Salastina Presents Chamber Arrangement of Mahler’s Profoundly Moving “The Song of the Earth” in a Visually Immersive Program

Salastina, hailed as a visionary chamber ensemble, caps its 2022-23 Season with Arnold Schoenberg’s 1920 chamber arrangement of Mahler’s profoundly moving orchestral song cycle Das Lied von der Erde (“The Song of the Earth”), featuring celebrated guest artists Clara Osowski, mezzo soprano, and Thomas Cooley, tenor, on Sunday, June 11, 2023, 7:30 pm, at The Huntington’s Rothenberg Hall in San Marino. One of the composer’s final works, the six-movement piece, based on classical Chinese poetry and sung in German, is a meditation on the beauty and transience of life. Camilla Tassi (Osvaldo Golijov’s Falling Out of Time, Reena Esmail’s Requiem, Anna Deavere Smith’s Fires in the Mirror) is providing lighting design and projections for the production, creating a visually immersive experience.

Osowski, who sings “from inside the music with unaffected purity and sincerity” (UK Telegraph), appears as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States and Europe. Cooley, a singer of great versatility, expressiveness, and virtuosity, has been praised for his “sweet, penetrating lyric tenor” (New York Times).

Featured Salastina artists include Co-Artistic Directors and violinists Kevin Kumar and Maia Jasper White; Meredith Crawford, viola; Yoshika Masuda, cello; and Ben Smolen, flute; with special guest Ted Botsford joining them on double bass. Classical KUSC personality Brian Lauritzen hosts the program.

Salastina offers a unique perspective on the chamber music genre with a range of live and virtual performances presented with the ensemble’s signature spirit of playfulness, curiosity, and heart. Salastina has been described as classical music’s wingman. By day, its resident artists are world-class performers and studio musicians who have played on scores for countless favorite films and television shows. By night, they are on a mission to broaden the definition of what classical music was, is, and can be.

Tickets to the live performance on June 11 are $40; $10 for students. Extending its reach beyond the concert stage, Salastina is also offering the option to stream the program ($10/household) on-demand for a three-day period, from June 11-13, 2023. Rothenberg Hall is located at The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108. For tickets and information, please visit www.salastina.org.