Rare Piano Music with Guest Violin explores keyboard and chamber works from a fascinating moment in music history: when the elegance of the late Baroque gave way to the clarity and emotional directness of early Classical style.

Much of this repertoire is rarely heard today, not because it lacks depth or beauty, but because concert life has long revolved around Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven. As those names came to dominate programs, composers such as Wilhelm Friedemann Bach and Georg Anton Benda quietly disappeared from view. Their music is strikingly personal, full of contrast, surprise, and expressive freedom, revealing how musical language was changing just before the Classical era fully took shape.

Pianist, composer, and historical-keyboard specialist Nate Sassoon, based in Basel, Switzerland, brings this music to life with an ear for color, balance, and expressive detail. His approach highlights the intimacy and immediacy of the repertoire rather than grandeur or weight. The program also includes original works by Sassoon, written in the spirit of the galant and early Classical styles, offering a contemporary voice shaped by historical sound and gesture. In addition to his performance career, Sassoon is an award-winning composer whose music includes theatre scores premiered in New York City and more than 35 independent video-game scores, many of them prize-winning. His music and performances have been heard in the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, France, Italy, and Switzerland.

He is joined by guest violinist Marienn Sánchez, based in Monterrey, Mexico, a prizewinner of multiple violin competitions and a recipient of national artistic grants. Active as a soloist and chamber musician, Sánchez is admired for her expressive focus and natural musical presence, bringing warmth and clarity to repertoire that thrives on nuance rather than display.

Together, Sassoon and Sánchez present a program built around rarely performed works by C.P.E. Bach, W.F. Bach, Georg Anton Benda, and Carl Maria von Weber, alongside new music written in historical style—offering New York audiences a chance to hear repertoire that is refined, intimate, and seldom encountered in the concert hall.

One night only. Limited seating. A reception will follow, with wine and Swiss cheese from Basel.