Festival to celebrate music

Christi Salisbury and some friends started Flying Carpet Music last year to bring the kind of music they wanted to hear to our area.

“If it’s not out there, you have to create the opportunity,” says Salisbury, a Brookville High School graduate and classically trained violinist.

Salisbury’s goal is to bring classical, jazz and world music to Lynchburg through an annual festival, now in its second year and scheduled for next weekend.
The festival, called Saudade, begins with a concert of Mexican, South American and Spanish music at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10 at The Villa of Kriselea on Rivermont Avenue and continues with four more events:
—A concert of German Romantic chamber music at Randolph College’s Presser Hall at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 11;
—Educational master classes on the piano and violin, taught by Saudade artists, at 10 a.m. Sept. 12 at Presser Hall;
—Grammy award winner Raul Jaurena and his New York City ensemble performing tango music at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 12 at the Academy of Fine Arts’ Warehouse Theatre; and
—Seattle’s The Parker Duo performing their repertoire of jazz, classical, gypsy and pop music at 4 p.m. Sept. 13 at Grace Restaurant on Old Forest Road.

“We want everything to be fresh and in a setting that is beautiful,” Salisbury says. “Every venue fits the kind of music being performed.”

The tango night, in particular, is a long time coming for Salisbury, who has always wanted to base an event on the music of Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla.

“The music is so energetic,” she says. “There are different kinds of tango pieces. (Some are) very introspective, tortured songs of desire, and there are these wonderful dance pieces as well.”

The festival’s name, Saudade, is a Portuguese word to describe a feeling of nostalgia or longing.

“In Portugal, in the 13th century, when sailors would leave their wives or lovers, the women would have this sadness and longing for them,” she says, “but (also) hope that they would come back.”

That melancholy feeling fell right in line with the type of music she’s highlighting with the festival.

“It just seemed like the perfect way to express it.”

Tickets to each event are $18 in advance and $20 at the door for general admission, and $12 for students. A two-event ticket can be purchased for $32 general admission and $20 for students, and a pass to all five events is $55. The educational master classes are free for the audience and $20 for participants.

For more information, call (434) 386-1885.