Two Immortals launch our 2018 Summer Concert Series: Johann Sebastian Bach, likely the greatest composer who ever lived, and Ludwig van Beethoven, the fearless thunderer who bowed to no one as he kicked classical music to the next level. First up, Bach’s magnificent Brandenburg Concerto No. 1. A dozen players sweep you along its exuberant path, from brisk opening to jubilant finale. Beethoven’s crowd-pleasing Septet lets you enjoy the “softer side” of the iconic composer. Its lightness, high spirits, and infectious melodies made it all the rage in the composer’s own time and are guaranteed to delight you, too.

Two accomplished foursomes interpret two brilliant string quartets: Shostakovich’s brief Seventh, dedicated to his late wife, is one of many moods—from melancholy to ferocious to dream-like—and even the suggestion of a waltz; and Debussy’s only quartet is sensuous, luminous, full of passion and life. And when Four plus Four join forces you’ll hear a masterpiece by 16-year-old boy wonder Felix Mendelssohn that has youthful energy written all over it: his Octet—all gossamer and incandescent and lightning-fast—will leave you quite giddy with joy.

Join us for a two-grand-piano extravaganza as you time-travel with our dazzling pianists from the 18th to the 20th century and hear what 176 keys can do, including: Mozart’s only two-piano work composed for himself and a student; Schumann’s deeply Romantic Andante & Variations; Saint-Saëns’s witty, inside-joke-filled Carnival of the Animals; and Milhaud’s virtuosic Scaramouche, one of the composer’s most popular pieces.

Of course we don’t have anything against sonatas! But in their second back-by-popular-demand appearance at Omaha Chamber Music Society, Susanna and Victor uncover some hidden gems of the violin/piano repertoire…like Mozart’s charming Variations on a French song; Schubert’s Fantasy with plenty of bravura and just a touch of Hungarian spice; Prokofiev’s Melodies that range from serene to sassy; and Foss’s Three American Pieces, once called his “gift to America,” bring home the concert with some serious fiddling and square dance tunes.