Independent Arts News Reporting Concordia Chamber Players Presents “Stardust"on February 22, 2026
Reported on Tuesday, January 27, 2026. Updated February 10, 2026.
Pictured Above: Simone Dinnerstein. Photo Credit: Contributed.
NEWSROOM POST: NEW HOPE, PENNSYLVANIA
Grammy-Nominated Pianist Makes Concordia Debut in a Concert Celebrating the Magic That Connects Centuries of Great Music
New Hope, PA – Concordia Chamber Players invites audiences to experience the luminous beauty of chamber music spanning four centuries when they present “Stardust” on Sunday, February 22, 2026 at 3:00 PM. The program’s title reflects the magic and transcendent quality that infuses each composition—from the spare, meditative beauty of Estonian master Arvo Pärt to the exuberant Romanticism of Robert Schumann.
This concert marks the Concordia debut of Grammy-nominated pianist Simone Dinnerstein, whose artistry the Washington Post has called “strikingly original” with “irrefutable integrity.” Since her internationally acclaimed 2007 recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations topped the Billboard Classical Chart, Dinnerstein has performed in the world’s great concert halls, from Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center to the Berlin Philharmonie and Vienna Konzerthaus. Having world-class artists of Dinnerstein’s caliber perform here in our corner of Bucks County is truly something special.
Pictured Above: Rebecca Fischer. Photo Credit: Contributed.
Joining Dinnerstein are Concordia’s stellar string quartet: violinists Rebecca Fischer and Rubén Rengel, violist Jordan Bak, and Artistic Director and cellist Michelle Djokic.
The afternoon’s program features Arvo Pärt’s Da Pacem Domine (“Give Us Peace, Lord”), composed just two days after the 2004 Madrid train bombings. Originally written for four-part chorus, this arrangement for string quartet transforms a 9th-century Gregorian antiphon into Pärt’s signature tintinnabuli style—spare, meditative, and deeply moving.
Georg Philipp Telemann’s Sonata for String Quartet in A Major brings Baroque brilliance to the program. One of the most prolific composers in music history, Telemann was renowned in his time for quartet writing and composed at least forty works in the form, blending French, Italian, and German musical styles with remarkable inventiveness.
Dinnerstein will perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Keyboard Concerto in E Major, BWV 1053. Composed around 1738, this beloved concerto sparkles with joy in its outer movements, while the expressive middle Siciliano reveals the profound beauty characteristic of Bach’s most moving works.
Robert Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Opus 44, completes the program—a Romantic masterwork originally written for his wife, the pianist and composer Clara Schumann. Composed during Schumann’s “Chamber Music Year” of 1842, Clara called it “splendid, full of vigor and freshness,” and it remains one of the jewels of chamber music literature.
This concert is sponsored in part by the Arthur Judson Foundation.
A GLIMPSE BEHIND THE MUSIC: FREE OPEN REHEARSAL
The public is invited to attend a free open rehearsal on Saturday, February 21 at 3:30 PM at The Historic Phillips Mill, 2619 River Road, New Hope, PA. This unique opportunity allows audiences to witness the collaborative artistry behind these masterful works.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for the main performance on Sunday, February 22 are $40 and available online at concordiaplayers.org or at the door. Students under 18 years are always welcome to our concerts free of charge. As part of our commitment to making chamber music accessible to families, one accompanying adult is also admitted free with each child under 18.
The concert takes place at Trinity Church, 6587 Upper York Road, Solebury, PA.
For more information about Concordia Chamber Players, please visit concordiaplayers.org.
Pictured Above: Featured musicians for the upcoming Stardust concert. Photo Credit: Contributed.
Concordia Chamber Players was founded in 1997 in New Hope, Pennsylvania by Artistic Director and cellist Michelle Djokic. Michelle’s gifts for creative programming, her ability to communicate key aspects of the music, and the depth of her multi-faceted collaborations appeal to seasoned and new concertgoers alike.
The concerts include a stellar list of guest artists—including a host of Grammy award nominees and winners—performing in various intimate venues throughout beautiful Bucks County. Concordia showcases a range of talent, from veteran musicians to rising young performers, presenting seasons of treasured masterpieces and unexpected gems.
To learn more about the upcoming Stardust concert or to purchase tickets, visit Concordiaplayers.org
