Two of the city's best known classical musicians will be in concert as a duo on Friday.
Alban Classical Artists Society will host Erika Skowron on oboe and Angela Alba on piano at an evening recital.
The show features music composed by Bach, Fleming, Britten, Rameau, Babell, Hindemith and perhaps some surprises.
"The Hindemith piece is gorgeous, a piece I fell in love with in university and always wanted to play it, especially the second movement," said Skowron.
She also gets to demonstrate some other instrument skills and give the audience a rare treat, in this repertoire. It isn't often a local crowd gets to hear the English horn featured prominently but Skowron is adept at playing it, since it is a sibling instrument to the oboe.
Perhaps the most famous piece to feature the English horn is Dvorak's New World Symphony. Skowron sourced a Bach piece that sparked her interest and she is bringing that to the Friday night show in Prince George.
"It's not a really big switch for an oboe player but it's not an instrument audiences see a lot of," said Skowron, the principal oboe player for the PGSO. "The audience wouldn't have seen a lot of solo stuff on English horn. I just love this piece. It's originally written for oboe d'amore (another modified oboe design from the 18th century), but I don't own one of those and I had an arrangement for it using English horn instead. It's a famous piece, so fans of baroque music will probably recognize it."
This recital with Skowron and Alba happens Friday at 7:30 p.m. at St. Andrew's United Church (3555 5th Ave., behind Spruceland Shopping Centre).
Admission is $20 (children are free).
This is one of many chamber music concerts and recitals put on this year by the not-for-profit Alban Classical Artists Society. Many have been free of charge thanks to the sponsorship of the BC Arts Council, City of Prince George, and other supporters.
Alban Classical Artists Society puts emphasis on school shows, senior citizens' facilities, and recitals in public places like both branches of the Prince George Public Library, Huble Homestead, Farmer's Market and Prince George Airport.
ACAS also coordinates the local chapter of the New Horizons Band program, an educational ensemble to give adults performance experience on the orchestral instruments they are learning.
At least six concert appearances by ACAS are scheduled for later this spring and through the summer. They are also going to conduct a set of recorder lessons for elders, this fall, leading to those seniors performing a series of Christmas concerts in local care-homes.
"This past season we will have done about 20 free concerts throughout the city," said Skowron. "It's to bring music to the people of Prince George, maybe to people who wouldn't be able to access it otherwise. We get to bring it to them."
