Don’t talk to Edward Arron about the aging of classical audiences. For one, he’s sick of hearing about it. More importantly, he doesn’t think it’s an accurate description of what is happening in the classical world today.

Edward Arron

“I have read articles that audiences are dying — and those articles are from the ‘60s,” says Arron, a world-class cellist and the director of the Wadsworth & Friends concert series, having taking over from Charles Wadsworth this season.

“I feel like there are more practitioners at a high level than there ever have been,” Arron says. “Music is better preserved on paper than it has ever been. The art form is thriving in that sense. People will always come to it. It is up to us to keep it creative and interesting. I am optimistic that people are coming and will continue to as long as the quality is high.”

High quality is exactly what the Wadsworth series is all about. Founded by Wadsworth in the late ‘90s and initially held in the pre-renovated Gallery 701, the long-running chamber series is known for bringing some of the top chamber players in the world. That legacy continues on Thursday when pianist Jeewon Park, violinist Chee-Yun, flutist Angela Jones-Reus, soprano Courtenay Budd, as well as Arron and Wadsworth himself, come to the Columbia Museum of Art for a 7 p.m. performance.

Wadsworth officially retired at the end of last season, but Arron has brought him back for this performance as a pianist, curator and composer. Along with three pieces by Wadsworth himself, the program features works by Amy Beach, the first major female American composer in the late 19th century; Astor Piazzolla, a 20th century Argentinean tango composer; Carl Maria von Weber, one of the first Romantic composers; and classical titans Johannes Brahms and J.S. Bach.

“I am really excited that he is coming back,” Arron says of Wadsworth. “When he retired from the series, we were all really sad … I promised the audience I would bring him back. He is one of my great friends, and we have a great time on the road together.”

If there is a theme of the evening, it’s the Romantic era and Romantic-inspired pieces — fitting for the week of Valentine’s Day.

“[Amy Beach’s] piece is a very Romantic dialogue between voice, cello and piano,” Arron says. “Charles’ music — he is a neo-Romantic for sure — they are ravishingly beautiful, tonal, lush and original melodies.”

In his role as artistic director, Arron aims to preserve what Wadsworth has accomplished while also building on the legacy.

“Charles had a way of unearthing treasures from any point in the last 300 years of composition,” Arron says. “That is one area where we are kindred spirits. My parents had this huge library of chamber music. I would find things by Haydn or Schubert that I never knew existed. It is fun to bring these lesser-known works to the public.”

Arron’s interests also extend to new music. He’s played and recorded with MOSAIC, an ensemble that has commissioned a dozen new works, and he’s a long-time member of Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble.

“My passion growing up was Mozart and Beethoven,” Arron says. “When I discovered that pieces were still being composed, I felt a responsibility for performing them. That’s how the music continues.”

As for classical newbies who might be intimidated, Arron and the Columbia Museum of Art want to make it easy. Students with valid IDs can buy tickets at the door for just $5 — compared to the regular $35 admission.

You have to admit that your Valentine’s date would be impressed.

“The thing I have tried to impress upon people is to invite someone to come with them,” Arron says. “Our promise is that it will be painless.”


The Wadsworth & Friends concert is on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Columbia Museum of Art. Tickets are $35; $30 for museum members; and $5 for students with valid IDs on the day of the performance. Call 343-0482 for more information.