REVIEW: SummerFest’s First Installment of the Brandenburg Concertos

August 16, 2026

Saturday, SummerFest 2026 offered the first installment of J. S. Bach’s six Brandenburg Concertos. In this concert we heard pared down chamber music versions (i.e., without conductor) of Concerto No. 3, BWV 1048; Concerto No. 5, BWV 1050, and Concerto No. 6, BWV 1051. The other three Brandenburg Concertos were slated for SummerFest’s Sunday afternoon concert at The Conrad.

I found Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major the most successful of the three concertos on Saturday’s concert. With flutist Emi Ferguson, violinist Aisslin Nosky and harpsichordist David Bellkovski taking the lavish solo roles, this trio gave a vibrant account of Bach’s counterpoint, marked by consistently lithe phrasing, convincing dynamic contrasts, and a modicum of stylish ornamentation. Each “Allegro” outer movement sparkled with bright tempos that managed to maintain the transparency of Bach’s elegant structures, and the “Affetuoso” middle movement for the three soloists alone proved as affective as it was pristine in its shimmering linear clarity.

Kudos to Belkovsky for his tastefully dramatic account of the first movement’s extensive harpsichord solo beautifully shaped with apt touches of rubato. The three solo voices were gracefully accompanied by four strings—one on a part from violin down to contrabass.

I wish I could be as enthusiastic about the performances of Concertos No. 3 and No. 6. In Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 in B-flat major, I noted the laudable character in Daniel McCarthy’s gently ebullient viola solos, and I appreciated cellist Coleman Itzkoff’s fleet but thoughtfully articulate lines. But overall, this Concerto performance lacked purposeful dynamic contrasts within each movement that could have effectively shaped the work.

The accomplished strings performing Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major appeared to be striving for the world’s speed record as they raced through the outer “Allegro” movements of this exuberant Concerto. The credibility they gained by successfully turning out Bach’s unrelenting, complex themes at such velocity was compromised by a bland, overall monochromatic account that reduced the Concerto to a busy etude. The whole piece was stuck in a mezzo forte to forte dynamic zone, and perceptible phrasing occurred only when a movement was finished.

In stark but welcome contrast to the major Bach works on this program, we heard Paul Wiancko’s short but compact 2018 Vox Petra for two violas and two cellos. The composer achieved surprising variety with simple successions of short chordal gestures—some bowed, some plucked—that used the four instruments in nearly every possible combination of this 10-minute sonic excursion. The two violists, Ayane Kozasa and Rebecca Albers, were joined by cellists Paul Wiancko and Coleman Itzkoff.

This concert was presented by the La Jolla Music Society on August 15, 2026, at The Conrad in downton La Jolla.