A special Restoration Concert is lined up for Sunday, April 7, at 4 p.m. featuring the AlmaNova Duo (flute and guitar) and Speltz & Kupka (cello and violin). The program includes music by Petar Georgiev Kalica, Almer Imamovic, Heitor Villa-Lobos and Franz Schubert.
The concert is presented by the Restoration Concerts Committee of the Friends of the South Pasadena Public Library and will be held in the historic Library Community Room at 1115 El Centro St. in South Pasadena. Tickets will be available at the door for $25.
The award-winning ensemble, AlmaNova Duo, is an innovative flute and guitar duo presenting an eclectic program of chamber music. Flutist Jessica Pierce and guitarist Imamovic are both masters of their instruments, elevating the flute and guitar ensemble to the highest level of virtuosity and artistry.
Violinist Connie Kupka, a native Angeleno, is a member of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Kupka’s lifelong passion for chamber music (and orchestras) inspired her and her future husband, cellist David Speltz, to form their own ensemble, the Arriaga Quartet. The group went on to win the grand prize in the prestigious Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition and was able to tour with a broad range of offerings from the magnificent quartet repertoire.
Speltz has been active for years on many Los Angeles chamber music series in Los Angeles and participated in summer festivals throughout the United States. He was a member of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra under Sir Neville Marriner and served as the principal cellist of the California Chamber Orchestra under Henri Temianka.
For more information about Restoration Concerts, contact restorationconcerts@gmail.com or go to friendsofsopaslibrary.org/restoration-concerts.
Editor’s note: The version of this article that ran in the Review on March 29 included an incorrect headline and lead paragraph. Connie Kupka and David Speltz did form a quartet called the Arriaga Quartet, but only those two musicians will be performing at Sunday’s concert — not the entire quartet. The Review sincerely regrets the error.
First published in the April 4 print issue of the South Pasadena Review.
