Concert at Saratoga Arts Pays Tribute to World War I Veterans

SARATOGA SPRINGS — From May 26 to 30, Musicians of Ma’alwyck will present “Under Four Flags” across New York State. The experience blends silent film with music shaped by World War I in honor of those lost in the conflict.

The film “Under Four Flags” (the flags represent America, France, Great Britain, and Canada) was shot in the summer of 1918, when Allied victory was far from assured. A new score by Max Caplan enhances the emotional progression of the film for today’s audience.

The concert opens with a work by Mihail Jora, written while he was recovering in a hospital after being wounded on the Eastern Front. His music is a personal response to the devastation of war.

The major work is Samuel Gardner’s piano quintet, composed after the death of violinist David Hochstein, who was killed on the Western Front in France in October 1918. Deeply heartfelt, the quintet serves as a musical memorial to Hochstein’s life. Gardner, an important violinist and recipient of the first Pulitzer Prize in Music in 1918, was also the grandfather of longtime Musicians of Ma’alwyck board member Eric Weiner.

“Under Four Flags” will be performed at Saratoga Arts on May 26. Tickets are available at https://secure.qgiv.com/for/concertticketing/event/underfourflags/.

Additional venues include: Temple Gates of Heaven in Schenectady (May 27), Star Theater in Cherry Valley (May 28), and Village Hall in Wyoming (May 30).