often as possible!

“It is always a treat to be able to perform with high caliber musicians. This is plenty of reason already to be looking forward to playing this concert. In addition, the program includes a piece which I have been wanting to perform for a long time, the Stravinsky Concertino. I consider it a masterpiece which isn’t performed as often as it should be, and I can’t wait to share it with the audience!” —Ben Bartelt